Customer Reviews

The Unexpected

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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Now the truth can finally be told... This late-'50s album by the amazing Raymond Scott boasts a truly ALL-STAR jazz supergroup line-up:

Elvin Jones

Milt Hinton

Kenny Burrell

Eddie Costa

Sam "The Man" Taylor

Harry "Sweets" Edison

"Wild" Bill Davis

Jean "Toots" Thielemans


What else do you need to know? Well, this is one of the wildest & weirdest jazz records of the period it was made -- or ANY period for that matter! Check it out -- even if you've never heard of Raymond Scott -- it's a 1-of-a-kind album! I wish I could give this CD reissue 7-stars -- 1 for each of it's exotic secrets!

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Despite using the services of some well-known jazz musicians, these guys are more in studio mode than jazz mode. Most of the tunes sound like TV show or movie soundtrack cues with some jazz influence but little or no improvisation. It's melodic, well played, and generally much more relaxed than the Scott Quintette pieces from the 30s. Consider it Scott's version of bachelor pad music or whatever they're calling it this year. Toots Thielemans, playing harmonica, is the star, sounding especially nice on "Over the Rainbow".

Then there are those vocal tracks. Dorothy Collins, (Scott's wife at the time and a singing star on "Your Hit Parade"), sings on two songs. Her vocals are double-speeded, like the chipmunks, but sung very intensely, like her head is going to explode. It sounds like Alvin with rabies. It's actually pretty funny in a deranged kind of way, and it's reassuring to know that Scott never stopped being a little bit loony.

It's great that Basta continues to document Scott's music with these reissues. Please do more- he was a true original.

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In 1959, Raymond Scott assembled an anonymous all-star band and dubbed them "The Secret Seven." With this group of top jazz musicians he recorded THE UNEXPECTED album in January of 1960. For nearly 45 years the identity of the Secret Seven line-up has remained a mystery, but now you can learn the identity of Raymond Scott's all-star jazz band by visiting a "secret" webpage whose location is revealed in the CD booklet...

This is another CD in Basta's Essential Reissue series, complete with original liner notes, cover artwork, and a newly-prepared booklet featuring historical info and previously unpublished photos...

Correct TRACK LIST:

1. Waltz of the Diddles
2. Temptation
3. And the Cow Jumped Over the Moon
4. A Message from Where
5. In the Beginning
6. Someone to Watch Over Me
7. March of the Diddles
8. Night and Day
9. And the Dish Ran Away With the Spoon
10. Quiet Entrance
11. Jill
12. Over the Rainbow

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Despite this album's all-star cast, and despite that I think that the earlier music of the Raymond Scott Quintet is dazzling and sometimes almost impossible to comprehend, "The Unexpected" is only, merely, plainly excellent - not astounding. Missing is the manic-benzedrine intensity of his earlier work.

Of course, a Raymond Scott album is not a jazz album, and as a previous reviewer noted, there is scant improvisation here. But loyal Scott votaries want precisely that - tightly arranged music that's closer to classical music in its nature. Alas, the arrangements here are not exceptional - none would compel one to run to the radio and shout, What the hail was THAT? Especially since at that same time Arthur Lyman was doing more original and satisfying arrangements - better recordings, too.

Curiously, much of "The Unexpected" seems aimed at a children's level. Many of the songs are based on nursery rhymes, and there's the grating novelty effect of the vocals being dubbed in at double speed. I think I'd avoid anyone who spoke seriously of such blague.

Raymond Scott was a strong influence on mid-20th century American Music, but this album sounds more influenced than influential. At his best, Raymond Scott used inventive rhythms, ground-breaking instrumentation, and original orchestration to create a body of work that survives today. The frenetic opening theme of The Simpsons show on Fox is vintage Scott, "Power House" written in the 1930's.

This album was produced in 1960, and is much more in synch with jazz of the day, and even pop music of the day, than his earlier work was. That is a shame. Indeed, Scott employed 'The Secret 7' who were really eight prominent Jazz musicians of the day, to record this album, and they were major talents on the 1960 jazz scene, but none is identified except for Toots Thielemans, on jazz harmonica.

In the end, this is not great jazz and is inferior Scott. Scott was so good, that the album is still good music, just not the great music Scott could make at his best.

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"A weird and wonderful jazz record. An extraordinary release in many ways, even for RAYMOND SCOTT. Some pieces are worthy of Scott's earlier Raymond Scott Quintet literature, which for many remains his stylistic hallmark. These pieces generally tend to be more complex, ambitious and yet shorter than his earlier works. You really need to listen at least a couple of times to figure out what is going on. But once you've got a grip on THE UNEXPECTED its virtues become obvious."

--David Lewis, ALL MUSIC GUIDE

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