SKF NOTE: Hall Overton arranged two big band dates for Thelonious Monk. Both concerts were recorded and originally released, in part, on vinyl. Thanks to digital technology the entire concerts are available on CD and in MP3 format.
Just a few years ago, someone discovered among photographer Eugene Smith‘s belongings, boxes of photos and tapes that included Overton and Monk rehearsing for these dates. Listen to this NPR story on one of the exciting discoveries in jazz history.
I found Mr. Overton’s obituary in a 1972 Down Beat.
SKF NOTE: Bill Pott‘s album, The Jazz Soul of Porgy and Bess, has a special place in my life. For starters, it was given to me a half-century ago by, Ed Matthews, Head A&R man at CBS Records at the time. Mr. Matthews lived across the street when I was a teenager and was a mentor deluxe. I will write about him in an upcoming post.
Next, this album was my introduction to drummer Charlie Persip. And, boy, was I impressed! Not only by Charli’s drumming, but also by the sound of his drums. To this day I still think both are great.
I was fortunate to meet Charli Persip — who dropped the “e” from his first name at some point — when I was at Modern Drummer. Charli took a bus to a bus depot near MD‘s office from New York City. I drove him to the office from the bus station. I mentioned this album and how much I loved it.
Charli said most, maybe all, of the cuts were first takes. (Wow!) He also said he came to the session after a rough night, not anticipating charts like Bill Potts’s charts. Charli said he had to pull himself together immediately — which he did.
Finally, this album was a limited edition, recently and mercifully made available as an MP3 download.
Check out the band lineup. Enjoy the music!
Bill Potts and his Orchestra : Art Farmer, Harry Edison, Charlie Shavers, Bernie Glow, Marky Markowitz (tp) Bob Brookmeyer (v-tb) Frank Rehak, Jimmy Cleveland, Earl Swope (tb) Rod Levitt (b-tb) Gene Quill, Phil Woods (as) Zoot Sims, Al Cohn (ts) Sol Schlinger (bar) Bill Evans (p) Herbie Powell (g) George Duvivier (b-tb) Charlie Persip (d) Bill Potts (arr)
SKF NOTE: I love this Francis Wolff photo from Blue Note‘s Miles Davis: Birdland 1951 CD booklet. Art Blakey‘s beret and bowtie are classic! The CD sound quality isn’t optimum, but it’s optimum enough to hear Blakey swinging his tail off. Excellent drumming.
I bought this CD because I was born a few months before these sessions, and I was living about 25-miles from Birdland on Long Island, NY. It was a kick hearing live music reflecting those times.
SKF NOTE: A candid shot of drummer extraordinaire Grady Tate from May/June 1974 issue of Different Drummer magazine. I can listen time after time to Grady’s playing with Stan Getz, Chick Corea, and Ron Carter on Getz’s album, Sweet Rain.
SKF NOTE: Hall Overton arranged two big band dates for Thelonious Monk. Both concerts were recorded and originally released, in part, on vinyl. Thanks to digital technology the entire concerts are available on CD and in MP3 format.
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