Jimmy Smith's Greatest Hits

"File under JAZZ: Soloist Led Groups (Modern)" advises a note on the top right hand corner of the back of the sleeve. My record collection is modest enough that such elaborate categorisation is unnecessary, so I'm content to file my two LPs by Smith, ('The Incredible') Jimmy between Sinatra, Nancy and Smithereens, The. The two albums are a mismatched pair of compilations on the Verve label: this Greatest Hits and a Best Of, Vol. 2.

I tend not to think of jazz artists in terms of 'hits' but there were numerous singles and EPs of Smith's tunes, some of which must have sold well enough. The recordings included here all date between '62 and '66. On most of them Smith is accompanied by a big band using arrangements by the likes of Oliver Nelson and Lalo Schifrin. There's only a single trio performance, that of 'The Organ Gringer's Swing' where Smith is ably assisted Kenny Burrell on guitar and Grady Tate on drums.

Alun Morgan's sleevnotes mention that Smith's material while at Verve extended to "television show themes, Christmas carols, current popular tunes, earthy blues numbers and contemporary jazz themes." On this record most of the tracks are movie-related in one way or another, with treatments of the themes from Goldfinger and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf among them. On one of the "earthy blues numbers," a rendition of 'Hoochie Coochie Man', Smith contributes some appropriately rough-edged vocals in addition to working his usual magic on the Hammond B3.

Comments

All Wrapped Up

Here's another of the compilation cassettes I bought this summer, having taken home a Denon twin-deck hi-fi cassette player from the local charity shop. All Wrapped Up is a 1983 compilation of singles by The Undertones, with Side One filled with A-sides, and B-sides on Side Two. A cassette must be the least desirable medium for such an arrangement, with a long rewind required if one just wants to hear the hits repeatedly. The Undertones were unapologetically provincial and anti-fashionable, with their songs sharply-written slices of life that pointedly avoided any mention of politics, or of the then-continuing violence in their native Derry. My favourite tracks are the obvious choices: 'Teenage Kicks', 'Jimmy Jimmy', 'Here Comes the Summer', 'My Perfect Cousin' & 'Wednesday Week'. Their later singles showed increased sophistication but lack the some of the straightforward charm of their earlier work. The B-sides, not unexpectedly, are mo

In Heat

Having acquired the soubriquet "the walrus of love", Barry White thereafter became something of a figure of fun, something that misled me (and presumably others) into disregarding his music. Only within the last few years have I begun to pay it more attention. After picking up a copy of his '74 album Can't Get Enough last summer, which I loved, I sought out some of the music by his protegés Love Unlimited. From a Discogs seller I ordered well-used copies of Under the Influence of... ('73) and In Heat ('74) for only £6.25. The only unappealing thing about In Heat is its awful title. The songs and the singing are strong; the arrangements rich & warmly enveloping. As one would expect from White, the thematic focus is firmly fixed on amatory matters. The opening number 'Move Me No Mountain' (the only one on the record not written by White) offers a refreshing rebuttal to the kind of lyrical hyperbole in songs like 'Ain't No Mountain High E

Bananas Are Not Created Equal

I knew Jay Berliner's name from his contributions to Van Morrison's Astral Weeks and Charles Mingus' The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady , so when I saw this curiously-titled LP at the local charity shop I was intrigued, and bought it even though I had no idea what kind of music it might contain. This was after the days when one could still buy records there for a pound apiece, but I don't think I paid more than a fiver for it. The music turned out to be an all-instrumental blend of funk, soul & jazz. Berliner's virtuoso lead guitar is only one of many attractions here. The band of first-rate session musicians behind him are all uniformly excellent too, and, crucially, sound like they're having a blast. Cornell Dupree's supporting guitar work, while less showy than Berliner's, is beautifully-judged, and the rhythm section is terrific. Arranger/conductor Wade Marcus was no slouch either, judging from the way everything comes together. Two of the funk

This is a Recording

Search This Blog