Eddie Gale - Black Rhythm Happening

ORIGINATION Blue Note's Rare Grooves
LAST LISTENED TO last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT fairly good
RATING


Trumpeter Eddie Gale recorded this in '69 for his album of the same name. It was a rare headlining appearance for the man who had served his apprenticeship with some of the biggest names in avant garde jazz.

All of the rhythm here is panned hard left, which is a device i have always found irritating and off balance, especially when listening through headphones. Other than that, however, this is a pretty groovy tune. The bulk of the interest lies in the call and repsonse vocals of what sounds like a whole room full of people. They seem to be having a damn fine old time, chattering away and yelling inbetween bursts of singing.

Weaving under this and through the polyrhythms is a guitar line that meanders all over the place, a bit like an off-kilter Grant Green. There are also some occasional bursts of brass that are just ever so slightly atonal. It makes for an interesting fusion of soul jazz, avant garde jazz and gospel. No wonder then that it is said to have been one of the inspirations behind Archie Shepp's classic Attica Blues.

Jimmy Smith - Got My Mojo Working

ORIGINATION Got My Mojo Workin'
LAST LISTENED TO the other night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT always good
RATING

Well, it's about time! Long time readers will by now have noticed my liking for Jimmy Smith and right here is my all-time favourite Jimmy Smith track (or it is most days). It was recorded 17th December 1965 and was the first song that he sang on! This at the time came as quite a surprise and it's no wonder as he had been putting out albums for nine years by this point, with not one vocal sound on any of them (my estimate makes it around 33 albums). His voice is rich and bluesy and he went on to use it many times.

However, it is not Jimmy's voice that is the centre of attention here. It is his organ again. As usual. For over four minutes, making up the biggest part of the song, there is in my opinion simply the best organ solo you will ever hear. Anywhere. Ever. Ever. I don't have the technical music ability to describe it accurately. In fact, even laying aside any accurate descriptions, i don't think i could possibly do it any justice with any combination of words. For me it is the quintessential Jimmy Smith solo. It begins up high and mostly stays there, using repeated phrases endlessly, at other times hanging onto single notes for long periods. It's blue. It's funky. It moves me. It's perfect. If you don't like it i may never speak to you again.

Goldfingers

This morning found me waking to a combination of several versions of John Barry's main theme from the film Goldfinger. So, in roughly the order that they appeared in:

Jimmy Smith - Goldfinger (Part I)
ORIGINATION Monster
LAST LISTENED TO last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT good, but
RATING

There are two things that make this my favourite version of the Goldfinger theme. Firstly, of course, is the fabulous Mr. Smith and his mighty organ. It is a fact that no one beats Jimmy Smith for organ satisfaction, even here where he hardly appears, that is still the case.

The tune has a long introduction, making for a great, teasing beginning to the Monster album. A third of the way in, Jimmy plays some melody and vocal lines, forming the middle section. He only begins to solo in the last 45 seconds and it's a typically great Jimmy Smith solo, coming in on the high notes and working it's way down, repeating phrases all the way. Blue and soulful.

The secondly reason for my love of this version is Oliver Nelson's arrangement, which brings in further elements of the Goldfinger score. In particularly, the first minute is largely taken from Dawn Raid Over Fort Knox, which is the dramatic highlight of the original Goldfinger soundtrack.


John Barry - Goldfinger (Instrumental Version)
ORIGINATION Goldfinger OST
LAST LISTENED TO November
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT good, by association
RATING

Not the best known version on the original album, but for me the better of the two. It is more forceful, with a greater variety in textures and features a Beat-sounding guitar part instead of the vocals, which hints at Barry's earlier work. This version also throws in elements from other parts of the score, in manner that clearly inspired Nelson's arrangement for Jimmy Smith.

John Barry - Main Title: Goldfinger (Sung By Shirley Bassey)
ORIGINATION Goldfinger OST
LAST LISTENED TO November
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT good, by association
RATING

The famous one. It's a great moment in pop history and, whilst it's not a song that i'd ever write anything bad about, it's doesn't have Jimmy Smith on it. It does, however, have a great crescendo and some lovely little Bond-theme moments.

Ray Barretto - Goldfinger
ORIGINATION Señor 007
LAST LISTENED TO January
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT good, by association
RATING

Take a top latin-percussionist, add a whole load of Bond tunes and shake (not stir) well. Viola, a great party album. The version of Goldfinger is sadly not the best thing on this album, but it's great fun and more parpy than any other version of the tune. The atmosphere is also really quite different.

And finally…
There were sadly a couple of version of Goldfinger that didn't make it into my head this morning, but i feel deserve an honourable mention. Firstly, there are several more by Jimmy Smith, starting with the Part II Version from Monster, which sounds similar to Part I, only a good bit faster and with much more of Jimmy soloing. There are also two live versions, which may be in fact one version edited differently. Next comes Beatle-fave Billy Preston's, which has something of a Booker T. & The MG's feel. Unfortunately, he set his organ for a very rinky-dink sound, which is a fairly pants organ sound. Lastly comes Count Basie and HIs Orchestra, giving it a smooth, bit band setting. This is from his album Basie Meets Bond, which is well worth tracking down.

Jimmy Smith - Stay Loose

ORIGINATION Stay Loose
LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT higher than the sun
RATING

Jimmy sings again! Aces! Is this a dance? Damn, i think it is. I'm a sucker for those dance soul tunes. And this one has the added brilliance of Jimmy Smith and his soloing organ of delight. He even grunts along with it when he does solo. Nice brass accompaniment and groovy soul drums. It's a freedom dance, y'all.

Lou Donaldson - Who's Making Love

ORIGINATION The Best Of Poppa Lou
LAST LISTENED TO a few days ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT you never can tell
RATING

Saxophonist Lou Donaldson had a recording career that began in the '50s which then lasted nearly 50 years although, like many jazz artists of his generation, the '80s and '90s were not all that productive. His best known period is his soul jazz work of the '60s and that is the period mined for the 'Best of' compilation that i found this on.

Who's Making Love is a not bad piece of soul jazz, no surprise given that it Idris Muhammad on drums and Charles Earland on organ. It is also a cover, this time of Stax singer Johnnie Taylor's biggest hit.

Covers where something of the staple diet of soul jazz albums and the veered wildly between genius and heinous. Even a line up as good as this one is by no means a guarantee of a good cover. A fine quality of playing one could expect, but sometimes on the covers they just fell on their faces and this applies to pretty much all soul jazz.

However, back to this track. The good players play as good as one could hope and both Donaldson and Earland's solos are just the right combination of fire and bounce for this type of track. Idris Muhammad does, of course, no wrong (indeed, he also never shares the blame in the poor covers department). The track is also marked out by some slightly amateur singing of the chorus, a device that Donaldson used on more than one occasion. Depending on mood this can either be fun or irritating. Personally, i can't help but feel that picking out those lines with a horn may have been more in keeping but i can live with the singing.

Grant Green - It's Your Thing

ORIGINATION The Lost Grooves (v/a Blue Note)
LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT fairly good probably
RATING

Grant Green was one of the most notable guitarists on Blue Note Records during the early '60s, recording over 20 albums in the first half of that decade. His easy-sounding style of playing and habit of recording with organists meant his music became very popular on the soul jazz scene. Sadly his prolific output slipped somewhat towards the end of the decade due to a drug habit, which was to ultimately help bring about his early demise in '78.

However, before that sad event he made a return to Blue Note, with a slightly altered style that was moving more towards jazz-funk. This track, a cover of the Isley Brothers hit, was an out-take from his strongest LP of the period, 1970s Alive!.

Green plays in his usual laid back style and although he takes some fine solos, his style is somewhat over-shadowed by both Ronnie Foster on organ and Claude Bartee on trumpet, both of whose solos posess more fire than Greens. To be fair, this may be because Green solos first, but it is probably more to do with contrasting styles and on this track it is not his that stands out. No doubt the reason why this wasn't put out on the original album.

A final mention must be made to the ever-great Idris Muhammad on drums, whose hard, funky rhythms really dominate the track. He is supported by some conga and, apparently, vibes, although you'd be forgiven for not noticing them as they are buried deep in the mix. I never noticed them 'til i looked at the personnel listing.

Jimmy McGriff - The Bird Wave

ORIGINATION Electric Funk
LAST LISTENED TO january
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT reasonable
RATING

Another superbly funky piece of jazz from the period that Blue Note records calls its Rare Groove period (that being '67-'70). Jimmy McGriff only put out a few LPs for Blue Note during that time and Electric Funk is probably the best known.

On The Bird Wave, he tickles his hammond in a lovely fashion, with a style that is far more light fingered than the often-copied Jimmy Smith. As you would probably expect, there is plenty of funky brass stabs throughout, however here it's the rhythm section that is the big story. Sadly, they and the rest of the band are listed as unknown, which is a real shame because the drumming is excellent (i've long suspected it could be the superb Idris Muhammad, but there is no way to know).

The track opens with the drums alone, and it's one killer break. Next up is the electric bass, which meshes to the funky drums perfectly. Then in comes light-fingered McGriff, soon followed by those brassy slabs. The rest of the song plays out with as many funky breaks and crescendos as could be hoped for and all the time those drums and the bass keep the funk rolling.

The rest of the album, incidentally, is pretty damn good too.