Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Barney Bigard & Art Hodes: Bucket's Got a Hole In It

110

Barney Bigard & Art Hodes: Bucket's Got a Hole In It

By

View read count
Barney Bigard & Art Hodes: Bucket's Got a Hole In It
On the occasion of these sessions Ellington alum Bigard and Hodes, one of the most of revered proponents of classic New Orleans inspired jazz found themselves thrown together for the taping of a series of television concerts. Seizing the opportunity to make several sidetrips to the studio the two recorded the baker’s dozen of tracks collected on this disc with two small combos ideally suited to their brand of traditional swinging jazz. The resulting music wasn’t in league with either man’s best work but still demonstrated that each could still play with the passion and focus that solidified their place in the history books in first place.

Remarkably these sessions were the first time Bigard and Hodes had ever recorded together, the product of perennially busy schedules as in-demand leaders and sidemen. Though a long time in the works their eventual meeting proved well worth the wait. The emphasis is rightfully on having a collective good time rather than proving anything that has already long since been proven by their respective careers. From the bar-room vernacular of the title track featuring the multifaceted drum work of the always swinging Barrett Deems to the leisurely bed-room winks of “Makin’ Whoopee” the music is consistently enjoyable. A further benefit lies in the producers’ decision to mixes the tunes up between quartet and sextet groupings of the musicians. The tunes adding Trottier and Brunis fill out the ensemble sound with attractive brass accents whereas the quartet numbers focus rightful attention on Bigard and Hodes as soloists. It’s a nice balance that keeps the program interesting and avoids stale repetition. Bigard’s clarinet musings that shift from ruminatively quiet to boisterously rowdy and back again on “Three Little Words” are an excellent example of the mood set by the musicians. In sum, this disc delivers a welcome chance to revisit these players in their twilight years, reminiscing on the classics and still having a swell time doing it. Anyone who harbors a love classic New Orleans jazz should take the time to give this historic meeting their time and attention.

Track Listing

Bucket

Personnel

Barney Bigard- clarinet; Art Hodes- piano; Rail Wilson- double bass; Barrett Deems- drums; Nap Trottier- trumpet; George Brunis- trombone.

Album information

Title: Bucket's Got a Hole In It | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: Delmark Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Eternal Moments
Yoko Yates
From "The Hellhole"
Marshall Crenshaw
Tramonto
John Taylor

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.