Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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And finally here are the results for our poll for the best albums of until 1959. Sorry for the delay.
One could write a lot about each of these albums, but I decided to focus on the concept of "album" in my write-ups, since that concept was developed in that period.

I received the following lists:

bonnielaurel
Brad
Dan
DaveC
Henry
Honorio
Listyguy
mileswide
nicolas
Schüttelbirne
SL3
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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100. Miles Davis All Stars | Miles Davis All Stars, Vol. 1
Recording: December 24, 1954
Release: 1955
Producer: Bob Weinstock
Label: Prestige
Genre: Cool Jazz
Line-Up: Kenny Clarke (drums), Miles Davis (trumpet), Percy Heath (bass), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Thelonious Monk (piano)

Points: 425
Finished #15 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#27)
Not a Fan: bonnielaurel (#93), SL3 (#94)

A | Bags‘ Groove (Milt Jackson)
B | Swing Spring (Miles Davis)

On December 24, 1954, Miles Davis did what everybody does on Christmas Eve: Recording not one, but two albums. Granted, it's two 10'' LPs, which together make up 40 minutes, but that's beside the point. I can't find the release date, but it would be interesting to see if Prestige released both volumes on the same date. It‘s also interesting that Vol. 1 made the final list while Vol. 2 did not even receive a single vote in our monthly poll.
The first volume consists of just two songs, each making up one side of the LP. The inclusion of Milt Jackson‘s vibraphone has a notable influence on the sound of the group. That instrument does not have the best reputation but it was not too uncommon for jazz musicians in the 1950s and 1960s to use it (other vibraphonists other than Jackson would be Teddy Charles or Bobby Hutcherson for example). Clarke, Heath and Jackson all played together in the Modern Jazz Quartet at the time, so the ‚cool‘ sound of the album is quite similar to what that group was up to at the time. The album also features one of a select number of recordings where Davis and Monk got to play together. Clarke and Heath were also the same rhythm section Davis used on multiple of his previous albums. The jazz world was not that big and the same people tend to make appearances on other people‘s albums.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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99. Horace Silver Quintet | Horace Silver Quintet (Vols. 1 & 2)
Recording: November 13, 1954 (Vol. 1) – February 6, 1955 (Vol. 2)
Release: May 1955 (Vol. 1) – December 1955 (Vol. 2)
Producer: Alfred Lion
Label: Blue Note
Genre: Hard Bop
Line-Up: Art Blakey (drums), Kenny Dorham (trumpet), Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone), Horace Silver (piano), Doug Watkins (bass)

Points: 456
Finished #12+13 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #201
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #1867
Biggest Fan: Brad (#37)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#89)

Vol. 1
A1 | Room 608 (Horace Silver)
A2 | Creepin‘ In (Horace Silver)
B1 | Doodlin‘ (Horace Silver)
B2 | Stop Time (Horace Silver)

Vol. 2
A1 | Hippy (Horace Silver)
A2 | The Preacher (Horace Silver)
B1 | Hankerin‘ (Hank Mobley)
B2 | To Whom It May Concern (Horace Silver)

Originally released in two volumes of 10‘‘ LPs, this album was later reissued with the title Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers. The band was the same that played with Art Blakey as the Jazz Messengers, but since Horace Silver led the sessions it was only fair that he‘d be mentioned on the album cover. Almost all of the compositions were also written by Silver himself with the exception of „Hankerin“. Silver‘s compositions typically emphasize melodies, often catchy ones. It might be interesting to see when „The Jazz Messengers“ became eponymous with Art Blakey because at some point they did, but here it seems the name was simply used to describe the band.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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98. Count Basie & Joe Williams | Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings
Recording: May 17, 1955 (A-side) – July 26, 1955 (B-side)
Release: 1955
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Clef
Genre: Vocal Jazz, Big Band, Standards, Swing
Line-Up: William Basie (piano), Henry Coker (trombone), Wendell Culley (trumpet), Frank Foster (tenor saxophone), Charlie Fowlkes (baritone saxophone), Bill Graham (alto saxophone), Freddie Green (guitar), Bill Hughes (trombone), Eddie Jones (bass), Reunald Jones (trumpet), Thad Jones (trumpet), Joe Newman (trumpet), Sonny Payne (drums), Ben Powell (trombone), Marshall Royal (alto saxophone, clarinet), Frank Wess (tenor saxophone, flute), Joe Williams (vocals)

Points: 460
Finished #17 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #2158
Biggest Fan: Henry (#29)
Not a Fan: mileswide (#91), Honorio (#96)

A1 | Every Day I Have the Blues (Peter Chapman, Mayall York)
A2 | The Come Back (Memphis Slim)
A3 | Alright, Okay, You Win (Sidney Wyche)
A4 | In the Evening (When the Sun Goes Down) (Leroy Carr, Don Raye)
B1 | Roll ‚Em Pete (Pete Johnson, Big Joe Turner)
B2 | Teach Me Tonight (Sammy Cahn, Gene DePaul)
B3 | My Baby Upsets Me (Joe Williams)
B4 | Please Send Me Someone to Love (Percy Mayfield)
B5 | Ev‘ry Day (Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal)

Count Basie‘s orchestra was one of the select few who got to work with lots of talented and even famous singers and still never had the status of a „backing band“. Another example of this phenomenon would be Benny Goodman. So, Count Basie could work with Billie Holiday and it was seen as a collaboration between two artists, not one artist granting a big band their favor.
Basie worked with lots of different singers, but the most notable is probably Jimmy Rushing. Their collaboration lasted for most of the 1930s and 1940s. Most of Basie‘s output was recorded after that period however, so there‘s not that much material of this collaboration.
Joe Williams sang with the Count Basie Orchestra from 1954 to 1961. Their first album together Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings was recorded in two sessions. I am not sure whether the intent of the sessions was the production of an album; in the first session four songs were recorded, two of which were released as a single. „Every Day I Have the Blues“ as the A-side (though under the title „Every Day“) and „The Comeback“ as the B-side. This single was released in June 1955 and became a sizable hit. The second recording session for the album was done in July, which might have been planned from the start or might have seemed like a good idea after the success of the single – who knows.
What we do know is that the album has kept resonating with people years after its release. It is worth noting that a different album was released two years after titled The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays, Joe Williams Sings Standards. It shares the parallel structure of the title, but is far less well-known than their earlier effort.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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97. Various Artists | My Fair Lady (Original Broadway Cast)
Recording: March 24, 1956
Release: April 2, 1956
Producer: Goddard Lieberson
Label: Columbia
Genre: Show Tunes
Line-Up: Franz Allers (conductor), Paul Brown, Melisande Congdon, Gordon Ewing, Lola Fisher, Rosemary Gaines, Maribel Hammer, Glenn Kezer, William Krach, James Morris, Colleen O‘Connor, Muriel Shaw, Reid Shelton, Patti Spangler, Herb Surface, David Thomas, Gloria Van Dorp
Cast
Julie Andrews (Eliza Doolittle)
Philippa Bevans (Mrs. Pearce)
Robert Coote (Colonel Hugh Pickering)
Gordon Dilworth (Selsey Man/Harry/Lord Boxington)
Rex Harrison (Henry Higgins)
Stanley Holloway (Alfred P. Doolittle)
John Michael King (Freddy Eynsford-Hill)
Rod McLennan (Another Bystander/Jamie/Ambassador)

Points: 461
Finished #14 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #184
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #2857
AM rank: #1751
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#2)
Not a Fan: Schüttelbirne (#94), DaveC (#95), Listyguy (#97), Brad (#98), Honorio (#100)

A1 | Overture / Why Can‘t the English
A2 | Wouldn‘t It Be Loverly
A3 | With a Little Bit of Luck
A4 | I‘m an Ordinary Man
A5 | Just You Wait
A6 | The Rain in Spain
B1 | Ascot Gavotte
B2 | On the Street Where You Live
B3 | You Did It
B4 | Show Me
B5 | Get Me to the Church on Time
B6 | A Hymn to Him
B7 | Without You
B8 | I‘ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face

All songs by Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner.

My Fair Lady is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw‘s play Pygmalion in which phonetician Henry Higgins decides to turn Cockney-speaking flower girl Eliza Doolittle into a lady. The musical retains most of the original story beats from the play but famously changed the ending into a romantic one which is still a controversial choice.
The original cast featured Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews. The former reprised his role for the film adaptation which won multiple Oscars. Julie Andrews was replaced by Audrey Hepburn (whose voice was dubbed by Marni Nixon), but still managed to win the Oscar the same year for Mary Poppins.
Anyway, the musical was a major success on Broadway and the accompanying cast recording was the best-selling album of 1956 in the United States. The main draw behind having a cast recording of a musical is due to people who could not get tickets because of money, time, travel problems etc. could still experience the musical by buying the album. The first really successful example of that was 1943‘s cast recording of Oklahoma! in a box set of 78-rpm singles which sold a million copies.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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96. Sister Rosetta Tharpe | Gospel Train
Recording: July 2, 1956 (A3, A4, A5, A6, B4, B5, B6) – July 5, 1956 (A1, A2, B1, B2, B3)
Release: December 1956
Producers:
Label: Mercury
Genre: Traditional Black Gospel, Blues
Line-Up:
July 2, 1956: Doc Bagby (organ), Panama Francis (drums), Ernie Hayes (piano), Ernest Richardson (guitar), Rosetta Tharpe (vocals, guitar), Lloyd Trotman (bass)
July 5, 1956: Doc Bagby (organ), George Duvivier (bass), Panama Francis (drums), Ernie Hayes (piano), Thomas Ellis Johnson (backing vocals), Ernest Richardson (guitar), Lonnie Smith (backing vocals), Rosetta Tharpe (vocals, guitar), Joseph Williams (backing vocals) + EITHER James Jones OR Robert Lewis (backing vocals)

Points: 464
Finished #17 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#19)
Not a Fan: Henry (#99)

A1 | Jericho (Traditional)
A2 | When They Ring the Golden Bell
A3 | Two Little Fishes Five Loaves of Bread (Bernie Hanighen)
A4 | Beams of Heaven
A5 | Cain‘t No Grave Hold My Body Down
A6 | All Alone
B1 | Up Above My Head There‘s Music in the Air
B2 | I Shall Know Him
B3 | Fly Away
B4 | How About You
B5 | Precious Memories
B6 | 99 ½ Won‘t Do

All songs written by Rosetta Tharpe except A1 and A3.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe may have sung gospel and used „Sister“ as part of her name, but she was not a nun. This might have been obvious to you, but it was not to me.
In any case, Tharpe was one of the first successful singers to combine gospel with electric guitar, which served as an important influence on R&B and later Rock & Roll music. She had already gained a lot of popularity in the 1930s and 40s with singles like „Rock Me“.
Gospel Train was not her first album, but is probably her most famous. It is the result of two recording sessions in July 1956. The second of these included The Harmonizing Four, a gospel quartet from New York City, providing backing vocals. This was not the first recording of some of these songs: „Up Above My Head There‘s Music in the Air“ is probably Tharpe‘s most famous compositions and was originally recorded by her in 1947.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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95. Shelly Manne | The Three
Recording: September 10, 1954
Release: 1955
Producer: Lester Koenig
Label: Contemporary
Genre: Cool Jazz
Line-Up: Jimmy Giuffre (clarinet, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone), Shelly Manne (drums), Shorty Rogers (trumpet)

Points: 465
Finished #16 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#16)
Not a Fan: Henry (#94), bonnielaurel (#97), Dan (#98), Honorio (#99), Brad (#100)

A1 | Flip (Shelly Manne)
A2 | Autumn in New York (Vernon Duke)
A3 | Pas de trois (Jimmy Giuffre)
B1 | Three on a Row (Shorty Rogers)
B2 | Steeplechase (Charlie Parker)
B3 | Abstract No. 1 (Jimmy Giuffre, Shelly Manne, Shorty Rogers)

In some of these comments I mentioned the jazz world not being that big in the 1950s; the same musicians appear on all sorts of releases. That is still true, but there‘s also different jazz scenes inside the United States. They did have connections, but geographical distances contributed in those scenes developing distinct sounds. You could compare it to East Coast vs. West Coast in Hip Hop in later decades. There‘s some similarities to jazz in the 1950s: There was a vibrant jazz scene on the East Coast of the USA, but the West Coast (Los Angeles to be specific) also had its very own scene with musicians like Gerry Mulligan, Chico Hamilton and Dave Brubeck. They mostly played Cool Jazz and were often dismissed as inferior.
Shelly Manne was an important figure in the West Coast scene of the 1950s. He worked in all sorts of styles, sometimes more experimental and boundary-pushing, sometimes indulging in populist ventures like albums of Broadway and television music. He also used to play in Stan Kenton‘s big band and was a side-man for people Sonny Rollins or Stan Getz.
The Three belongs to the more „avant-garde“ side of his output. Based on jazz standards and original compositions the trio manages to explore these compositions and experiment with them.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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94. Anita O‘Day | Anita
Recording: December 6, 1955 (A4, A6, B1, B6) – December 7, 1955 (A3, A5, B3, B5) – December 8, 1955 (A1, A2, B2, B4)
Release: 1956
Producer: Buddy Bregman
Label: Verve
Genre: Vocal Jazz
Line-Up:
December 6, 1955: Barney Kessel (guitar), Joe Mondragon (bass), Anita O‘Day (vocals),Paul Smith (piano), Alvin Stoller (drums)
December 7, 1955: Corky Hale (harp), Barney Kessel (guitar), Dan Lube (violin), Edgar Lustgarten (cello), Virginia Majewski (viola), Joe Mondragon (bass), Anita O‘Day (vocals), Lou Raderman (violin), Paul Smith (piano), Alvin Stoller (drums)
December 8, 1955: Heinie Beau (clarinet), Milt Bernhart (trombone), Benny Carter (alto saxophone), Morty Corb (bass), Joe Howard (trombone), Barney Kessel (guitar), Eddie Miller (tenor saxophone), Red Nichols (cornet), Anita O‘Day (vocals),Moe Schneider (trombone), Paul Smith (piano), Jess Stacy (piano), Alvin Stoller (drums), Lloyd Ulyate (trombone), Si Zentner (trombone)

Points: 467
Finished #18 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Bubbling Under
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#7)
Not a Fan: mileswide (#96), DaveC (#98), Schüttelbirne (#100)

A1 | You‘re the Top (Cole Porter)
A2 | Honeysuckle Rose (Andy Razaf, Fats Waller)
A3 | A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square (Eric Maschwitz, Manning Sherwin)
A4 | Who Cares? (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
A5 | I Can‘t Get Started (Ira Gershwin, Vernon Duke)
A6 | Fine and Dandy (Paul James, Kay Swift)
B1 | As Long As I Live (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler)
B2 | No Moon at All (David Mann, Redd Evans)
B3 | Time After Time (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne)
B4 | I‘ll See You in My Dreams (Isham Jones, Gus Kahn)
B5 | I Fall in Love Too Easily (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne)
B6 | Beautiful Love (Haven Gillespie, Wayne King, Egbert Van Alstyne, Victor Young)

A lot of the data you can find for this album is flawed. Most of the information above was adapted from the liner notes of The Complete Anita O‘Day Verve/Clef Sessions which was really helpful for determining the line-up of the individual sessions.
Most sources would have you believe that there is a fixed line-up for all the tracks, but that is not true. While the sessions did take place on three subsequent days, they not only feature different line-ups but different kinds of line-ups. The first session is a small ensemble performance with only the bare minimum instrumentation for jazz. The second session added a small string section for lush ornamentions in the four ballads recorded in that session. The final session includes lots of brass and woodwinds for a big band feel. These different styles are all used on a number of standards which O‘Day provides the voice for. She had worked with big band leaders like Gene Krupa and Stan Kenton and had also had quite a few troubles with the law because of drug possession.
This album for Verve Records was one of the first releases on Norman Granz‘s new label and the first one in the Popular music series.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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93. Pérez Prado & Shorty Rogers | Voodoo Suite Plus Six All-Time Greats
Recording: April 8, 1954 (A) – February 15, 1955 (B2, B4, B5, B6) – February 18, 1955 (B1, B3)
Release: 1955
Producers:
Label: RCA Victor
Genre: Mambo, Afro-Cuban Jazz
Line-Up:
April 8, 1954: Milt Bernhart (trombone), Harry Betts (trombone), Pete Candoli (trumpet), Joe Colvin (trombone), Bob Cooper (tenor saxophone), Don Dennis (trumpet), Modesto Durán (congas), Maynard Ferguson (trumpet), Eddie Gómez (conga), Shelly Manne (drums), Mike Pacheco (bongos), Pérez Prado (percussion), Bill Regis (trumpet), Don Robinson (baritone saxophone), Shorty Rogers (trumpet), Stan Seckler (alto saxophone), Bud Shank (alto saxophone, flute), Tibor Shik (French horn), Walter Stuart (trumpet), Don Tosti (bass), Steve Valera (congas), Ray Vázquez (bongos), Carlos Vidal (congas)
February 15, 1955: Leo Acosta (drums), René Bloch (alto saxophone), Roberto Casanova (congas), Bill Castagnino (trumpet), Juan Cheda (bongos), Rolf Erikson (trumpet), Ed Guerrero (bass), Jay Hill (trombone), Nash Maez (tenor saxophone), Willie Maiden (tenor saxophone), Pérez Prado (percussion), Bill Regis (trumpet), Luis Valisan (trumpet), Ray Vázquez (baritone saxophone)
February 18, 1955: Leo Acosta (drums), Charles Bilek (violin), René Bloch (alto saxophone), Pete Candoli (trumpet), Roberto Casanova (congas), Bill Castagnino (trumpet), Juan Cheda (bongos), Rolf Erikson (trumpet), Robert Freda (violin), Ed Guerrero (bass), Jay Hill (trombone), Nash Maez (tenor saxophone), Willie Maiden (tenor saxophone), Alladin Pallante (violin), Pérez Prado (percussion), Bill Regis (trumpet), Luis Valisan (trumpet), Ray Vázquez (baritone saxophone)

Points: 467
Finished #11 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #139
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#23)
Not a Fan: Listyguy (#93), Brad (#95), Henry (#96)

A | Voodoo Suite (Pérez Prado)
B1 | St. James Infirmary(Joe Primrose)
B2 | In the Mood (Joe Garland)
B3 | I Can‘t Get Started (Vernon Duke, Ira Gershwin)
B4 | Jumping at the Woodside (Count Basie)
B5 | Stomping at the Savoy (Edgar Sampson, Benny Goodman, Chick Webb)
B6 | Music Makers (Harry James, Don Raye)

Imagine you assemble a 22-headed orchestra and record a 23 minute long piece featuring diverse influences from different jazz styles which you entitle „Voodoo Suite“. You now have three ways to release it: As a single,but then you would have to cut some parts – you don‘t want to do that. People from your label gave you the idea to do a tone poem combining mambo and jazz and they also don‘t want you to cut it down. You could release it as a 10‘‘ LP, but then you would have to split the song in two halves and to hear the entire song people would have to turn the record around, leaving an ugly pause in the middle of the piece. You also don‘t want that: The only possibility left is to include it on a bigger-sized LP where it will occupy the entire A-side. Now that leaves the B-side free for other stuff – how great. Except, you haven‘t actually recorded anything with the same group and it would be quite hard to assemble them again, considering that many of them were called up on a rather spontaneous basis.
So instead you decide to fill the B-side with mambo treatments of jazz classics like „In the Mood“ and „Stompin‘ at the Savoy“. It‘s an interesting choice but it also results in your B-side being frequently disregarded in favor of the ambitious A-side. The cover even seems to be a bit ashamed of its B-side (which doesn‘t say anything about its quality, though).
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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92. Tito Puente and His Orchestra | Mamborama
Recording:
Release: 1955
Producer: Ralph Seijo (?)
Label: Tico
Genre: Mambo
Line-Up:

Points: 473
Finished #19 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#11)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#94), Brad (#96)

A1 | Mambo Tipico (Gilberto Valdés)
A2 | Mambo Inn (Bobby Woodlen, Grace Sampson, Jay Martins, Mario Bauza)
A3 | Mambolino (Tito Puente)
A4 | Mambo Rumbon (Gilberto Valdés)
A5 | Mambo Rama (Tito Puente)
A6 | Mambo Lenko (Tito Puente)
B1 | Ran Kan Kan (Tito Puente)
B2 | Mambo with Me (Edgar Sampson, Grace Sampson)
B3 | Mambo Gallego (Tito Puente)
B4 | Que lindo el mambo (Tito Puente)
B5 | Mambiando (Tito Puente)
B6 | Titoro (Tito Puente)

Next to Pérez Prado, Tito Puente is one of the quintessential names of the „mambo mania“ of the 1950s which saw an increase in dance-oriented Latin music being played and released in the United States. Puente was a percussionist, but also studied music theory and conducting at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City.
There is barely any information to be found about this record. I have no idea when it was recorded or who played on it. The album sleeve and vinyl do not convey any meaningful information either – even the songwriters were not listed there. Puente had already a few 10‘‘ LPs for Tico Records, a New York City-based record label specializing in Latin music. For their first 12‘‘ LP they chose Puente which does hint at the commercial success his music has already had or trust that it would be successful. The album does not feature vocals, so the listener can focus on Puente‘s arrangements of mostly his own compositions and the solos of his orchestra. I am pretty sure Puente is playing the vibraphone here himself, but I am not certain. In any case, this poll has shown a remarkable affinity for mambo which is not something I would have expected. We have multiple albums of Latin dance music still to come.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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91. Frank Sinatra | A Swingin‘ Affair!
Recording: April 9, 1956 (A7) – November 15, 1956 (A3, A6, A8) – November 20, 1956 (A2, A4, A5, B2) – November 26, 1956 (A1, B1, B6) – November 28, 1956 (B3, B4, B5, B7)
Release: May 6, 1957
Producer: Voyle Gilmore
Label: Capitol
Genre: Standards, Vocal Jazz
Line-Up:
April 9, 1956: Eleanor Aller (cello), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Arnold Belnick (violin), Cy Bernard (cello), Milt Bernhart (trombone), Harry Bluestone (violin), Ennio Bolognini (cello), Joe Comfort (bass), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Harry Edison (trumpet), Chuck Gentry (baritone saxophone), Henry Hill (violin), Helen Hutchison (harp), Maxine Johnson (viola), Harry Klee (alto saxophone), Manny Klein (trumpet), Ed Kusby (trombone), Ray Linn (trumpet), Bill Miller (piano), Jimmy Priddy (trombone), Nelson Riddle (conductor), George Roberts (bass trombone), Mischa Russell (violin), Babe Russin (tenor saxophone), Wilbur Schwartz (alto saxophone), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Paul Shure (violin), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Felix Slatkin (violin), Marshall Sosson (violin), Alvin Stoller (drums), George Van Eps (guitar), Champ Webb (tenor saxophone)
November 15, 1956: Eleanor Aller (cello), James Arkatov (cello), Victor Arno (violin), George Arus (trombone), Alex Beller (violin), Ennio Bolognini (cello), Nick Bonney (guitar), Joe Comfort (bass), Kurt Dieterle (violin), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Jack Dumont (alto saxophone), Walter Edelstein (violin), Harry Edison (trumpet), Conrad Gozzo (trumpet), Henry Hill (violin), Maxine Johnson (viola), Kathryn Julye (harp), Louis Kievman (viola), Ed Kusby (trombone), Paul Lawson (baritone saxophone), Mickey Mangano (trumpet), Bill Miller (piano), Dominic Mumolo (alto saxophone), Alex Murray (violin), Erno Neufeld (violin), Dick Noel (trombone), Lou Raderman (violin), Don Raffell (tenor saxophone), Nelson Riddle (conductor), George Roberts (bass trombone), Nathan Ross (violin), Eudice Shapiro (violin), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Buck Skalak (tenor saxophone),Alvin Stoller (drums)
November 20, 1956: Eleanor Aller (cello), George Arus (trombone), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Cy Bernard (cello), Nick Bonney (guitar), James Briggs (tenor saxophone), Joe Comfort (bass), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Harry Edison (trumpet), Conrad Gozzo (trumpet), Maxine Johnson (viola), Kathryn Julye (harp), Harry Klee (alto saxophone), Joe Koch (baritone saxophone), Ed Kusby (trombone), Edgar Lustgarten (cello), Micky Mangano (trumpet), Bill Miller (piano), Ted Nash (tenor saxophone), Erno Neufeld (violin), Dick Noel (trombone), Lou Raderman (violin), Nelson Riddle (conductor), Nathan Ross (violin), Mischa Russell (violin), Wilbur Schwartz (alto saxophone), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Paul Shure (violin), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Felix Slatkin (violin), Marshall Sosson (violin), David Sterkin (viola), Alvin Stoller (drums), Gerald Vinci (violin)
November 26, 1956: Eleanor Aller (cello), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Ennio Bolognini (cello), Nick Bonney (guitar), Joe Comfort (bass), Irv Cottler (drums), Harold Dicterow (violin), Kurt Dieterle (violin), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Harry Edison (trumpet), David Frisina (violin), Stanley Harris (viola), Maxine Johnson (viola), Kathryn Julye (harp), Jules Kinsler (tenor saxophone), Harry Klee (alto saxophone), Joe Koch (baritone saxophone), Ray Linn (trumpet), Edgar Lustgarten (cello), Micky Mangano (trumpet), Murray McEachern (trombone), Bill Miller (piano), Alex Murray (violin), Erno Neufeld (violin), Dick Noel (trombone), Lou Raderman (violin), Nelson Riddle (conductor), George Roberts (bass trombone), Wilbur Schwartz (alto saxophone), Eudice Shapiro (violin), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Joe Stepansky (violin), Juan Tizol (trombone), James Williamson (tenor saxophone)
November 28, 1956: Eleanor Aller (cello), Victor Arno (violin), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Cy Bernard (cello), Ennio Bolognini (cello), Nick Bonney (guitar), Pete Candoli (trumpet), Joe Comfort (bass), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Harry Edison (trumpet), David Frisina (violin), Jacques Gasselin (violin), Skeets Herfurt (alto saxophone), Maxine Johnson (viola), Kathryn Julye (harp), Harry Klee (alto saxophone), Joe Koch (baritone saxophone), Ray Linn (trumpet), Bill Miller (piano), Dick Nash (trombone), Ted Nash (tenor saxophone), Erno Neufeld (violin), Tommy Pederson (trombone), Nelson Riddle (conductor), George Roberts (bass trombone), Eudice Shapiro (violin), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Paul Shure (violin), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Felix Slatkin (violin), Marshall Sosson (violin), David Sterkin (viola), Alvin Stoller (drums), Juan Tizol (trombone), James Williamson (tenor saxophone)

Points: 474
Finished #15 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #228
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Bubbling Under
Biggest Fan: Henry (#24)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#91)

A1 | Night and Day (Cole Porter)
A2 | I Wish I Were in Love Again (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)
A3 | I Got Plenty o‘ Nuttin‘ (DuBose Heyward, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
A4 | I Guess I‘ll Have to Change My Plans (Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz)
A5 | Nice Work If You Can Get It (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
A6 | Stars Fell on Alabama (Frank Perkins, Mitchell Parish)
A7 | No One Ever Tells You (Hub Atwood, Carroll Oates)
A8 | I Won‘t Dance (Jerome Kern, Jimmy McHugh, Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Dorothy Fields)
B1 | Lonesome Road (Nat Shilkret, Gene Austin)
B2 | At Long Last Love (Cole Porter)
B3 | You‘d Be So Nice to Come Home To (Cole Porter)
B4 | I Got It Bad and That Ain‘t Good (Duke Ellington, Paul Francis Webster)
B5 | From This Moment On (Cole Porter)
B6 | If I Had You (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Ted Shapiro)
B7 | Oh! Look at Me Now (Joe Bushkin, John DeVries)

You could divide Sinatra‘s early albums for Capitol Records into two sections: Slow and sad ballads and torch songs about loneliness and melancholy and uptempo, swinging jazz tunes about the happiness and joy of love. A Swingin‘ Affair! falls into the latter category but is not considered a classic in Sinatra‘s output. In fact it did not receive a single vote in our 2020 all-time poll. It did however receive six (!) votes in the 1957 album poll, but most of them in the lower point regions.
Once again, this album was drawn up and planned ahead of time. Producers and Sinatra himself (maybe Nelson Riddle too) selected the songs that were to be put on the album, Riddle drew up the arrangements, recording sessions were scheduled, the songs were recorded and then put onto the album. But there tends to be one „odd man out“, a song that was intended to be on the record, which was even recorded, but finally cut. In this case it‘s „The Lady Is a Tramp“ which was replaced by „No One Ever Tells You“ which was recorded months earlier.
Last edited by Schüttelbirne on Mon Mar 13, 2023 5:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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Wonderful start!
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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90. Sabu | Palo congo
Recording: April 28, 1957
Release: September 1957
Producer: Alfred Lion
Label: Blue Note
Genre: Rumba cubana
Line-Up: Evaristo Baro (bass), Sara Baro (vocals), Willie Capo (vocals), Sabu L. Martínez (conga, bongo, vocals), Arsenio Rodríguez (conga, guitar, vocals), Ray Romero (conga), Israel Moisés Travieso (conga), Raúl Travieso (conga, vocals)

Points: 482
Finished #18 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #243
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#6)
Not a Fan: Listyguy (#91), Brad (#92), Henry (#97)

A1 | El cumbanchero (Rafael Hernández)
A2 | Billumba – Palo congo (Sabu L. Martínez)
A3 | Choferito – Plena (Inacio Ríos)
A4 | Asabache (Sabu L. Martínez)
B1 | Simba (Sabu L. Martínez)
B2 | Rhapsodia del maravilloso (Sabu L. Martínez)
B3 | Aggo elegua (Sabu L. Martínez)
B4 | Tribilín cantore (Sabu L. Martínez)

Sabu Martínez had his breakthrough by playing in the orchestras of Dizzy Gillespie and Benny Goodman, and he continued working with many of the biggest names of the New York Jazz scene. His first album as a leader was clearly influenced by Afro-Cuban Jazz and was even released on the jazz label Blue Note, but does not feature a typical jazz orchestration and is more similar to Latin-influenced dance albums released during that period. The album includes lots of percussion on congas and bongos and multiple vocalists singing and chanting to the enticing rhythms they produced. It is surprisingly non-commercialized considering the time it was released in; many bandleaders of Latin dance music slowed their music down or tried to add more pop influences to make it more approachable for the audience. Martínez is focusing more on the rhythmic properties than on melody or hooks which makes the struggle some people still find themselves in when listening to this understandable (I noticed while researching that many people have a hard time approaching music like this). It‘s not exactly part of the „mambo-mania“ of the 1950s, but they might be connected since it‘s not an easy decision for a label like Blue Note, which still prides itself on mainly releasing jazz music, to release an album that ventures further from the contemporary jazz styles than most other jazz musicians dared to go at the time.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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89. Miles Davis | Cookin‘ with the Miles Davis Quintet
Recording: October 26, 1956
Release: July 1957
Producer: Bob Weinstock
Label: Prestige
Genre: Hard Bop
Line-Up: Paul Chambers (bass), John Coltrane (tenor saxophone (A2, B1, B2)), Miles Davis (trumpet), Red Garland (piano), Philly Joe Jones (drums)

Points: 485
Finished #19 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #7356
AM rank: #1876
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#20)
Not a Fan: bonnielaurel (#91)

A1 | My Funny Valentine (Richard Rodgers)
A2 | Blues by Five (Miles Davis)
B1 | Airegin (Sonny Rollins)
B2 | Tune Up / When the Lights Are Low (Miles Davis / Benny Carter, Spencer Williams)

In 1956 Davis had already agreed to sign with Columbia, but he still had an outstanding contract with Prestige. To fulfill his obligations to that label, he went into the studio with his Quintet twice, on May 11, 1956 and on October 26 of the same year. The recordings of these two sessions provided Prestige with enough material for four albums that were released in the subsequent years. This is the first one, followed by Relaxin‘ … (1958), Workin‘ … (1959) and Steamin‘ … (1961). These four albums are the final albums Davis released on for Prestige, though they re-released some of his 10‘‘ LP material on longer compilations, titled Bags‘ Groove and Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants.
Prestige didn‘t pay for practicing time, and apparently also not for time in the studio, so the Quintet just played the songs they would also play live. Each side features one „shorter“ song and a lengthy improvisation based on an original Davis composition. These recordings show the First Great Quintet (as the group is often named to separate it from the Second Great Quintet in the 1960s) at their full power. They had a unique ability to improvise with each other without one member of the band stealing the others‘ spotlight. Cookin‘ with the Miles Davis Quintet might be the only of the late Prestige albums on our list, but that does not mean that the others were less worthy of being here.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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88. Miles Davis | Ascenseur pour l‘échafaud
Recording: December 4 + 5, 1957
Release: 1958
Producers:
Label: Fontana
Genre: Film Score, Cool Jazz, Crime Jazz
Line-Up: Kenny Clarke (drums), Miles Davis (trumpet), Pierre Michelot (bass), René Urtreger (piano), Barney Wilen (tenor saxophone)

Points: 488
Finished #9 in 1958 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #59
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1537
AM rank: #1956
Biggest Fan: Henry (#18)
Not a Fan: SL3 (#93)

A1 | Générique
A2 | L‘assassinat de Carala
A3 | Sur l‘autoroute
A4 | Julien dans l‘ascenseur
A5 | Florence sur les Champs-Elysées
B1 | Dîner au motel
B2 | Evasion de Julien
B3 | Visite du vigile
B4 | Au bar du petit bac
B5 | Chez le photographe du motel

All songs composed by Miles Davis.

The 1958 French movie Ascenseur pour l‘échafaud (typically translated as Elevator to the Gallows) by Louis Malle features a murder plot by two lovers gone awry when one of them becomes trapped in an elevator. It was Malle‘s debut feature; his assistant Jean-Paul Rappeneau (who would later become a successful director himself) suggested Davis for the soundtrack. Davis was staying in Paris at the time, playing in the Club Saint-Germain and agreed to score the film after seeing it in private.
Davis recorded the album on two days in December 1957. He got help from the French jazz musicians Barney Wilen (tenor saxophone), René Urtreger (piano) and Pierre Michelot (bass). The drums were played by Kenny Clarke, a former collaborator of Davis‘s who had moved to Paris in 1956. They were also his sidemen in the Club Saint-Germain. There were no actual compositions, just some rough ideas the group improvised upon, while the relevant scenes from the movie played in the background.
The original 10‘‘ LP release is about 26 minutes long, while the extended CD version triples that length by including multiple different takes and showcasing the editing and mixing involved in preparing the recordings done by Davis and his band for the screen version of the film.
Film noir primarily featured orchestral scores specifically prepared and played for the onscreen version of the movie. The way Davis created the score for Ascenseur pour l‘échafaud was quite innovative, but the music is often regarded as one of the best elements of the movie and is still highly acclaimed. There‘s a reason it‘s the only film soundtrack album on our list.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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87. Moondog | Snaketime Series
Recording: 1956
Release: 1956
Producer:
Label: Moondog
Genre: Third Stream,Avant-Folk
Line-Up: Tino Banques, David Butterfield, Rosemarie Butterfield, Louis Hardin, Suzuko Harding, Ray Malone, Sam Ulano, Weiner-Sabinsky Duo, Sakura Whiteing

Points: 490
Finished #12 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #66
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #782
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: DaveC (#13)
Not a Fan: nicolas (#61), Henry (#95), Dan (#100)

A1 | Caribea
A2 | Lullaby
A3 | Tree Trail
A4 | „Death, When You Come to Me, May You Come to Me Swiftly; I Would Rather Not Linger, Not Linger“
A5 | Big Cat
A6 | Frog Bog
A7 | To a Sea Horse
A8 | Dance Rehearsal
B1 | Surf Session, Part 1
B2 | Surf Session, Part 2
B3 | Surf Session, Part 3
B4 | „Trees Against the Sky, Fields of Plenty, Rivers to the Sea: This, and More, Spreads Before Me“
B5 | Tap Dance
B6 | Oo Debut
B7 | Drum Suite
B8 | Street Scene

All songs written by Louis Hardin.

Louis Hardin was a blind street musician from New York City who started recording the music he made which was influenced by a variety of different styles including Jazz and Native American Folk Music. Some of his recordings were released in single format on his own record label, Moondog Records. He also released his first album there, titled Snaketime Series. It was an independent label, however and did not have much outreach. It was re-released by Prestige Records with the title Moondog and a different cover.
But not just the cover was different, the entire concept of the record was different. While the original release featured a picture of a dog on a moon as its cover and had a photograph of Hardin and his wife Suzuko on the back (next to the title of the album which does not appear on the front cover), the Prestige release features Hardin‘s silhouette on an orange background. Both albums do however feature explanations of the tracks written next to their titles. The first track, „Caribea“ for example is said to be a „sextet; featuring Moondog at the piano“, while the second track „Lullaby“ is a „sextet; featuring Moondog‘s wife, Suzuko, who sings to June, their six-week-old daughter)“.
Hardin worked closely with his family and friends who participated in all sorts of ways for the diverse, unusual sequence of songs on this album.
Hardin did not want to work with ordinary rhythms, but rather with changing rhythms which he called „slithery“. That‘s the origin of the term „snaketime“ which he used to describe his music and which is also the title of the original release.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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86. Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra | Mambo at the Waldorf
Recording:
Release: November 21, 1955
Producers:
Label: Columbia
Genre: Mambo, Afro-Cuban Jazz
Line-Up: Xavier Cugat (bandleader), Gene Lorello (saxophone) et al.

Points: 493
Finished #19 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#9)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#97), bonnielaurel (#99)

A1 | Mambo at the Waldorf (George Lopez, Rafael Angulo, Xavier Cugat)
A2 | Cuca (P. Marques)
A3 | Yo quiero un mambo (Roman C. Roberto)
A4 | Mondongo (Miguelito Valdés, Rene Hernandez)
A5 | Mambo Gallego (George Lopez, Xavier Cugat)
A6 | Jamay (Roman C. Roberto)
B1 | Mambo Gordo (George Lopez)
B2 | Mambo en espana (Carillo Ramon Marquez)
B3 | Mambo No. 8 (Pérez Prado)
B4 | Sax Cantabile (Armand Dominguez)
B5 | La Cumparsita (Gerardo Matos Rodriguez)
B6 | Mambo Retozon (Lopez Emilio Rente)

Xavier Cugat was born in Spain, moved two Cuba at age five and to New York at age 15. He would become the equivalent to a modern DJ. Electronic music didn‘t exist at the time and electronic dance music would need even more time. But people did dance back then, often to the tunes a real orchestra provided. Cugat was the leader of multiple such orchestras, most notable the one in the Waldorf-Astoria, a luxury hotel in New York City. He was the main bandleader there from 1931 to 1947. I don‘t know if the band featured on the album Mambo at the Waldorf is actually the band playing at the Waldorf at that time.
Cugat started recording albums rather early, though the main focus of his musical career was always live music. His first albums were released in the late 1930s and he would continuously release albums until the 1970s. His early albums were clearly focused on dance music, and specifically Latin American styles of dance music. His albums are often titled after the type of dance they contain, with examples being the conga, the rhumba, the tango or the samba.
The mambo was a rather new emerging style (for more look for Prado‘s „Mambo No. 5 in the song poll) at the time and Cugat was able to capitalize on that by recording multiple albums with mambo music including 1953‘s Mambo, 1955‘s Mambo! and 1957‘s Mambo!. Mambo at the Waldorf seems to be one of his more famous albums, as seen by its appearance here. I‘m not sure why it is superior to other Cugat albums, and there‘s very little information to be found about it.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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85. Ella Fitzgerald | Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book
Recording: January 5+7+8, 1959 (A2, A5, A6, B1, B5, C2, D6, E1, E2, F1, F2, F3, G3, G7, H1, H2, H6) – March 18, 1959 (B6, C7, F5, F7, G2) – March 26, 1959 (A3, A4, B2, C5, D2, D3, D7, H5) – July 15, 1959 (C3, E5, E7, F6, G1, H4) – July 16, 1959 (A1, C1, C4, D1, E6, G5) – July 17, 1959 (B3, B4, D4, E4, G6) – July 18, 1959 (C6, D5, E3, F4, G4, H3) – August 20, 1959 (I, J)
Release: December 1959
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Verve
Genre: Vocal Jazz, Standards
Line-Up: James Arkatov (cello), Victor Arno (violin), Israel Baker (violin), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Milt Bernhart (trombone), Larry Bunker (percussion), Red Callender (tuba), Pete Candoli (trumpet), Benny Carter (alto saxophone), Gene Cipriano (woodwinds), Buddy Collette (woodwinds), Joe Comfort (bass), James Decker (French horn), Karl DeKarske (bass trombone), Vincent DeRosa (French horn), Harold Dicterow (violin), Alvin Dinken (viola), Walter Edelstein (violin), Herb Ellis (guitar), Don Fagerquist (trumpet), Dave Filerman (cello), Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Frank Flynn (percussion), Jacques Gasselin (violin), Chuck Gentry (bass saxophone), James Getzoff (violin), Ed Gilbert (tuba), Ben Gill (violin), Justin Gordon (woodwinds), Conrad Gozzo (trumpet), Jewell Grant (woodwinds), William Green (woodwinds), Elizabeth Greenschpoon (cello), Stanley Harris (viola), Henry Hill (violin), Jules Jacob (woodwinds), Plas Johnson (tenor saxophone), Katharine Julyie (harp), Armand Kaproff (cello), Murray Kellner (violin), Barney Kessel (guitar), Lou Kievman (viola), Harry Klee (woodwinds), Mannie Klein (trumpet), Joe Koch (woodwinds), Ronnie Lang (alto saxophone), Lou Levy (piano), Cappy Lewis (trumpet), Mel Lewis (drums), Joseph Livoti (violin), Dan Lube (violin), Vito Mangano (trumpet), Dale McMickle (trumpet), Ted Nash (alto saxophone), George Neikrug (cello), Erno Neufield (violin), Richard Noel (trombone), Tommy Pederson (trombone), Ralph Pena (bass), James Priddy (trombone), Kurt Reher (cello), Bill Richmond (drums), Nelson Riddle (conductor), George Roberts (bass trombone), Paul Robyn (viola), Nat Ross (violin), Misha Russell (violin), Wilbur Schwartz (woodwinds), Eudice Shapiro (violin), Shorty Sherock (trumpet), Paul Shure (violin), Barbara Simons (viola), Buck Skalak (woodwinds), Felix Slatkin (violin), Paul Smith (piano), Marshall Sosson (violin), David Sterkin (viola), Alvin Stoller (drums), Joe Tiscari (trumpet), Juan Tizol (trombone), Gerald Vinci (violin), Champ Webb (woodwinds)

Points: 494
Finished #13 in 1959 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #104
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #6473
AM rank: #1259
Biggest Fan: bonnielaurel (#18)
Not a Fan: DaveC (#97), mileswide (#98)

A1 | Sam and Delilah
A2 | But Not for Me
A3 | My One and Only (What Am I Gonna Do)
A4 | Let‘s Call the Whole Thing Off
A5 | (I‘ve Got) Beginner‘s Luck
A6 | Embraceable You
B1 | Oh, Lady Be Good
B2 | Nice Work If You Can Get It
B3 | Things Are Looking Up
B4 | Just Another Rhumba
B5 | How Long Has This Been Going On?
B6 | I Can‘t Be Bothered Now
C1 | ‚S Wonderful
C2 | The Man I Love
C3 | That Certain Feeling
C4 | By Strauss
C5 | Someone to Watch Over Me
C6 | The Real American Folk Song (Is a Rag)
C7 | Funny Face
D1 | Who Cares?
D2 | Looking for a Boy
D3 | They All Laughed
D4 | My Cousin from Milwaukee
D5 | Somebody from Somewhere
D6 | They Can‘t Take That Away from Me
D7 | Let‘s Kiss and Make Up
E1 | A Foggy Day (In London Town)
E2 | Clap Yo‘ Hands
E3 | For You, for Me, for Everyone
E4 | Stiff Upper Lip
E5 | Boy Wanted
E6 | Strike Up the Band
E7 | Lorelei
F1 | Soon
F2 | I‘ve Got a Crush on You
F3 | Bidin‘ My Time
F4 | Aren‘t You Kind of Glad We Did?
F5 | Of Thee I Sing (Baby)
F6 | Boy! What Love Has Done to Me
F7 | Fascinating Rhythm
G1 | The Half of It, Dearie, Blues
G2 | I Was Doing All Right
G3 | He Loves and She Loves
G4 | Love Is Sweeping the Country
G5 | Treat Me Rough
G6 | Oh, So Nice
G7 | I Got Rhythm
H1 | Love Is Here to Stay
H2 | Slap That Bass
H3 | Isn‘t It a Pity?
H4 | Shall We Dance
H5 | Love Walked In
H6 | You‘ve Got What Gets Me
I | Ambulatory Suite
J | The Preludes

All songs written by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin.

While Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book had already been pretty long, comprising two LPs and Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book had so much material, they split the release into two double albums, this entry of the Song Book series focusing on the compositions of George and Ira Gershwin just puts all the material on one epic album comprising five discs. This was an absolute massive project for the time and it still is a frightening achievement.
The first four discs consist of 53 songs written by the Gershwins, arranged by Nelson Riddle and sung by Ella Fitzgerald. Most of these come from musicals written by the Gershwins in the 1920s and 1930s; especially popular ones were Funny Face and Shall We Dance. Many of their songs are found here, though the songs follow no clear order. The order on reissues is also different from the original LP set. The instrumental section is very big; there are orchestras with fewer members.
The fifth disc does not feature Fitzgerald at all, it‘s also a much smaller disc. It consists of a few instrumentals composed by George Gershwin.
The artwork for the album was created by painter Bernard Buffet; each disc got its one picture.
The massive scope of the album was also reflected in its price: It was offered as a box set for $25, which is now about $255. There was also a more expensive deluxe version for 100$. You only make something like this if you‘re sure it‘s gonna be a success – and it was.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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84. Art Pepper | Art Pepper meets The Rhythm Section
Recording: January 19, 1957
Release: 1957
Producer: Lester Koenig
Label: Contemporary
Genre: Cool Jazz
Line-Up: Paul Chambers (bass), Red Garland (piano), Philly Joe Jones (drums), Art Pepper (alto saxophone)

Points: 499
Finished #11 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #1444
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#11)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#88)

A1 | You‘d Be So Nice to Come Home To (Cole Porter)
A2 | Red Pepper Blues (Art Pepper, Red Garland)
A3 | Imagination (Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke)
A4 | Waltz Me Blues (Art Pepper, Paul Chambers)
A5 | Straight Life (Art Pepper)
B1 | Jazz Me Blues (Tom Delaney)
B2 | Tin Tin Deo (Gil Fuller, Chano Pozo)
B3 | Star Eyes (Gene de Paul, Don Raye)
B4 | Birks‘ Works (Dizzy Gillespie)

There‘s a legend surrounding this recording session which often retold. It states that Pepper had no idea the recording was even happening that day, had never met the people he was supposed to be playing with and hadn‘t even played the saxophone for at least two weeks (or as Pepper himself wrote in his autobiography, six months).The last point is highly unprobable.
Paul Chambers, Red Garland and Philly Joe Jones were all part of Miles Davis‘ First Great Quintet at the time this album was recorded and they were so notable that they got the titular credit as The Rhythm Section (please note that „The“ is spelled with a capital letter – it‘s not just any random rhythm section, it‘s Miles Davis‘ rhythm section and Art Pepper gets to meet them and play with them).
Pepper was a big name in the West Coast jazz scene; he had played with Stan Kenton who was among its big names. His three co-musicians all came from the East Coast, so this album also serves as a meeting between these two opposing „schools“ of jazz.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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83. Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong | Ella and Louis Again
Recording: July 23, 1957 (A3, A4, A5, B2, B4, C1, C2, D2, D3, D5) – July 31, 1957 (A2, B1, C4, D4) – August 13, 1957 (A1, B3, C3, C5, D1)
Release: November 1957
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Verve
Genre: Vocal Jazz, Standards
Line-Up: Louis Armstrong (vocals, trumpet), Louie Bellson (drums), Ray Brown (bass), Herb Ellis (guitar), Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Oscar Peterson (piano)

Points: 501
Finished #13 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Bubbling Under
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#27)
Not a Fan: DaveC (#94), mileswide (#99)

A1 | Don‘t Be That Way (Benny Goodman, Mitchell Parish, Edgar Sampson)
A2 | Makin‘ Whoopee (Walter Donaldson, Gus Kahn)
A3 | They All Laughed (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
A4 | Comes Love (Lew Brown, Sam H. Stept, Charles Tobias)
A5 | Autumn in New York (Vernon Duke)
B1 | Let‘s Do It (Let‘s Fall in Love) (Cole Porter)
B2 | Stompin‘ at the Savoy (Benny Goodman, Edgar Sampson, Andy Razaf, Chick Webb)
B3 | I Won‘t Dance (Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern, Jimmy McHugh)
B4 | Gee Baby Ain‘t I Good to You (Andy Razaf, Don Redman)
C1 | Let‘s Call the Whole Thing Off (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
C2 | These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You) (Harry Link, Eric Maschwitz, Jack Strachey)
C3 | I‘ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm (Irving Berlin)
C4 | Willow Weep for Me (Ann Ronell)
C5 | I‘m Puttin‘ All My Eggs in One Basket (Irving Berlin)
D1 | A Fine Romance (Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern)
D2 | Ill Wind (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler)
D3 | Love Is Here to Stay (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
D4 | I Get a Kick Out of You (Cole Porter)
D5 | Learnin‘ the Blues (Dolores Vicki Silvers)

We may be living in the age of sequel-addiction, but even in the 1950s people knew that following up a something successful with a sequel was a good way to generate even more popularity. Since Ella and Louis had been quite successful, a sequel was in the works just a year after. And since Norman Granz could not get enough of Fitzgerald‘s voice apparently, he once again decided to make a double album.
The nineteen songs were recorded in three sessions in the summer of 1957, though the second session on July 31 did not even feature Fitzgerald. I‘m not sure if she was present (she may have been), but she does not appear on any of the four tracks recorded in that session. On July 23 Fitzgerald also recorded three songs without Armstrong. So, in contrast to the first of their duo albums this album does not only feature duets. The solo songs are spread out over the album and not bunched together, however. It‘s also interesting that their order is alternating. With the expection of the B-side, all sides of the album feature five songs – three duets, one solo song by Armstrong and one solo song by Fitzgerald.
Armstrong does not exercise his trumpet skills as extensively as he did on the predecessor. He only plays the trumpet on six of the nineteen tracks.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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82. Eydie Gormé | Eydie Swings the Blues
Recording:
Release: 1957
Producer: Don Costa
Label: ABC-Paramount
Genre: Brill Building, Standards
Line-Up: Don Costa (conductor), Eydie Gormé (vocals) et al.

Points: 501
Finished #17 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#11)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#92), Schüttelbirne (#92), mileswide (#93)

A1 | I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler)
A2 | When Your Lover Has Gone (Einar Aaron Swan)
A3 | I Got It Bad and That Ain‘t Good (Duke Ellington, Paul Francis Webster)
A4 | When the Sun Comes Out (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler)
A5 | After You‘ve Gone (Henry Creamer, Turner Layton)
A6 | Don‘t Get Around Much Anymore (Duke Ellington, Bob Russell)
B1 | Blues in the Night (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer)
B2 | The Man I Love (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
B3 | Stormy Weather (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler)
B4 | You Don‘t Know What Love Is (Gene De Paul, Don Raye)
B5 | Can‘t Help Lovin‘ Dat Man (Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern)
B6 | A Nightingale Can Sing the Blues (Dick Charles, Larry Markes)

Gormé found big success when she moved from Coral Records to ABC-Paramount. Her first two albums Eydie Gormé and Eydie Swings the Blues were pretty successful. She released a bunch of albums in the late 1950s and early 1960s and kept making music until the 2000s (primarily with her husband Steve Lawrence).
I could barely find any information about this album, so I turned to the liner notes and there are two points I specifically want to mention:

1. This is most definitely not a blues album and Natt Hale, the writer of the liner notes, admits as much. (He also uses a very weird definition of the blues, but let‘s ignore that). It does feature three songs that have the word „Blues“ in the title which seems enough reason to include it in the title.
2. The term „Gorméphile“ is at once hilarious and terrible.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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81. Tito Puente and His Orchestra | Dance Mania
Recording: November+December 1957
Release: 1958
Producer: Lee Schapiro
Label: RCA Victor
Genre: Mambo, Guaguancó
Line-Up: Vitin Avilés (backing vocals), Ray Barretto (congas), Tony Buonpastore (saxophone), Julito Collazo (congas), Santitos Colón (vocals), Raymond Concepción (piano), Jimmy Frisaura (trumpet), Bernie Glow (trumpet), Frank Lo Pinto (trumpet), George López (trumpet), Léon Merian (trumpet), Larry Moser (trumpet), Otto Olivar (backing vocals), Rafael Palau (saxophone), Tito Puente (vibraphones, timbales, marimba), Schapp Pullman (saxophone), Gene Repetti (trumpet), Bobby Rodríguez (bass), Ray Rodríguez (bongos), Jerry Sanfino (saxophone)

Points: 503
Finished #10 in 1958 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #153
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #3337
AM rank: #905
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#25)
Not a Fan: Henry (#84)

A1 | El cayuco (Tito Puente)
A2 | Complicación (Francisco Aguabella)
A3 | 3-D Mambo (Ángel Santos)
A4 | Llegó mijan (Tito Puente)
A5 | Cuando te vea (Tito Puente)
A6 | Hong Kong Mambo (Tito Puente)
B1 | Mambo gozón (Tito Puente)
B2 | Mi chiquita quiere bembe (Tito Puente)
B3 | Varsity Drag (George DeSylva, Lew Brown, Ray Henderson)
B4 | Estoy siempre junto a ti (Pepé Delgado)
B5 | Agua limpia todo (Francisco Aguabella)
B6 | Saca tu mujer (Tito Puente)

We already saw Puente‘s Mamborama further down on the list. That record was issued by Tico Records, which was a more regional label; Puente‘s success promted RCA, one of the big players to sign him. His first album for them was Cuban Carnival in 1956. But his most famous and well-known album to this date would come out two years later with 1958‘s Dance Mania. I am not in expert in these genres, so I can‘t verify the veracity of this claim, but apparently Puente combined multiple different types of Latin dance music for this record. The music here is also slower than it was on previous records to appeal to a bigger audience. In contrast to Mamborama this record also features vocalists, though I can‘t say any more about that.
As far as I can tell, Puente‘s output for RCA was mostly focused on albums; I can barely find information about singles (with Tico he released a ton of those). I am not yet certain why that is the case, though. The focus of Puente‘s music was probably live music, which was very important for a dance-oriented orchestra such as this one.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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80. Yma Sumac | Voice of the Xtabay
Recording: 1950
Release: October 1950
Producer: Les Baxter
Label: Capitol
Genre: Exotica
Line-Up: Les Baxter (conductor), Yma Sumac (vocals) et al.

Points: 504
Finished #17 in 1900-54 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #75
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #3587
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: DaveC (#21)
Not a Fan: Henry (#98)

A1 | Virgin of the Sun God (Taito Inty) (Moises Vivanco)
A2 | High Andes! (Ataypura!) (Les Baxter, John Rose)
A3 | Chant of the Chosen Maidens (Accla Taqui) (Moises Vivanco)
A4 | Earthquake! (Tumpa!) (Moises Vivanco)
B1 | Dance of the Moon Festival (Choladas) (Les Baxter, John Rose)
B2 | Dance of the Winds (Wayra) (Moises Vivanco)
B3 | Monkeys (Monos) (Moises Vivanco)
B4 | Lure of the Unknown Love (Xtabay) (Moises Vivanco)

Yma Sumac was a singer from Peru who had an extraordinary vocal range. She started singing early and recorded Peruvian folk music. She toured with different groups throughout South America and then later the USA where she was discovered by Les Baxter, one of the most important figures in the Exotica craze of the 1950s.
We might as well talk about that a bit. Exotica was a genre that provided simple, easily approachable pop music with a touch of „exotic“ feelings by including elements from other cultural and musical traditions. The listener could imagine what music sounded like in the South Seas or in Africa, places that were interesting because they seemed different from the world people lived in and provided an escape. Of course, the actual music and culture from these regions is completely different, but that didn‘t stop many people from engaging in this trend. (The entire trend also tended to paint people from Africa or the South Seas as tribal, uncivilized savages, but I don‘t want to get too deep into that).
Sumac was marketed as a sort of „Inca princess“ based on her Peruvian roots. The title of her debut album Voice of the Xtabay refers to a figure from Mayan folklore, specifically from the Yucatán Peninsula (which is not in Peru). This figure is a sort of femme fatale, seducing men with her beauty and leading them to their doom.
The album becomes a huge success, selling over a million copies and prompting a massive concert tour through the Americas and Europe.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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79. Georges Brassens | N° 3
Recording:
Release: April 1955
Producer: Jacques Canetti
Label: Polydor
Genre: Chanson à texte
Line-Up: Victor Apicella (guitar), Georges Brassens (vocals, guitar), Pierre Nicolas (bass)

Points: 504
Finished #5 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #82
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #2274
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: nicolas (#5)
Not a Fan: Schüttelbirne (#96), SL3 (#99)

A1 | Les sabots d‘Hélène (Georges Brassens)
A2 | Chanson pour l‘Auvergnat (Georges Brassens)
A3 | La première fille (Georges Brassens)
A4 | La prière (Georges Brassens, Francis Jammes)
A5 | Gastibelza (Georges Brassens, Victor Hugo)
B1 | La mauvaise herbe (Georges Brassens)
B2 | Une jolie fleur (Georges Brassens)
B3 | Je suis un voyou (Georges Brassens)
B4 | Le mauvais sujet repenti (Georges Brassens)
B5 | P… de toi (Georges Brassens)

Early Brassens albums were titled with numbers. There was basically one each year. At some point there must have been a mistake though, since there‘s a N° 9 in 1962 and another IX in 1966. This album is also known as Les sabots d‘Hélène based on its first song. The album cover shows Brassens‘ head as a bomb about to blow up. He wrote all the songs on the album himself, but the lyrics of two of them are based on poems, including „Gastibelza“ which is based on Victor Hugo‘s „Guitare“.
Once again you can find multiple songs criticizing society in a satiric fashion. „Chanson pour l‘Auvergnat“ deals with poverty and that the few crumbs of bread rich relations give only serve to assuage their own guilt, and don‘t do much to help the poor get through winter.
You can also find love songs like „Les sabots d‘Hélène“ where the narrator finds love in the country girl Hélène who would not seem worthy to some. „La première fille“ claims the memory of the first girl someone slept with trumps all other memories.
Far from being a love story, „Le mauvais sujet repenti“ tells of a repenting pimp who leaves his girlfriend, a prostitute (after she passed him all of her germs), to become an honest man, leaving her to an even more miserable life in a brothel. There‘s the question of the worth of repenting your sins if you leave all your fellow men in disarray.
Another song dealing with religious themes is „La prière“, based on Francis Jammes‘ poem Rosaire, which describes the hardships common people face in multiple verses before ending the stanzas with „Je vous salue, Marie“, basically the French version of „Ave Maria“.
At least six of the ten songs were recorded and released as singles in late 1954. At this point, Brassens‘ albums were still mostly single collections, but they did showcase a unique ability at telling stories in musical form.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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78. The Teddy Charles Tentet | The Teddy Charles Tentet
Recording: January 6, 1956 (A2, B1) – January 11, 1956 (B2, B3) – January 17, 1956 (A1, A3, B4)
Release: 1956
Producers: Nesuhi Ertegün
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Cool Jazz
Line-Up: George Barrow (baritone saxophone (A2, B1, B2, B3)), Don Butterfield (tuba), Teddy Charles (vibraphone), Art Farmer (trumpet), Gigi Gryce (alto saxophone), Joe Harris (drums), Teddy Kotick (bass), J.R. Monterose (tenor saxophone), Jimmy Raney (guitar), Sol Schlinger (baritone saxophone (A1, A3, B4)), Mal Waldron (piano)

Points: 504
Finished #14 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#3)
Not a Fan: Dan (#95), SL3 (#96), Brad (#99), nicolas (#65)

A1 | Vibrations (Mal Waldron)
A2 | The Quiet Time (Jimmy Giuffre)
A3 | The Emperor (Teddy Charles)
B1 | Nature Boy (Eden Ahbez)
B2 | Green Blues (Teddy Charles)
B3 | You Go to My Head (J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie)
B4 | Lydian M-1 (George Russell)

The number of participants in the monthly polls was relatively small, compared to previous decade polls which led to some albums making the final round that had only received two votes in their respective poll. Teddy Charles is not among the most well-known jazz musicians of the 1950s, but he has worked with people like Miles Davis and Charles Mingus and released a string of albums of his own which are quite interesting on their own.
The ensemble is relatively big with ten members. There‘s the typical jazz instruments you would expect but also the vibraphone, played by Charles himself which was not an unusual instrument at the time but seems to have a bad reputation nowadays. We also have two deeper-pitched wind instruments with the tuba and the baritone saxophone. The latter was played by George Barrow in the first two recording sessions for this album, but Sol Schlinger took over for the final session. Otherwise the personnel stays the same. Despite having such a relatively large group the arrangements are well-done and never seem overwhelming.
The songs featured on the album are quite illustrious. There‘s an original by Teddy Charles, a composition by the influential music theorist George Russell, compositions by pianist Mal Waldron and the great clarinetist Jimmy Giuffre and two standards. „Nature Boy“ especially is an interesting choice for a jazz treatment.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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77. Miles Davis | Porgy and Bess
Recording: July 22, 1958 (A3, A4, B3) – July 29, 1958 (A2, B2, B4, B5) – August 4, 1958 (A1, A6, B1) – August 18, 1958 (A5, B6, B7)
Release: March 1959
Producer: Cal Lampley
Label: Columbia
Genre: Big Band, Progressive Big Band
Line-Up: Julian Adderley (alto saxophone), Danny Bank (alto flute, bass flute, bass clarinet), Bill Barber (tuba), Joe Bennett (trombone), Phil Bodner (flute, clarinet), Paul Chambers (bass), Jimmy Cleveland (trombone), Jimmy Cobb (drums (A2, B2, B4, B5)), Johnny Coles (trumpet), Miles Davis (trumpet, flugelhorn), Gil Evans (conductor), Bernie Glow (trumpet), Dick Hixon (trombone), Philly Joe Jones (drums (A1, A3, A4, A5, A6, B1, B3, B6, B7)), Louis Mucci (trumpet), Romeo Penque (flute, clarinet), Frank Rehak (trombone), Jerome Richardson (flute, clarinet), Ernie Royal (trumpet), Willie Ruff (horn), Gunther Schuller (horn), Julius Watkins (horn)

Points: 504
Finished #12 in 1959 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #37
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #5990
AM rank: #739
Biggest Fan: Brad (#18)
Not a Fan: nicolas (#60), Dan (#94)

A1 | The Buzzard Song
A2 | Bess, You Is My Woman Now
A3 | Gone (Gil Evans)
A4 | Gone, Gone, Gone
A5 | Summertime
A6 | Bess, Oh Where‘s My Bess
B1 | Prayer (Oh Doctor Jesus)
B2 | Fisherman, Strawberry and Devil Crab
B3 | My Man‘s Gone Now
B4 | It Ain‘t Necessarily So
B5 | Here Come de Honey Man
B6 | I Loves You, Porgy
B7 | There‘s a Boat That‘s Leaving Soon for New York

All songs composed by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, with the exception of „Gone“.

Porgy and Bess is a very well-known opera by George Gershwin, which draws major influence from jazz and blues music. In the ‚50s this opera, which was originally premiered in 1935, had a real revival: There was to be a film adaptation which was released in 1959, and the New York City Center staged a production of the opera, starring Frances Taylor, who happened to be Davis‘s girlfriend at that time (They later married and Davis didn‘t allow her to work, which is not exactly the greatest thing he ever did). There were also multiple albums based on the opera coming out at that time, for example a collaboration between Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong which almost made our list here.
Davis worked on the adaptation of songs from the opera in a symphonic setting together with Gil Evans who arranged the songs for a jazz big band (with 14 different brass players), which featured, among others, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones from the First Great Quintet and Cannonball Adderley. The arrangements were largely based on the modal scales Davis had grown fond of.
The album does feature the music from the opera, but it never tries to refer to the story in any way. The songs are not in the order they appear in the opera and the album doesn‘t feature any vocals.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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76. Dizzy Gillespie | Groovin‘ High
Recording: February 9, 1945 (A1) – February 28, 1945 (A2, A3, A4) - May 11, 1945 (A5, A6) – May 15, 1946 (B1, B2) – June 10, 1946 (B6) – July 9, 1946 (B3, B4, B5) – November 12, 1946 (B7)
Release: 1955
Producers:
Label: Savoy
Genre: Bebop
Line-Up:
February 9, 1945: Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone), Shelly Manne (drums), Frank Paparelli (piano), Murray Shipinski (bass), Chuck Wayne (guitar)
February 28, 1945: Cozy Cole (drums), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Clyde Hart (piano), Remo Palmieri (guitar), Charlie Parker (alto saxophone), Slam Stewart (bass)
May 11, 1945: Sidney Catlett (drums), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet, vocals), Al Haig (piano), Charlie Parker (alto saxophone), Curly Russell (bass)
May 15, 1946: Ray Brown (bass), Kenny Clarke (drums), Gil Fuller (vocals), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet, vocals), Al Haig (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Alice Roberts (vocals), Sonny Stitt (alto saxophone)
June 10, 1946: Ray Abrams (tenor saxophone), John Brown (alto saxophone), Ray Brown (bass), Dave Burns (trumpet), Kenny Clarke (drums), Leon Comegys (trombone), Talib Daawud (trumpet), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Charles Greenlea (trombone), Milt Jackson (piano), Howard Johnson (alto saxophone), Warren Lucky (tenor saxophone), John Lynch (trumpet), Al Moore (trombone), Pee Wee Moore (baritone saxophone), Ray Orr (trumpet), Alice Roberts (vocals)
July 9, 1946: Ray Abrams (tenor saxophone), Ray Brown (bass), Dave Burns (trumpet), Kenny Clarke (drums), Leon Comegys (trombone), Talib Daawud (trumpet), Kenny Dorham (trumpet), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Howard Johnson (alto saxophone), John Lewis (piano), Warren Lucky (tenor saxophone), John Lynch (trumpet), Alton Moore (trombone), Leo Parker (baritone saxophone), Alice Roberts (vocals), Sonny Stitt (alto saxophone), Gordon Thomas (trombone), Elmon Wright (trumpet)
November 12, 1946: Taswell Baird (trombone), John Brown (alto saxophone), Ray Brown (bass), Dave Burns (trumpet), Scoops Carey (alto saxophone), Bill Frazier (tenor saxophone), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Kenny Hagood (vocals), Joe Harris (drums), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), John Lewis (piano), John Lynch (trumpet), Matthew McKay (trumpet), James Moody (tenor saxophone), Al Moore (trombone), Pee Wee Moore (baritone saxophone), Gordon Thomas (trombone), Elmon Wright (trumpet)

Points: 505
Finished #9 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #1907
Biggest Fan: Brad (#9)
Not a Fan: bonnielaurel (#92)

A1 | Blue ‚n‘ Boogie (Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Paparelli)
A2 | Groovin‘ High (Dizzy Gillespie)
A3 | Dizzy Atmosphere (Dizzy Gillespie)
A4 | All the Things You Are (Oscar Hammerstein, Jerome Kern)
A5 | Hot House (Tadd Dameron)
A6 | Salt Peanuts (Kenny Clarke, Dizzy Gillespie)
B1 | Oop Bop Sh‘Bam (Ray Brown, Gil Fuller, Dizzy Gillespie)
B2 | That‘s Earl, Brother (Ray Brown, Gil Fuller, Dizzy Gillespie)
B3 | Things to Come (Gil Fuller, Dizzy Gillespie)
B4 | One Bass Hit #2 (Ray Brown, Gil Fuller, Dizzy Gillespie)
B5 | Ray‘s Idea (Ray Brown, Gil Fuller, Dizzy Gillespie)
B6 | Our Delight (Tadd Dameron)
B7 | Emanon (Dizzy Gillespie, Milton Shaw)

Dizzy Gillespie had been playing in Billy Eckstine‘s big band (as was Charlie Parker) but he left in 1945 to form a small combo. What we have here is a compilation of stuff recorded in 1945 and the following year in diverse line-ups ending with his return to Big Band music. The thirteen songs on the album were recorded in seven different sessions and they are included on the album in chronological order (with „Our Delight“ being the only exception – though it makes sense to keep all the Brown-Fuller-Gillespie compositions together).
The line-up changes from session to session. It is notable that the songs on the A-side were all recorded in early 1945 and feature small combos while the songs on the B-side were recorded more than a year later and mostly feature big band line-ups. Ray Brown is playing on all the tracks on the B-side; he also co-wrote a lot of songs with Gillespie (and would later form The Modern Jazz Quartet with other members of Gillespie‘s big band – the jazz world was not very big; further proof of that: Brown was also married to Ella Fitzgerald who had performed with Gillespie‘s big band in 1947).
All the songs had previously been released in single format in the mid-to-late 1940s. I don‘tknow who had the idea to compile them all together.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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75. Chico Hamilton Quintet | Chico Hamilton Quintet
Recording: August 4, 1955 (B-side) – August 23, 1955 (A-side)
Release: 1955
Producer: Richard Bock
Label: Pacific Jazz
Genre: Cool Jazz, Chamber Jazz
Line-Up: Buddy Collette (tenor saxophone, alto saxophone, flute, clarinet), Jim Hall (guitar), Chico Hamilton (drums), Fred Katz (cello), Carson Smith (bass)

Points: 509
Finished #14 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#4)
Not a Fan: Henry (#91), Dan (#92), Honorio (#93), SL3 (#95), bonnielaurel (#96)

A1 | A Nice Day (Buddy Collette)
A2 | Funny Valentine (Richard Rogers, Lorenz Hart)
A3 | Blue Sands (Buddy Collette)
A4 | The Sage (Fred Katz)
A5 | The Morning After (Chico Hamilton)
B1 | I Want to Be Happy (Vincent Youmans, Irving Caesar)
B2 | Spectacular (Jim Hall)
B3 | Free Form (Buddy Collette, Jim Hall, Chico Hamilton, Fred Katz, Carson Smith)
B4 | Walking Carson Blues (Carson Smith)
B5 | Buddy Boo (Buddy Collette)

Chico Hamilton had already played with a lot of jazz titans when he released his debut album as a leader in 1955. Chico Hamilton Quintet featured the titular group with a rather unusual line-up for a jazz quintet. The classical rhythm section of bass and drums is amplified by the string instruments guitar and cello. Buddy Collette plays multiple different reeds and is honored for his significant contributions with a „featuring“ credit on the album cover.
It was not just the line-up that was unusual with this group; the music they played took large inspiration from modern classical music. The track „Free Form“ is a largely free improvisation, something rather unusual for mid-1950s jazz.
The album sides stem from two different recordings. While the A-side was recorded in the studio, the B-side is a recording of a live session in front of an audience. Hamilon‘s quintet is clearly showing the path forward for jazz artists in the coming years.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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74. Ray Charles | The Genius of Ray Charles
Recording: May 6, 1959 (B-side) – June 23, 1959 (A-side)
Release: November 1959
Producers: Nesuhi Ertegün & Jerry Wexler
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Vocal Jazz, Soul
Line-Up:
May 6, 1959: Bob Brookmeyer (valve trombone), Ray Charles (vocals, organ), Allen Hanlon (guitar), Wendell Marshall (bass), Ted Sommer (drums) et al.
June 23, 1959: Marcus Belgrave (trumpet), Ray Charles (vocals, organ), Bennie Crawford (baritone saxophone), Teagle Fleming (drums), Charlie Fowlkes (baritone saxophone), Paul Gonsalves (tenor saxophone), Freddie Green (guitar), Al Grey (trombone), John Hunt (trumpet), Quentin Jackson (trombone), Eddie Jones (bass), Quincy Jones (conductor), Melba Liston (trombone), Billy Mitchell (A2, A4, A5)), Tom Mitchell (trombone), David Newman (tenor saxophone), Joe Newman (trumpet), Charlie Persip (drums), Ernie Royal (trumpet), Marshall Royal (alto saxophone), Zoot Sims (tenor saxophone (A1, A3, A6)), Clark Terry (trumpet), Frank Wess (alto saxophone), Edgar Willis (bass), Snooky Young (trumpet)

Points: 510
Finished #11 in 1959 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #32
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1805
AM rank: #1135
Biggest Fan: Henry (#23)
Not a Fan: Listyguy (#84)

A1 | Let the Good Times Roll (Sam Theard, Fleecie Moore)
A2 | It Had to Be You (Gus Kahn, Isham Jones)
A3 | Alexander‘s Ragtime Band (Irving Berlin)
A4 | Two Years of Torture (Percy Mayfield, Charles Joseph Morris)
A5 | When Your Lover Has Gone (Einar Aaron Swan)
A6 | ‚Deed I Do (Walter Hirsch, Fred Rose)
B1 | Just for a Thrill (Lil Hardin Armstrong, Don Raye)
B2 | You Won‘t Let Me Go (Bud Allen, Buddy Johnson)
B3 | Tell Me You‘ll Wait for Me (Charles Brown, Oscar Moore)
B4 | Don‘t Let the Sun Catch You Cryin‘ (Joe Greene)
B5 | Am I Blue (Grant Clarke, Harry Akst)
B6 | Come Rain or Come Shine (Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen)

Ray Charles has two albums on this list. While the other is a compilation of previously released singles, The Genius of Ray Charles was clearly meant to be an album. While Charles had combined different genres previously and had even dabbled in jazz on his second album, this album finds him doing his own interpretations of traditional pop numbers from the 1940s or even earlier. „Alexander‘s Ragtime Band“ for example was published as early as 1911 and had become a famous standard by the time Charles recorded his version of it.
There‘s multiple possibilities of how to record an album of standards and it‘s worth noting that Charles decided on two of these possibilites, each on a different side of the record: While the A-side features loud, bombastic, brass-filled big band arrangements courtesy of Quincy Jones‘ Orchestra, the B-side is comprised of lush string ballads (it is unknown who played the woodwinds and the string instruments in the recording session). Many contemporary and modern reviews emphasize Charles‘ vocal abilities which get a chance to shine with this material.
„What‘d I Say“ had been a huge success and a compilation of other Charles hits with that title had been released in October 1959. The Genius of Ray Charles is Charles‘ final album for Atlantic Records who had given him his big break. He would move to ABC-Paramount who offered him a far more lucrative deal than most artists had at the time.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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73. Harry Belafonte | Calypso
Recording: August 18, 1955 – October 20, 1955 – November 9, 1955
Release: May 1956
Producers: Ed Welker, Herman Diaz Jr. & Henri René
Label: RCA Victor
Genre: Calypso
Line-Up: Harry Belafonte (vocals), Irving Burgie (guitar), Frantz Casseus (guitar), Brock Peters (chorus master (B3, B4, B5)), Tony Scott (conductor (A2, A3, A5, B3, B4, B5, B6)), Millard J. Thomas (guitar (A1, A4, B1, B2)) et al.

Points: 510
Finished #16 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #23
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1913
AM rank: #1270
Biggest Fan: bonnielaurel (#16)
Not a Fan: Honorio (#95)

A1 | Day O (Harry Belafonte, Irving Burgie, William Attaway)
A2 | I Do Adore Her (Irving Burgie)
A3 | Jamaica Farewell (Irving Burgie)
A4 | Will His Love Be Like His Rum? (William Attaway, Harry Belafonte)
A5 | Dolly Dawn (Irving Burgie)
B1 | Star O (Harry Belafonte, Irving Burgie, William Attaway)
B2 | The Jack-Ass Song (Irving Burgie, William Attaway)
B3 | Hosanna (Irving Burgie, William Attaway)
B4 | Come Back Liza (Irving Burgie, William Attaway)
B5 | Brown Skin Girl (Norman Span)
B6 | Man Smart (Woman Smarter) (Norman Span)

Harry Belafonte started his career in 1940s New York and released his first single in 1949, but his breakthrough came in 1953 with the single release of „Matilda, Matilda!“, his signature song, performances of which involved a lot of audience participation (as can be heard on the 1959 album Belafonte at Carnegie Hall).
In 1955 he appeared on the TV Show The Colgate Comedy Hour where he sang a version of a traditional folk song that would become known as „Banana Boat (Day O)“ with lyrics by William Attaway and Irving Burgie. Burgie was also known under the name Lord Burgess and had already released an album of Calypso music. William Attaway was a novelist, but also a songwriter who would release a book called Calypso Song Book in 1957. These two are responsible for the majority of the songs on Belafonte‘s 1956 album Calypso. The final two songs of the records are covers of songs by Norman Span (also known as King Radio) who had written many Calypso songs, including Belafonte‘s signature „Matilda“.
However, not all the songs on the album are actually Calypso songs in the way that term is understood in Trinidad where the style comes from, something Belafonte himself acknowledged. The 1950s audience didn‘t really care about that, though.
Belafonte is supported by Tony Scott and His Orchestra and Chorus on most of the tracks; on four tracks Millard J. Thomas provides additional guitarwork instead. On three tracks the Norman Luboff Choir sings backing vocals. Frantz Casseus, the Haitian folk musician (maybe most well-known for his 1954 album Haitian Dances also plays guitar on the album. I could not ascertain who plays on what track, unfortunately.
The first song and single „Day-O“ especially helped the album break all records. It became the first album to sell more than a million copies in the US (which was not the only place it was sold). I don‘t think it‘s far-fetched to assume that the success of the album has similar roots to the success of the Exotica genre in music and adventure movies set in remote locations in the 1950s.
It still resonated with enough people to make our 1956 list (though it barely squeezed in through the wildcards). It might be forgotten by a lot of modern audiences, but some still sing along to the catchy choruses of this collection of songs.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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72. Frank Sinatra | Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely
Recording: May 29, 1958 (A1, A2, A5, B2, B3, B4) – June 24, 1958 (A3, B1, B5) – June 25, 1958 (A4, A6, B6)
Release: September 8, 1958
Producer: Dave Cavanaugh
Label: Capitol
Genre: Standards, Vocal Jazz
Line-Up:
May 29, 1958: Eleanor Aller (cello), James Arkatov (cello), Victor Arno (violin), Israel Baker (violin), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Arnold Belnick (violin), Milton Bernhart (trombone), Charles Butler (bass clarinet), Pete Candoli (trumpet), John Cave (French horn), Don Christlieb (bassoon), Mahlon Clark (clarinet), Joe Comfort (bass), James Decker (French horn), Vincent DeRosa (French horn), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Frank Flynn (percussion), David Frisina (violin), Chuck Gentry (bass clarinet), Jimmy Getzoff (violin), Arthur Gleghorn (flute), Stan Harris (viola), Henry Hill (violin), Kathryn Julye (harp), Armand Kaproff (cello), Daniel Karpilowsky (violin), Harry Klee (flute), Arnold Koblentz (oboe), Mitchell Lurie (clarinet), Jack Marsh (bassoon), Bill Miller (piano), Erno Neufeld (violin), Tommy Pederson (trombone), Kurt Reher (cello), Bill Richmond (percussion), Paul Robyn (viola), Mike Rubin (bass), Kenny Shroyer (trombone), Paul Shure (violin), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Felix Slatkin (conductor, violin), Marshall Sosson (violin), Dave Sterkin (viola), Harry Sukman (piano), Al Viola (guitar), Warren Webb (oboe)
June 24+25, 1958: Eleanor Aller (cello), James Arkatov (cello), Victor Arno (violin), Israel Baker (violin), Victor Bay (violin), Alex Beller (violin), Arnold Belnick (violin), Morris Bercov (clarinet), Russell Brown (trombone), Don Christlieb (bassoon), Joe Comfort (bass), James Decker (French horn), Alvin Dinkin (viola), Frank Flynn (percussion), Sal Franzella (clarinet), Chuck Gentry (clarinet), Eddie Gilbert (bass), Ben Gill (violin), Arthur Gleghorn (flute), Stan Harris (viola), Norman Herzberg (bassoon), Kathryn Julye (harp), Armand Kaproff (cello), Daniel Karpilowsky (violin), Harry Klee (flute), Arnold Koblentz (oboe), Cappy Lewis (trumpet), Sinclair Lott (French horn), Bill Miller (piano), Erno Neufeld (violin), Tommy Pederson (trombone), George Price (French horn), Bill Richmond (percussion), Nelson Riddle (conductor), Paul Robyn (viola), Joseph Saxon (cello), Paul Shure (violin), Ray Sims (trombone), Frank Sinatra (vocals), Felix Slatkin (violin), Marshall Sosson (violin), Dave Sterkin (viola), Juan Tizol (valve trombone), Gerald Vinci (violin), Al Viola (guitar), Warren Webb (oboe)

Points: 510
Finished #13 in 1958 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #81
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #3920
AM rank: #930
Biggest Fan: Brad (#10)
Not a Fan: mileswide (#94), DaveC (#99)

A1 | Only the Lonely (Sammy Cahn, Jimmy Van Heusen)
A2 | Angel Eyes (Matt Dennis, Earl Brent)
A3 | What‘s New? (Bob Haggart, Johnny Burke)
A4 | It‘s a Lonesome Old Town (Harry Tobias, Charles Kisco)
A5 | Willow Weep for Me (Ann Ronell)
A6 | Good-Bye (Gordon Jenkins)
B1 | Blues in the Night (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer)
B2 | Guess I‘ll Hang My Tears Out to Dry (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne)
B3 | Ebb Tide (Robert Maxwell, Carl Sigman)
B4 | Spring Is Here (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)
B5 | Gone with the Wind (Allie Wrubel, Herb Magidson)
B6 | One for My Baby (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer)

This album works as a kind of sequel to In the Wee Small Hours. It features the same sort of sad torch songs arranged by Nelson Riddle. It was clearly planned as an album. It took four recording sessions until it was done, but all the songs from the first session on May 5, 1958 were not used. Riddle was not present during the second recording session on May 29; instead of him, Felix Slatkin conducted the massive, string-laden orchestra.
The album was recorded and released in both mono and stereo versions, but they differ in some ways. The stereo album only features ten songs (though reissues restore the two missing ones) and had a different sound mix because different equipment was used.
The album cover was painted by Nicholas Volpe and depicts Sinatra as a sad clown; it won the award for Best Album Cover at the inaugural Grammy Awards. Some people think this album means to express Sinatra‘s feelings of abandonment after his divorce from Ava Gardner had been finalized. Additionally Nelson Riddle‘s mother and daughter had died shortly before the recording sessions were to take place, but Riddle had to finish the arrangements. I leave you to speculate if these events influenced the sound of the record in any way.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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71. Kenny Dorham | Afro-Cuban
Recording: March 29, 1955
Release: October 1955
Producer: Alfred Lion
Label: Blue Note
Genre: Hard Bop, Afro-Cuban Jazz
Line-Up: Art Blakey (drums), Kenny Dorham (trumpet), Richie Goldberg (percussion), Jay Jay Johnson (trombone), Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone), Cecil Payne (baritone saxophone), Oscat Pettiford (bass), Horace Silver (piano), Carlos Valdés (conga)

Points: 511
Finished #9 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #2576
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#4)
Not a Fan: bonnielaurel (#82)

A1 | Minor‘s Holiday (Kenny Dorham)
A2 | Lotus Flower (Kenny Dorham)
B1 | Afrodisia (Kenny Dorham)
B2 | Basheer‘s Dream (Gigi Gryce)

Blue Note originally issued this album as a 10‘‘ vinyl in 1955, which means that its runtime is shorter than we‘re used to from LPs. It only featured four tracks and ran for less than twenty minutes. Two years later the label re-released the album with three additional tracks, „K.D.‘s Motion“, „La Villa“ and „Venita‘s Dance“. These tracks stem from a different session but feature mostly the same line-up. Oscar Pettiford is replaced by Percy Heath on bass and there‘s no conga and no cowbell.
Kenny Dorham had quite a prolific career as a trumpeter in the 1950s and 1960s. He not only released multiple albums as a bandleader, he also played with a lot of his contemporaries including Sonny Rollins, Milt Jackson, Bud Powell and Horace Silver. His own releases are not quite as well-known, though. His most famous might actually this here album which claims to feature Afro-Cuban Jazz. That style was popularized by Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker with whom Dorham had played previously.
The influence of the habanera rhythm and the inclusion of the conga on the original tracks clearly show signs of that style, even though the album is mostly standard Hard Bop. The added bonus tracks for the re-release lose some of that specific flavor though.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

Post by Henry »

Wondering if I will be in the not a fan category for some of the following albums that have yet to drop:

No Doubt:
100. Boris Vian: Chansons possibles et impossibles (Unfortunately, my low ranking of French artists seems a bit consistent throughout this rollout.) - placed at 63 in the poll

Most likely:
92. Josh White: Southern Exposure (no lower than 60 in the poll)
93. Georges Brassens: No. 4 (no lower than 60 in the poll)

Probable:
85. Lotte Lenya: Lotta Lenya sings Kurt Weill (no lower than 60 in the poll)
86. Jacques Brel: No. 4 (another French collection that doesn't yet work for me) (no lower than 60 in the poll)
87. Hank Williams: Moanin' the Blues (no lower than 60 in the poll)
89. Marty Robbins: Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs (no lower than 60 in the poll)

Potentially:
80. Georges Brassens: Premiere Serie: Chante les chansons poetiques (no lower than 60 in the poll)
81. Woody Guthrie: Dust Bowl Ballads (no lower than 60 in the poll)
82. Elizabeth Cotten: Folksongs and Instrumental with Guitar - placed at 67 in the poll - my ranking wasn't in the not a fan group
83. Howlin' Wolf: Moanin' in the Moonlight (no lower than 60 in the poll)
Last edited by Henry on Fri Mar 17, 2023 2:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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70. Charlie Parker | Charlie Parker with Strings
Recording: November 30, 1949
Release: March 1950
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Mercury
Genre: Cool Jazz
Line-Up: Frank Brieff (viola), Ray Brown (bass), Jimmy Carroll (conductor), Stan Freeman (piano), Bronislaw Gimpel (violin), Max Hollander (violin), Milton Lomask (violin), Frank Miller (cello), Mitch Miller (oboe, English horn), Charlie Parker (alto saxophone), Buddy Rich (drums), Meyer Rosen (harp)

Points: 512
Finished #12 in 1900-54 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #133
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #5525
AM rank: #2078
Biggest Fan: Henry (#9)
Not a Fan: DaveC (#92), SL3 (#92), Listyguy (#94), mileswide (#95), Dan (#97)

A | Just Friends (John Klenner, Sam M.Lewis)
B | Everything Happens to Me (Tom Adair, Matt Dennis)
C | April in Paris (Vernon Duke, E.Y. Harburg)
D | If I Should Lose You (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)
E | Summertime (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward)
F | I Didn‘t Know What Time It Was (Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin)

Jazz and string instruments (with the exception of the bass) are not natural partners; most big bands don‘t feature any string instruments and there are only few musicians who play a violin or a cello in a jazz fashion. The most frequent combination is probably found in orchestral arrangements of standards.
Charlie Parker always wanted to record jazz with a string section. Producer Norman Granz helped him fulfill that dream. He collected a band consisting of a small string section, a typical jazz rhythm section and a reed player and had them record a number of standards.
The album Charlie Parker with Strings was released in March 1950 and was a major success; in fact it is Parker‘s best-selling album. Founded on that success Granz and Parker got together again and recorded another album which they titled Charlie Parker with Strings. Yes, it is the same title and yes, it is quite confusing because most people do not even list a Vol. 1 or 2 to describe whether they talk about the 1950 release or the 1951 release. I actually only learned about the existence of the second album while writing these write-ups and was a bit anxious because I wasn‘t sure the album actually qualified or whether people meant to vote for different albums; but based on the original voting thread, I think everybody referred to this, the 1950 album.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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69. João Gilberto | Chega de saudade
Recording: July 10, 1958 (A1, B4) – November 10, 1958 (A4, B1) – January 23, 1959 (A3) – January 30, 1959 (A6, B3) – February 4, 1959 (A2, A5, B2, B5, B6)
Release: March 8, 1959
Producer: Antônio Carlos Jobim
Label: Odeon
Genre: Bossa nova
Line-Up: Milton Banana (drums), Rubens Bassini (bongo), Copinha (flute), Edgardo Luis Luna Freire (backing vocals (A4)), João Gilberto (vocals, guitar), Antônio Carlos Jobim (piano), Juquinha (triangle), Edmundo Maciel (trombone), Acyr Bastos Mello (backing vocals (A4)), Alexandre Silva (backing vocals (A4))

Points: 515
Finished #9 in 1959 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #55
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1229
AM rank: #1712
Biggest Fan: Dan (#14)
Not a Fan: DaveC (#91), Schüttelbirne (#97)

A1 | Chega de saudade (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes)
A2 | Lobo bobo (Carlos Lyra, Ronaldo Bôscoli)
A3 | Brigas, nunca mais (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes)
A4 | Ho-bá-lá-lá (João Gilberto)
A5 | Saudade fez um samba (Carlos Lyra, Ronaldo Bôscoli)
A6 | Maria Ninguém (Carlos Lyra)
B1 | Desafinado (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Newton Mendonça)
B2 | Rosa morena (Dorival Caymmi)
B3 | Morena boca de ouro (Ary Barroso)
B4 | Bim bom (João Gilberto)
B5 | Aos pés da cruz (Marino Pinto, Zé Gonçalves)
B6 | É luxo só (Ary Barroso, Luiz Peixoto)

Typically considered one the most significant Brazilian albums of all time, often being called the first bossa nova album. Bossa nova is basically a new way to play Samba, but with influences from American Jazz. This is a bit reductive of course, since there‘s rhythmic properties that are entirely original, but I couldn‘t tell you about that.
Bossa nova had its start in the late 1950s in Rio de Janeiro, but developments never happen suddenly, so there had been a few progenitors at that point. João Gilberto had been releasing music since 1952 but there‘s few surviving records of what he actually recorded or whether he just recorded music in 1952 and then paused for a few years. Once he teamed up with Antônio Carlos Jobim in 1958 he found success however. Jobim was impressed by Gilberto‘s guitar playing. At that point Jobim worked for Odeon Records as a composer and producer and had Gilberto record some songs that were rather successful. He released a few singles including „Chega de saudade“ in 1958 which were then collected with some additional material in this album.
It is notable that the entire album features twelve songs, but does not exceed 23 minutes. The average song length here is under two minutes.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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68. The Everly Brothers | The Everly Brothers (They‘re Off and Rolling)
Recording: March 1, 1957 (A3, B2) – August 15, 1957 (A2, B3, B6) – August 16, 1957 (A4, B5) – November 3, 1957 (A1, A5, A6, B1, B4)
Release: December 1957
Producer: Archie Bleyer
Label: Cadence
Genre: Close Harmony, Pop, Rock & Roll
Line-Up:
March 1, 1957: Chet Atkins (guitar), Floyd Chance (bass), Jimmy Day (guitar), Ray Edenton (guitar), Don Everly (vocals, guitar), Phil Everly (vocals, guitar), Buddy Harman (drums)
August 15+16, 1957: Chet Atkins (guitar), Floyd Chance (bass), Floyd Cramer (piano), Ray Edenton (guitar), Don Everly (vocals, guitar), Phil Everly (vocals, guitar), Buddy Harman (drums)
November 3, 1957: Chet Atkins (guitar), Floyd Chance (bass), Floyd Cramer (piano), Ray Edenton (guitar), Don Everly (vocals, guitar), Phil Everly (vocals, guitar), Hank Garland (guitar), Buddy Harman (drums)

Points: 515
Finished #13 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #36
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #2980
AM rank: #1729
Biggest Fan: bonnielaurel (#11)
Not a Fan: Schüttelbirne (#98)

A1 | This Little Girl of Mine (Ray Charles)
A2 | Maybe Tomorrow (Don Everly, Phil Everly)
A3 | Bye Bye Love (Boudleaux Bryant, Felice Bryant)
A4 | Brand New Heartache (Rick Riddle)
A5 | Keep a Knockin‘ (Richard Penniman)
A6 | Be Bop a Lula (Tex Davis, Gene Vincent)
B1 | Rip It Up (Robert Blackwell, John Marascalco)
B2 | I Wonder If I Care as Much (Don Everly, Phil Everly)
B3 | Wake Up Little Susie (Boudleaux Bryant, Felice Bryant)
B4 | Leave My Woman Alone (Ray Charles)
B5 | Should We Tell Him (Don Everly, Phil Everly)
B6 | Hey Doll Baby (Titus Turner)

The album is basically self-titled, but it is often known as „They‘re Off and Rolling“, because the cover claims that‘s what Archie says. Archie is of course Archie Bleyer, the famous country producer (and who also thought Link Wray‘s music was so immoral he canceled his record contract and shelved his recordings). The cover also features an entire text telling the reader of the loads of mail reaching them after the release of „Bye Bye Love“ and „Wake Up Little Susie“, demanding more material. I quote:
That‘s why Archie brings you more of the kind of music that made them famous on this Cadence LP.
There were four recording sessions for this album. The first one produced the successful single „Bye Bye Love“ with its B-side „I Wonder If I Care as Much“, the second produced the other hit single on the record, „Wake Up Little Susie“, its B-side „Maybe Tomorrow“ and the record closer „Hey Doll Baby“. In a third session the day after the previous one, two additional songs were recorded.
The final session in November 1957 was clearly intended to produce filler material for the planned album. The material for that session consisted only of covers by popular artists: Two Ray Charles songs, two Little Richard songs and Gene Vincent‘s „Be-Bop-a-Lula“. The latter three are clearly Rock & Roll songs that would appeal to the younger demographic The Everly Brothers were already quite popular with. They were the most successful artists for Cadence Records. Bleyer would never really accept Rock & Roll as a music genre, deeming it ‚immoral‘. A lot of the recordings he did with Link Wray were shelved for example. The Everly Brothers however had the public image of „perfect son-in-laws“.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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67. Elizabeth Cotten | Folksongs and Instrumentals with Guitar
Recording: Late 1957 – Early 1958
Release: 1958
Producers: Mike Seeger [?]
Label: Folkways
Genre: Piedmont Blues
Line-Up: Elizabeth Cotten (vocals, guitar, banjo)

Points: 516
Finished #12 in 1958 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: SL3 (#5)
Not a Fan: Brad (#94), bonnielaurel (#100)

A1 | Wilson Rag
A2 | Freight Train
A3 | Going Down the Road Feeling Bad
A4 | I Don‘t Love Nobody
A5 | Ain‘t Got No Honey Baby Now
A6 | Graduation March
A7 | Honey Babe Your Papa Cares for You
B1 | Vastopol
B2 | Here Old Rattler Here / Sent for My Fiddle Sent for My Bow / George Buck
B3 | Run… Run / Mama Your Son Done Gone
B4 | Sweet Bye and Bye / What a Friend We Have in Jesus
B5 | Oh Babe It Ain‘t No Lie
B6 | Spanish Flang Dang
B7 | When I Get Home

All songs written or adapted by Elizabeth Cotten.

Elizabeth Cotten was already 63 years old when this album was released. She had taught herself to play guitar and banjo when she was eight, but never pursued a musical career. She started doing housework for other people at age twelve and proceeded to do this for most of her life while raising her children and helping to raise her grandchildren.
One day in a department store she helped a young girl find her mother and soon started working for that family, the Seegers which also included Mike Seeger, who would become an accomplished folklorist who collected folk songs, but also a musician himself.
He helped Cotten record this album in her home. The songs here are not really written by Cotten herself (except „Freight Train“), but rather they‘re adaptations and interpretations of folk songs sung in North Carolina. Cotten accompanies herself with either a guitar or a banjo on all of these tracks – some are instrumentals and lack vocals. Since she‘s not a professionally trained musician, there‘s a sense of authenticity to these recordings that has certainly helped shape its impact.
Helped by the folk music hype that took the USA at this point, Cotten became a popular performer in her later life, touring and recording music with her unique guitar-playing style.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

Post by Schüttelbirne »



66. Lennie Tristano | Lennie Tristano
Recording: 1954-1955 (home studio) (A1, A2, A3, A4) – June 11, 1955 (A5, B1, B2, B3, B4)
Release: February 1956
Producers:
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Cool Jazz, Bebop
Line-Up:
1954-1955 (home studio): Peter Ind (bass), Jeff Morton (drums), Lennie Tristano (piano)
June 11, 1955: Lee Konitz (alto saxophone), Gene Ramey (bass), Art Taylor (drums), Lennie Tristano (piano)

Points: 518
Finished #13 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #1085
Biggest Fan: Henry (#20)
Not a Fan: Dan (#93), Honorio (#98)

A1 | Line Up (Lennie Tristano)
A2 | Requiem (Lennie Tristano)
A3 | Turkish Mambo (Lennie Tristano)
A4 | East Thirty-Second (Lennie Tristano)
A5 | These Foolish Things (Harry Link, Holt Marvell, Jack Strachey)
B1 | You Go to My Head (J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie)
B2 | If I Had You (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Ted Shapiro)
B3 | Ghost of a Chance (Bing Crosby, Ned Washington, Victor Young)
B4 | All the Things You Are (Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern)

A truly weird mix of two completely recording sessions. The first four tracks of the A-side were recorded at an undisclosed date between 1954 and 1955 in Tristano‘s home studio. They are original compositions by Tristano and feature experimentation with the tapes the sound was recorded on. Basically, what you hear is a faster version of what Tristano actually played.
The final song on the A-side and the entire B-side stems from a completely unrelated recorded concert session in June 1955 where jazz standards were covered in an pretty traditional way.
Speeding up the tapes and using multitracking was not exactly met with enthusiasm everywhere. A lot of people were (well, are) averse to what they see as manipulation of the „actual“ music being played or as a deception by making the listener think the musician is more talented for being able to play in a faster way (which is not a good point, because being a talented musician is not equivalent with being able to play notes in a rapid succession).
Despite the criticism this album remains Tristano‘s most well-known album and has been praised for showing two different sides of the same performer.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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65. Clifford Brown and Max Roach | Study in Brown
Recording: February 23-25, 1955
Release: 1955
Producers:
Label: EmArcy
Genre: Hard Bop
Line-Up: Clifford Brown (trumpet), Harold Land (tenor saxophone), George Morrow (double bass), Richie Powell (piano), Max Roach (drums)

Points: 519
Finished #8 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #87
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #2023
Biggest Fan: Schüttelbirne (#18)
Not a Fan: SL3 (#91)

A1 | Cherokee (Ray Noble)
A2 | Jacqui (Richie Powell)
A3 | Swingin‘ (Clifford Brown)
A4 | Lands End (Harold Land)
B1 | George‘s Dilemma (Clifford Brown)
B2 | Sandu (Clifford Brown)
B3 | Gerkin for Perkin (Clifford Brown)
B4 | If I Love Again (Jack Murray, Ben Oakland)
B5 | Take the A Train (Billy Strayhorn)

Clifford Brown did not have a very long career. He died at 25 in a car accident leaving behind an already impressive body of work. DownBeat had titled him „the New Dizzy“ (referring to Dizzy Gillespie of course). Had he lived who knows what might have happened.
In the mid-1950s he formed a quintet with drummer Max Roach. It‘s rather unusual for jazz groups to have multiple bandleaders but Brown and Roach were co-leaders. That‘s why they are always credited together. In their short time together they recorded multiple great records including Clifford Brown and Max Roach and At Basin Street. Their most famous might be Study in Brown which features mostly original compositions by members of the band.
Brown himself contributed four compositions with „Sandu“ being the most significant. Saxophonist Harold Land is responsible for the standard „Lands End“ while pianist Richie Powell provided „Jacqui“. Three jazz standards complete the set. None of the interpretations of these compositions is very long. „Cherokee“, the longest, does not exceed six minutes.
All in all, there‘s a lot of variety on display here with slower ballads and fast-paced bangers, with every musician showcasing his abilities in unison with the others or in remarkable solos.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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64. B.B. King | Singin‘ the Blues
Single Releases: November 1951 (A5) – August 1952 (B2) – February 1953 (B1) – May 1953 (A1) – October 1953 (A6) – October 1954 (A2) – December 1954 (A3) – September 1955 (B4) – December 1955 (B6) – March 1956 (B5) – August 1956 (A4, B3)
Release: June 1957
Producers:
Label: Crown
Genre: Electric Blues, Jump Blues, Soul Blues
Line-Up:

Points: 520
Finished #12 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #184
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #2584
Biggest Fan: DaveC (#18)
Not a Fan: Brad (#93)

A1 | Please Love Me
A2 | You Upset Me Baby
A3 | Everyday I Have the Blues (Peter Chapman)
A4 | Bad Luck
A5 | 3 O‘Clock Blues
A6 | Blind Love
B1 | Woke Up This Morning
B2 | You Know I Love You
B3 | Sweet Little Angel
B4 | Ten Long Years
B5 | Did You Ever Love a Woman
B6 | Crying Won‘t Help You

All songs written by B.B. King and Jules Taub except A3.

There‘s not a lot of information to be found on this record. It‘s compilation of B.B. King‘s greatest hit singles on the RPM label, which was later integrated into Crown Records. King recorded a lot of singles in the period from 1951-1956; the producers (whoever they were) chose the biggest hits. The only B-side on the album is „Bad Luck“, all the other songs were A-sides, most of them were hits on the R&B charts. I can‘t find information on when these songs were recorded, though. „You Upset Me Baby“ was recorded on August 19, 1954, but that‘s the only date I could find. Instead you‘ll find the approximate release dates of the singles. B.B. King played guitar and sang on all the tracks, but I‘m not sure about the rest of the line-up. I found a source claiming that the Maxwell Davis Orchestra supported him on all the recordings from 1953 to 1956, but I‘m unsure if that is accurate.
B.B. King had been scouted by Ike Turner who worked for Modern Records which was another record label the Bihari Brothers owned and which was later fused with RPM Records to create Crown Records. His guitar-playing style was very influential on subsequent Blues, R&B and Rock music and is showcased on this album which was his first LP which still serves as a good compilation of the work he‘d done in the early 1950s.
Despite being credited as the writer for eleven of the twelve songs here, that is only half true. In good blues tradition King took (at times very strong) influences from many other previous blues artists like Lowell Fulson, Arthur Crudup and Tampa Red.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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63. Boris Vian | Chansons „possibles“ et „impossibles“
Recording:
Release: 1956
Producers:
Label: Philips
Genre: Chanson à texte
Line-Up: Alain Goraguer (conductor), Boris Vian (vocals), Jimmy Walter (conductor) etc.

Points: 526
Finished #9 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #38
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1599
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: nicolas (#2), Dan (#6)
Not a Fan: Listyguy (#92), Henry (#100), SL3 (#100)

A1 | Les joyeux bouchers (Jimmy Walter, Boris Vian)
A2 | Bourrée de complexes (Alain Goraguer, Boris Vian)
A3 | La java des bombes atomiques (Alain Goraguer, Boris Vian)
A4 | On est pas là pour se faire engueuler (Jimmy Walter, Boris Vian)
A5 | Je bois (Alain Goraguer, Boris Vian)
B1 | J‘suis snob (Jimmy Walter, Boris Vian)
B2 | Le déserteur (Boris Vian)
B3 | La complainte du progrès (Alain Goraguer, Boris Vian)
B4 | Cinématographe (Jimmy Walter, Boris Vian)
B5 | Le petit commerce (Alain Goraguer, Boris Vian)

Vian was primarily a novelist, but not a very successful one. After his last novel L‘Arrache-coeur had failed to garner any commercial success, he turned towards poetry and songwriting. One of his first efforts is a two-punch of EPs entitled Chansons possibles and Chansons impossibles which were then collected on the LP Chansons „possibles“ et „impossibles“. There is barely any information to be found about the recording sessions, the producers or who played on the album.
Vian co-wrote every song on the album with either Alain Goraguer or Jimmy Walter who apparently also provided the instrumental accompaniment on the tracks they co-wrote (I‘m not sure).
Even the album was not successful at the time of its release (the ban of „Le déserteur“ was certainly not helping). He would only find success after his death in 1959, with the participants of the 1968 student protests especially taking a liking to him.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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62. The Quintet | Jazz at Massey Hall
Recording: May 15, 1953
Release: June 1956
Producer: Charles Mingus
Label: Debut
Genre: Bebop
Line-Up: Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Charles Mingus (bass), Charlie Parker (alto saxophone), Bud Powell (piano), Max Roach (drums)

Points: 532
Finished #18 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #106
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #3007
AM rank: #683
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#3)
Not a Fan: bonnielaurel (#95)

A1 | Perdido (Juan Tizol)
A2 | Salt Peanuts (Dizzy Gillespie, Kenny Clarke)
A3 | All the Things You Are (Jerome Kern)
B1 | Wee (Denzil Best)
B2 | Hot House (Tadd Dameron)
B3 | A Night in Tunisia (Dizzy Gillespie)

This album features a live performance done on May 15, 1953 at Massey Hall in Toronto with five musicians all of whom have attained legend status. Some of them were rather well-known at the time, like Parker and Gillespie, some still had the high-points of their career ahead of them like Mingus. For contractual reasons Parker isn‘t listed on the cover; instead it says „Charlie Chan“ in quotation marks. This album made the list in 1956, but all of its material had already been released three years earlier in 1953 on two 10‘‘ LPs by Debut Records. These were titled Jazz at Massey Hall:Volume One and Jazz at Massey Hall: Volume Three. Volume Two was credited to The Amazing Bud Powell Trio and did not feature Gillespie and Parker (it was recorded on the same date however – except for the last track which was pasted in from another unrelated session). The original release (and the 1956 compilation of Vols. 1 & 3) contains overdubbed bass and drum parts because the recording quality wasn‘t very good and technology wasn‘t well enough to fix it. Modern-day reissues typically present the original performance without overdubbing.
This concert and its recording have attained legendary status as one of the best jazz concerts ever given and one of the best live albums to have ever been released.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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61. Mahalia Jackson | The World‘s Greatest Gospel Singer
Recording: November 23, 1954
Release: March 14, 1955
Producer: George Avakian
Label: Columbia
Genre: Traditional Black Gospel
Line-Up: Frank Carroll (bass), Mildred Falls (piano), Mahalia Jackson (vocals), Ralph Jones (organ), Jack Lasberg (guitar), Bunny Shawker (drums)

Points: 533
Finished #6 in 1955 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #90
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #2901
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: bonnielaurel (#8)
Not a Fan: Brad (#91)

A1 | I‘m Going to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song (Thomas A. Dorsey)
A2 | When I Wake Up in Glory (Traditional)
A3 | Jesus Met the Woman at the Well (James W. Alexander, Kenneth Morris)
A4 | Oh Lord, Is It I? (Robert Anderson)
A5 | I Will Move on Up a Little Higher (W. Herbert Brewster)
B1 | When the Saints Go Marching In (Traditional)
B2 | Jesus (Aaron Coleman)
B3 | Out of the Depths (Thelma Gross)
B4 | Walk Over God‘s Heaven (Thomas A. Dorsey)
B5 | Keep Your Hand on the Plow (Traditional)
B6 | Didn‘t It Rain (Traditional)

There may be an entire section of the Grammy Awards dedicated to recognizing Gospel (and CCM), but as a musical style it is a niche. There was a time when that was different though: When Mahalia Jackson released „Move On Up a Little Higher“ as a single in 1947, the success was immediate and large. It sold two million copies, became a big hit and made Jackson a major star who gave concerts to religious and secular audiences, and toured Europe (which was a big thing for a Gospel artist). Most of her albums were released in the period from the mid-1950s to the late 1960s (she died in 1972). The World‘s Greatest Gospel Singer is one of her earliest albums and made the Top 10 of our 1955 poll.
This is most likely not due to the popularity of Gospel music here,but rather to Jackson‘s unique vocal abilities. The biggest influence on Jackson‘s vocal style was probably Bessie Smith, but Jackson had an even more powerful voice and a performing style that made the audience feel like she was not just performing the music but rather living in it.
In live performances she took a normal-length song and stretched it out to vast lengths through improvisation while engaging with the audience. This is not something she would do for a studio album like this, but her talent is still palpable. According to George Avakian, she produced multiple singles and one-and-a-half albums in just two evenings. The title of the album may be hyperbole, but it might also be true.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

Post by Holden »

Great rollout! Loving it!
"The better a singer's voice, the harder it is to believe what they're saying."
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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60. Georges Brassens | N° 4
Recording: October 1, 1953 – January 18, 1956
Release: March 1956
Producer: Jacques Canetti
Label: Philips
Genre: Chanson à texte
Line-Up: Victor Apicella (guitar), Georges Brassens (vocals, guitar), Pierre Nicolas (contrabass)

Points: 533
Finished #7 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #71
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1198
AM rank: Unranked
Biggest Fan: nicolas (#1)
Not a Fan: Henry (#93), SL3 (#98)

A1 | Je me suis fait tout petit (Georges Brassens)
A2 | Auprès de mon arbre (Georges Brassens)
A3 | Marinette (Georges Brassens)
A4 | Le testament (Georges Brassens)
B1 | Les croquants (Georges Brassens)
B2 | La légende de la nonne (Georges Brassens, Victor Hugo)
B3 | Le nombril des femmes d‘agents (Georges Brassens)
B4 | Colombine (Georges Brassens, Paul Verlaine)

Brassens‘ fourth album shows his face blending into the blue/gray background only leaving the parts of his head with hair visible.The album is also known as Je me suis fait tout petit based on its first song. Just like on his previous albums, the music on all tracks is written by him while most of the lyrics have also been written by him. The exceptions are „La légende de la nonne“ and „Colombine“ which are based on poems by Victor Hugo and Paul Verlaine, respectively.
The first track, „Je me suis fait tout petit“ describes a narrator submitting to the whims of a so-described doll who (metaphorically) turns into an animal when something provokes her. Aiming to please her he torments himself. Another form of tormenting oneself for one‘s lover is shown in the song „Marinette“ which presents a narrator who bring Marinette things, like a song or a bicycle, only to find at arrival that she already has better things. The song ends with the narrator deciding to kill her, but finding that she has already died. When he goes to her funeral to mourn her, she had already been resuscitated. It‘s a humorous song, based on a lot of repetition of phrases. Another love story is told in „La légende de la nonne“ where a nun falls in love but is struck down by lightning as punishment. Brassens cut Hugo‘s original twenty-four stanzas down to just nine.
„Auprès de mon arbre“ is a song of regret showing that true happiness lies in the simple pleasres we take for granted, like a tree. A lot of tree metaphoric is also used in „Le testament“ in which the narrator is dying, but he will be back as a ghost if his wife‘s new husband mistreats his cats. „Le nombril des femmes d‘agents“ tells of a different kind of regret, the regret of not having seen the policeman‘s wife‘s navel (undescribable regret indeed!). When the narrator finally glances he is struck dead from the shock just like the nun was struck down by lightning.
As you can see, there‘s a bit of thematic consistency here with less songs satirizing society but more about regretfully looking back upon life. As far as I‘m aware, most of the songs here were released as singles eventually, but not before the album was issued.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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59. Stan Kenton | New Concepts of Artistry in Rhythm
Recording: September 10, 1952 (A2, B3, B4) – September 11, 1952 (A1, B1) – September 15, 1952 (A3, B1, B2) – September 16, 1952 (A3)
Release: 1953
Producer: Lee Gillette
Label: Capitol
Genre: Progressive Big Band
Line-Up: Don Bagley (bass), Bob Burgess (trombone), Conte Candoli (trumpet), Buddy Childers (trumpet), Vinnie Dean (saxophone), Don Dennis (trumpet), Maynard Ferguson (trumpet), Bob Gioga (saxophone), Bill Holman (saxophone), Richie Kamuca (saxophone), Stan Kenton (piano), Lee Konitz (saxophone), Stan Levey (drums), Ruben McFall (trumpet), Keith Moon (trombone), George Roberts (trombone), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Bill Russo (trombone), San Salvador (guitar), Denon Kenneth Walton (bongos)

Points: 533
Finished #12 in 1900-54 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: Unranked
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #2068
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#12)
Not a Fan: Dan (#91)

A1 | 23° North, 82° West (Bill Russo)
A2 | Portrait of a Count (Bill Russo)
A3 | Improvisation (Bill Russo)
B1 | Invention for Guitar and Trumpet (Bill Holman)
B2 | My Lady (Bill Russo)
B3 | Young Blood (Bill Russo)
B4 | Frank Speaking (Bill Russo)

Stan Kenton was one of the more successful and innovative big band leaders of the 1940s and 1950s. In 1946 he released an album titled Artistry in Rhythm. His collaborator Pete Rugolo brought in influence from jazz and classical musical and influenced the sound of the band to a large degree. There was also a degree of afro-cuban influences involved, which made Kenton one of the earlier pioneers of that sound.
These influences only grew in the late 1940s where Rugolo still composed most of the music which Kenton had now entitled „Progressive Jazz“. Kenton constantly changed the line-up of the band and the output they generated was constantly changing between commercially successful and demanding, experimental music. Sometimes he (and producer Lee Gillette) managed to combine both.
New Concepts of Artistry in Rhythm proclaims to be a sequel to the earlier album from 1946, but lacks any contribution by Rugolo. It also features a different line-up and shows large influence from contemporary Bebop music which was certainly a „new concept“. Almost all of the compositions on the album were done by trombonist Bill Russo who had successfully collaborated with Kenton for a number of years.
An important peculiarity of this album is the editing of tapes which was a rather new technique in jazz music. On the tracks „Improvisation“ and „Invention for Guitar and Trumpet“ the master tapes feature music recorded on two different days.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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58. Thelonious Monk Septet | Monk‘s Music
Recording: June 25+26, 1957
Release: November 1957
Producer: Orrin Keepnews
Label: Riverside
Genre: Hard Bop
Line-Up: Art Blakey (drums), John Coltrane (tenor saxophone), Ray Copeland (trumpet), Gigi Gryce (alto saxophone), Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone), Thelonious Monk (piano), Wilbur Ware (bass)

Points: 534
Finished #19 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #48
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #5657
AM rank: #1633
Biggest Fan: Brad (#5)
Not a Fan: SL3 (#80)

A1 | Abide with Me (Henry Francis Lyte, William Henry Monk)
A2 | Well You Needn‘t (Thelonious Monk)
A3 | Ruby, My Dear (Thelonious Monk)
B1 | Off Minor (Thelonious Monk)
B2 | Epistrophy (Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke)
B3 | Crepescule with Nellie (Thelonious Monk)

In 1957 Monk began playing at the Five Spot Cafe in the East Village with a quartet also featuring John Coltrane, Wilbur Ware and Shadow Wilson (who is not featured on this recording). Coltrane had joined Monk for this residency after being kicked out of the Miles Davis Quintet for his habit of drug abuse. There are not many recordings of this line-up and even fewer of them were released while Monk and Coltrane were alive.
This album features a septet and was recorded in the early days of Monk‘s residency at Five Spot Cafe. The songs featured on the album are all originals by Monk which had almost all been recorded and released multiple times. Most of the tracks were featured on the compilation Genius of Modern Music,Vol. 1 in 1951.
Monk‘s Music is also notable for being one of the first records by a ‚bigger‘ label to be issued with stereophonic sound. It was simultaneously released in Mono and in Stereo, but the Stereo mix had problems and did not feature the final track.
In „Ruby, My Dear“ Monk is yelling „Coltrane! Coltrane!“ which has been interpreted by some as an enthusiastic response, by others as an angry shout for Coltrane not to miss his mark.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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57. Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong | Ella and Louis
Recording: August 16, 1956
Release: October 1956
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Verve
Genre: Vocal Jazz
Line-Up: Louis Armstrong (vocals, trumpet), Ray Brown (bass), Herb Ellis (guitar), Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Oscar Peterson (piano), Buddy Rich (drums)

Points: 535
Finished #8 in 1956 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #105
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #1044
AM rank: #1125
Biggest Fan: Dan (#12)
Not a Fan: DaveC (#93)

A1 | Can‘t We Be Friends (Kay Swift, Paul James)
A2 | Isn‘t This a Lovely Day (Irving Berlin)
A3 | Moonlight in Vermont (John Blackburn, Karl Suessdorf)
A4 | They Can‘t Take That Away from Me (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
A5 | Under a Blanket of Blue (Al Neiburg, Jerry Livingston, Marty Symes)
A6 | Tenderly (Jack Lawrence, Walter Gross)
B1 | A Foggy Day (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
B2 | Stars Fell on Alabama (Frank Perkins, Mitchell Parish)
B3 | Cheek to Cheek (Irving Berlin)
B4 | The Nearness of You (Hoagy Carmichael, Ned Washington)
B5 | April in Paris (E.Y. Harburg, Vernon Duke)

Norman Granz, the founder of Verve Records, is a very important figure in the history of Jazz. He brought jazz out of the nightclubs and put the bands on the big stage: In 1944 he started organizing „Jazz at the Philharmonic“ (short: JATP) which originally only referred to one jazz concert at the Philharmonic Auditorium in Los Angeles but soon turned into a larger series of concert tours through the USA and Canada. In the 1950s he even organized jazz tours through Europe.
One of these JATP performances happened on August 15, 1956 at the Hollywood Bowl. It featured Ella Fitzgerald, Art Tatum, Louis Armstrong and Oscar Peterson – three of them would be invited into the Capitol Studios to record an entire album in a day.
Fitzgerald and Armstrong sang duet versions of songs from shows and musicals of the 1930s with the Oscar Peterson Quartet serving as the backing band. The selected songs were mostly slow ballads. Armstrong also plays trumpet on every track. Norman Granz wanted to focus on the singers; he once said he didn‘t care if a trumpet played a wrong note in bar 32 as long as Fitzgerald did the best she could do (though he didn‘t mean Armstrong in this quote). In a way, he turned her into the jazz icon she is known as today.
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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56. Benny Goodman | The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert
Recording: January 16, 1938
Release: November 1950
Producer: George Avakian
Label: Columbia
Genre: Big Band, Swing
Line-Up: Red Ballard (trombone), Count Basie (piano), Vernon Brown (trombone), Harry Carney (baritone saxophone), Buck Clayton (trumpet), Ziggy Elman (trumpet), Benny Goodman (clarinet), Harry Goodman (bass), Freddy Green (guitar), Gordon Griffin (trumpet), Bobby Hackett (cornet), Lionel Hampton (vibraphone), Johnny Hodges (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone), Harry James (trumpet), George Koenig (tenor saxophone), Gene Krupa (drums), Walter Page (bass), Allan Reuss (guitar), Arthur Rollini (tenor saxophone), Babe Russin (tenor saxophone), Hymie Shertzer (alto saxophone), Jess Stacy (piano), Martha Tilton (vocals), Cootie Williams (trumpet), Teddy Wilson (piano), Lester Young (tenor saxophone)

Points: 535
Finished #11 in 1900-54 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #112
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: Unranked
AM rank: #604
Biggest Fan: mileswide (#14)
Not a Fan: nicolas (#62)

A1 | Don‘t Be That Way (Edgar Sampson, Benny Goodman, Mitchell Parish)
A2 | One O‘Clock Jump (Count Basie)
A3 | Dixieland One-Step (Edwin Edwards)
A4 | I‘m Coming Virginia (Will Marion Cook, Donald Heywood)
A5 | When My Baby Smiles at Me (Bill Munro, Andrew Sterling, Ted Lewis, Harry Von Tilzer)
A6 | Shine (Cecil Mack, Ford Dabney, Lew Brown)
A7 | Blue Reverie (Duke Ellington, Harry Carney)
A8 | Life Goes to a Party (Harry James, Benny Goodman)
B1 | Jam Session: Honeysuckle Rose (Thomas Waller, Andy Razaf)
B2 | Body and Soul (Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, Frank Eyton)
B3 | Avalon (Vincent Rose, B.G. DeSylva, Al Jolson)
B4 | The Man I Love (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
C1 | I Got Rhythm (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
C2 | Blue Skies (Irving Berlin)
C3 | Loch Lomond (Traditional)
C4 | Blue Room (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)
C5 | Swingtime in the Rockies (Jimmy Mundy, Benny Goodman)
C6 | Bei mir bist du schön (Scholom Secunda, Jacob Jacobs, Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin)
C7 | China Boy (Dick Winfree, Phil Boutelje)
D1 | Stompin‘ at the Savoy (Edgar Sampson, Benny Goodman, Chick Webb)
D2 | Dizzy Spells (Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton, Teddy Wilson)
D3 | Sing Sing Sing (With a Swing) (Parts I and II) (Louis Prima)
D4 | Encore: Big John‘s Special (Horace Henderson)

When Benny Goodman got to perform at Carnegie Hall, he was one of the first jazz acts to be able to appear in this venue which had (and still has) a certain prestige. The performance on January 16, 1938 was a huge hit with the audience. It lasted two hours and featured not only Benny Goodman‘s orchestra but also members from Count Basie‘s and Duke Ellington‘s orchestras who jumped in for some songs. The performance was recorded, but not released at the time because there was no format that really fit. But once the LP came around Columbia issued the concert in an edited version as a double album (or in the form of two volumes). A 1999 release restored the entire performance including applause, transitions and an announcement by Goodman.
Not all the orchestra members listed above appear on every track, but it would be too confusing to list the individual tracks they do appear on. While the A-side features a number of eight rather short tracks the B-side starts with one of the highlights of the album: „Honeysuckle Rose“ featuring a number of guest musicians with solos. It‘s very long and wouldn‘t have fit on any format in 1938.
This release shows how a swing Big Band operated in a concert setting, which was its main environment. So it does not only have musical but also historical value. I do not know if the concert really was as legendary as the title claimed, but since then it certainly has earned that status.
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Schüttelbirne
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Re: Music of the Early Years: The Results - Albums

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55. Ella Fitzgerald | Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book, Vol. 1
Recording: September 4, 1956 (C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, D1, D2, D3, D4, D5) – June 24, 1957 (A3, A5) – June 25, 1957 (A2, B1, B5) – June 26, 1957 (A1, B2, B3, B4) – June 27, 1957 (A4, B6
Release: 1957
Producer: Norman Granz
Label: Verve
Genre: Vocal Jazz, Big Band
Line-Up:
A+B: Carl Anderson (trumpet), Harry Carney (baritone saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet), Willie Cook (trumpet), Duke Ellington (piano), Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Frank Foster (tenor saxophone), Paul Gonsalves (tenor saxophone), Jimmy Hamilton (clarinet, tenor saxophone), Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone), Johnny Hodges (alto saxophone), Quentin Jackson (trombone), Ray Nance (trumpet, violin), Russell Procope (alto saxophone, clarinet), John Sanders (trombone), Clark Terry (trumpet), Jimmy Woode (bass), Britt Woodman (trombone), Sam Woodyard (drums)
C+D: Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Barney Kessel (guitar), Joe Mondragon (bass), Paul Smith (piano), Stuff Smith (violin), Alvin Stoller (drums), Ben Webster (tenor saxophone)

Points: 536
Finished #8 in 1957 poll
Rank in 2016 poll: #70
Rank in 2020 All-Time poll: #3149
AM rank: #1889
Biggest Fan: Henry (#32)
Not a Fan: mileswide (#82)

A1 | Rockin‘ in Rhythm (Duke Ellington, Harry Carney, Irving Mills)
A2 | Drop Me Off in Harlem (Duke Ellington, Nick Kenny)
A3 | Day Dream (Duke Ellington, John La Touche, Billy Strayhorn)
A4 | Caravan (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Juan Tizol)
A5 | Take the A Train (Billy Strayhorn)
B1 | I Ain‘t Got Nothing But the Blues (Duke Ellington, Don George)
B2 | Clementine (Billy Strayhorn)
B3 | I Didn‘t Know About You (Duke Ellington, Bob Russell)
B4 | I‘m Beginning to See the Light (Duke Ellington, Don George, Johnny Hodges, Harry James)
B5 | Lost in Meditation (Irving Mills, Lou Singer, Juan Tizol)
B6 | Perdido (Ervin Drake, H.J. Lengsfelder, Juan Tizol)
C1 | Cottontail (Duke Ellington)
C2 | Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me (Duke Ellington, Bob Russell)
C3 | Just a Sittin‘ and a Rockin‘ (Billy Strayhorn, Lee Gaines)
C4 | Solitude (Duke Ellington, Eddie DeLange, Irving Mills)
C5 | Rocks in My Bed (Duke Ellington)
D1 | Satin Doll (Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Johnny Mercer)
D2 | Sophisticated Lady (Duke Ellington, Mitchell Parish)
D3 | Just Squeeze Me (Duke Ellington, Lee Gaines)
D4 | It Don‘t Mean a Thing (If It Ain‘t Got That Swing) (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills)
D5 | Azure (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills)

After the success of Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book, the next composers for the song book series were Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, but the one right after was Duke Ellington. The first recording session was done in September 1956 with a small ensemble. It‘s important to note that Duke Ellington did not play on these recordings which were ultimately turned into the second LP of this double album. In a number of sessions in June 1957, Fitzgerald did however get the chance to sing with Ellington which she hadn‘t done before. These recordings make up the first LP.
However, these were not all the recording sessions for the album: In September 1957 there was another session with Ellington where they recorded a suite titled „Portrait of Ella“. Some additional songs were also recorded in another session in October 1957 with a different small ensemble but without Ellington.
At some point Granz decided that they were not gonna do one double album with songs by Ellington, but rather two albums. The second volume is not nearly as famous as the first, however (I‘m not sure everybody knows it exists).
It‘s not really true that all songs on the two double albums were written by Ellington; there are quite a few compositions by Billy Strayhorn who was a close friend of Ellington‘s and wrote many of the songs Ellington popularized. So „Duke Ellington Song Book“ is to be taken in a slightly broader sense: Not just songs Ellington wrote, but also songs in Ellington‘s repertoire.
The instrumentation on the album changes strongly; as I mentioned above the first disc includes a big band while the second disc only includes a smaller ensemble. Fitzgerald gets a lot of opportunity to do vocal improvisations (known as „scat singing“).
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