Hal Singer - Blue Stompin
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Hal SingerEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1995-01-25
Music Label: Ojc
Soundtracks:
- Blue Stompin'
- Windy
- With A Song In My Heart
- Midnight
- Fancy Pants
- The Blast Off
Free Music Notes for Blue Stompin
Free Music Review: Outstanding Small Combo Jazz
Hit: 5 Stars
This is my favorite small combo Jazz album of all time. I have owned the out-of-print vinyl for many years, carefully preserving it through the decades just in case they never saw fit to release it on CD. When Prestige announced it as a CD release in 1994, I bought five copies - two for me, and three for other Jazz loving friends who have been listening to me rave about it for years.
The first three tracks, which comprised side "A" of the vinyl, start with a slow, sexy blues progression. "Blue Stompin" is just loud enough to let you know that you're in for a total seduction. "Windy" picks up the pace ever so gently, never letting go of the sense of rhythmic buildup that is established in the first track. Charlie Shavers' muted horn lets you know that he's been listening a lot to Dizzy in the past few years, but he never lets go of his signature control and the power that is uniquely Shavers.
As if to pull back the reins just a tad, Hal Singer attacks the overlooked ballad, "With A Song In My Heart", with just enough gusto to inform us that he and his fellow players are seriously keeping their eyes on the prize. Shavers' horn comes in on the third chorus, warm as honey and full-throated, opening up the melody so that Hal Singer can sneak back in and make it all seem easy, tricking us into thinking it's all just so much routine.
A pleasant enough start and the mood is starting to build, but side "B" (track four) circles back to the beginning. "Midnight" reverts back to the groove that held sway for the first six minutes of side "A" with Blue Stompin' - easy, bluesy, and downright sensuous. You start to wonder if these guys are ever going to go for a sound that is a little less lazy. "Midnight" oozes pure, pale blues for a full eleven minutes, then fades out in such a way as to make you want to follow along as it quietly sneaks out of town.
Just when you think the boys have had it for the night and are ready to pack everything up and move on, "Fancy Pants" comes out blasting. Charlie Shavers (alright, I admit it - he's my favorite trumpet player, ever) starts off with a bang, blowing off a series of notes that almost sound impossible. They're out of the starting gate, and gaining fast on whoever is out there. After a few choruses, with Ray Bryant ably showing he can keep up, thank you, Shavers and Singer trade turns showing off, wordlessly explaining to all why this track is called Fancy Pants. After several choruses exhibiting almost everything they got, the track ends on an up note. For many people, this might have been enough. Suddenly, you can almost see the grins on their faces as they whip out The Blast Off, a toe-tapping, dance floor grinding crowd-pleaser that offers round after round of spirited showmanship. When it's over, you can imagine the smiles all around as, fully exhausted and satisfied, they let it quickly die out and you just want to start the album all over again.
Which is just what I usually do.
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