Contemporary supplied the funds while Counce and his able bodied crew handled the talent end of the deal convening for a half dozen sessions between October 1956 and January 1958. Linking the lasting sessionography to individual album releases remains a topsy-turvy mess as tracks from completely different dates were combined to create the quintet’s quartet of long playing platters. Committed to tape soon after Counce solidified the roster their debut Landslide sounds like the sure-footed summation of a band of musical brothers and belies the group’s relative nascency. A program of six generously timed pieces covers a full range of emotions and temperaments, from the opening blues saturated swagger of the title track to the closing percussive tour de force playfully titled “A Fifth of Frank.” Sheldon’s breezy cool brass and Land’s breathy tenor tip initial nods to the popular musical climate of their locale, but when the rhythm section rings in things ignite on a tinder of muscular thematic changes. Moving to balladic digs on the lushly arranged, but slightly over-ripe “Time After Time” the pair unlock a comparable synergy of voicings with Land sounding off for a final solo chorus slathered in the natural resonating tones of his chosen reed. Sheldon’s “Sarah” allows everyone to stretch out in another exercise that borrows heavily from the blues.

As impressive as the two horns are together in the frontline it’s Perkins and Butler that routinely subvert the spotlight from the more conspicuous stars. Turning smoothly to brushes midway through the title track Butler gives the leader with a subtle bed of accents to solo across. Later toward the track’s close he uncorks a deluge of cross-layered beats, each one precisely placed and calibrated for maximum martial effect. The culminating titular feature dispenses with extraneous distractions and places emphasis on the full range of his rhythmic (and melodic!) abilities. Perkins shines on “Sonar” lending as much concentration to his comping as he does his solo spots, but his own “Mia” suffers from a thematic statement that lacks enough harmonic variation to sustain interest. In the space between his dancing fingers and the struck keys melody becomes a tamed beast at his perpetual beck and call. Counce holds fast as the harmonic anchor, seemingly deriving equal satisfaction whether he’s crafting a sturdy solo or plucking out a unifying walking pulse.

The quintet’s sophomore entry, You Get More Bounce... is a mélange of eight tracks from five recording dates and sets the stage for the earlier mentioned session sleuthing. What the pieces lack in terms of shared points of origin is more that compensated for in a consistency of material and mood. Then there’s the notoriously cheeky album cover depicting a woman with stethoscope caught in the throes of passionate release elicited by the band’s sounds. While such a reaction is unlikely to afflict the average listener there’s still much here to smile about on this album, arguably the finest of the four released by the band on Contemporary. Counce’s “Complete” launches the set from a blues-based vantage on the wings Butler’s syncopated cymbals. A muted Sheldon chimes in beside Land’s fluttering tenor and Perkins rolls out a funky carpet of chords beneath. Later the bassist and Butler have two rhythmically rich interludes to themselves. Four standards follow in quick succession starting with a relaxed reading of “How Deep Is the Ocean,” on which Land makes his ballad credentials resoundingly known. “Mean to Me” is rather trite compositionally speaking, but Perkins turns the otherwise maudlin melody into an effective vehicle for double-fisted improvisation. Christened from a rather cheap pun “Councelation” shrugs off its two-bit titular trappings through brilliantly conceived execution. The piece is built on the opened-hinged framework of a twelve-tone notation and contains passages of almost free association between the players in duet combinations. A bold and bustling breakdown of Bird’s “Big Foot” prefaces a grand finale grounded in the guise of Gillespie’s “Woody N’ You”- to glaring bop signposts that once again cast away any contentions arguing the band’s blind allegiances to Cool school conventions.

Third in the Counce contingent’s short run of long playing records Carl’s Blues places due emphasis on the pianist named in the title. Opening with a swinging ode to the cover model of their previous album the group puts the Sheldon-penned “Pink Lady” through the paces. Scrubbing the classic “I Can’t Get Started” to a glossy ballad sheen Land’s lengthy string of choruses reclines on a plush harmonic cushion of comping piano, well-rounded bass and ride cymbal. Perkins resumes where the horn leaves off elegantly expounding on the melody before a final unaccompanied summation by the saxophonist takes the tune out. “Nica’s Dream,” an early hardbop staple from Horace Silver’s songbook, re-affirms the band’s blues roots over a Latinized beat borne out on Butler’s toms and cymbals. Sheldon’s lead role at the start of the tune defers amicably to Perkins during later choruses with Counce and Butler making their voices heard during the breaks. The drummer works as the obvious fulcrum on the pun-driven feature “The Butler Did It” once again making judicious use of his various kit surfaces to craft a dominating statement of percussive that never resorts to easy bombast in its valiant effort to win over errant ears. Bandleader and composer Gerald Wilson makes a relatively rare appearance as guest sideman on the Clifford Brown classic “Larue” and closing title track. His dusky muted smears work particularly well in conjunction with Land’s throaty rasp on the former track where Brownie’s lasting spirit is reverentially invoked.

Compiled and released after the group’s break-up Sonority is in actuality far from a collection of studio cast offs and remnants. Presented with alternate takes of “Landslide” and “Sonor,” both of which differ significantly from the chosen masters that appeared on the band’s debut record, are other inviting workouts including a trio of Elmo Hope tunes. Hope succeeded Perkins role as pianist in the band and Counce made certain to feature selections from the formers formidable songbook. The fun starts with “So Nice” where Wilson once again joins the ranks in place of an absent Sheldon. Each player accepts solo honors atop Butler’s percolating brushes with Land and Counce turning especially cogent creations prior to the drummer’s own indulgence in a series of breaks of his own. “Origin” offers up another minefield of twisting harmonic corners, which the men negotiate without skipping a beat. The surrogate trumpeter also crops up on an appropriately ominous version of the seminal bop anthem “A Night In Tunisia” with a fresh stream of bright melodic smears. Counce surprises on this piece with a rare opening foray on bow before adopting his usual role as unassuming backbone and leaving his partners the majority of room to move. Butler enjoys another solo feature akin to his spotlight track on Landslide with the appropriately titled “A Drum Conversation,” once again doling out march-like cadences in a fluid display of agile cross-sticking.

Routinely bucking the tide of critical indifference Counce and his compatriots lasted as long as they could, but the tragic death from a prolonged bouts with the bottle and needle proved an insurmountable obstacle to their continued cohesion. Sheldon and Wilson, the two brass men, went on to pursue prestigious careers as leaders. Land also opted for the solo route, but despite a healthy folio of albums and a later rewarding partnership with Bobby Hutcherson, he never successfully made the transition to top tier tenor. Butler’s path followed a similar course as high profile sideman gigs with Miles Davis, and later John Coltrane, failed to materialize into lasting fame. Counce followed Perkins to an early grave, succumbing to a heart attack in 1963 closing the book permanently on any future projects under his helm.

The brief but brilliant body of work they left behind as a unit exists as one of the most persuasive arguments toward abolishing the convenient, but hopelessly inadequate signifier of Cool as a blanket term for the West Coast sounds of the late Fifties. All strains of jazz from hardbop to free (and everything in-between) were percolating on both coasts and the sad reality that musicians who chose these less acknowledged styles were forced to ply their art in comparative obscurity is one of the unfortunate blights on the history of the music. Thankfully testaments of their tenacious efforts remain within easy reach for listeners willing to scratch beneath the surface of easy categorizations and discover the true diversity that is West Coast jazz.

Landslide

Tracks: Landslide (8:37)/ Time After Time (6:32)/ Sonar (7:25)*/ Mia (4:54)/ Sarah (11:38)/ A Fifth of Frank (7:11).

Players: Curtis Counce- bass; Jack Sheldon- trumpet; Harold Land- tenor saxophone; Carl Perkins- piano; Frank Butler- drums. Recorded: October 8, 1956 & October 15, 1956*, Los Angeles, CA.

You Get More Bounce With Curtis Counce

Tracks: Complete (5:51)²/ How Deep Is the Ocean? (6:35)²/ Too Close For Comfort (5:36)¹/ Mean to Me (4:31)³/ Stranger in Paradise (7:03)°/ Councelation (6:01)¹/ Big Foot (9:02)*/ Woody’N You (6:14)°.

Players: Curtis Counce- bass; Jack Sheldon- trumpet; Harold Land- tenor saxophone; Carl Perkins- piano; Frank Butler- drums. Recorded: October 8, 1956*, October 15, 1956°, April 22, 1957¹, May 13, 1957² and September 3, 1957³, Los Angeles, CA.

Carl’s Blues

Tracks: Pink Lady (4:36)*/ I Can’t Get Started (7:59)º/ Nica’s Dream (7:58)¹/ Love Walked In (4:58)*/ Larue (4:59)º/ The Butler Did It (4:38)º/ Carl’s Blues (5:54)º.

Players: Curtis Counce- bass; Jack Sheldon- trumpet; Gerald Wilson- trumpet; Harold Land- tenor saxophone; Carl Perkins- piano; Frank Butler- drums. Recorded: April 22, 1957*, August 29, 1957¹ and January 6, 1958º.

Sonority

Tracks: Woody’N You (6:20)º/ How Long Has This Been Going On? (3:18)²/ Landslide (alternate) (8:58)º/ Sonor (alternate) (5:15)º/ So Nice (5:20)*/ Origin (4:40)*/ Bella Rosa (5:59)*/ A Night in Tunisia (8:16)*/ A Drum Conversation (2:21)¹.

Players:Gerald Wilson- trumpet; Harold Land- tenor saxophone; Carl Perkins- piano; Elmo Hope- piano; Curtis Counce- bass; Frank Butler- drums; Jack Sheldon- trumpet. Recorded: January 6, 1958*, October 15, 1956º; April 22, 1957¹ and August 29, 1957², Los Angeles, CA.

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