Count Basie: Copenhagen, 1962

American jazz fans are often left wondering why Europeans, Scandinavians and the Japanese are so passionate about the music while listeners here don't seem to have much of an appetite for it. One reason is the vast amount of touring that American jazz musicians did in those parts of the world in the 1960s and beyond. For fans overseas, the music was a celebration of optimism and freedom after years of horror and hardship.

One artist who toured regularly internationally and won over fans was Count Basie. In April 1962, the Basie band was in Copenhagen, Denmark, to perform at Falkoner Centret (or Falkoner Center), a hotel and conference complex located in the Frederiksberg district of Copenhagen.

Basie's so-called New Testament band was at the height of its swinging power, with a terrific lineup of musicians: Al Aarons, Sonny Cohn, Thad Jones and Snooky Young (tp); Henry Coker, Quentin Jackson and Benny Powell (tb); Marshal Royal (cl,as); Frank Wess (fl,as,ts); Eric Dixon (fl,ts); Frank Foster (ts); Charlie Fowlkes (bar); Count Basie (p); Freddie Green (g) Eddie Jones (b); Sonny Payne (d) and singers Irene Reid and O.C. Smith.

On April 28, someone there recorded the band in concert, and now Nils Winther's SteepleChase label has released Count Basie & His Orchestra in Concert. My guess the audio was captured for TV or radio and that the archival tapes are just coming to light now, similar to the video surfacing in 2006 from the same tour in Sweden for the Jazz Icons DVD series.

The “atomic" band was in fine form working through Why Not (Neal Hefti), Easy Money (Benny Carter), Jumpin' at the Woodside (Basie/Eddie Durham), Segue in C (Frank Wess), A Little Tempo, Please (Neal Hefti), There Will Never Be Another You (Harry Warren), Young and Foolish (Albert Hague), Alright, OK, You Win (Sid Wyche/Mayme Watts), Easin' It (Frank Foster), April in Paris (Vernon Duke), Cute (Neal Hefti), You're Too Beautiful (Joe Williams), The Song Is You (Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein), Li'l Darlin' (Neal Hefti), I Needs to Be Bee'd With (Quincy Jones), I Got Rhythm (George Gershwin), The Blues (Traditional), Alexander's Ragtime Band (Irving Berlin) and Ol' Man River (Jerome Kern).

It's neat to hear Basie's road book along with vocalist O.C. Smith and blues belter Irene Reed. Smith has been all but forgotten today. He was sort of a cross between Joe Williams and Johnny Hartman in tone. His biggest hit was Little Green Apples, which climbed to #2 on Billboard's Hot 100 and R&B charts in 1968.

Here's the Basie band in Sweden on the same tour playing Corner Pocket. Solos by Thad Jones, Al Aarons and Frank Foster. Watch for Sonny Payne's left-handed stick flip...



Here's O.C. Smith on The Ed Sullivan Show...



Here's Smith with Lambert, Hendricks and Ross in France...



And here's Irene Reed with Basie in Sweden in 1962 singing The Blues...