Jazz Articles about Don Reitan

Don Reitan Quintet: MS-Sippi Cookin'

by Dave Nathan
June 1, 2001

In 1961, Don Reitan was playing at a Biloxi, MS watering hole tongue in cheek named Chez Joey. The owner called in an engineer from New Orleans to record Reitan's quintet in performance. For the next 38 years, the tapes were kept by the drummer of the group, Lee Charlton. They have finally been released but without much fanfare or to do.

For that time and place, Reitan's group had a modern sound emulating Art Blakey Messenger hard bop on ...