Jazz Articles

J.J. Johnson & Kai Winding Quintet: Complete Fifties Studio Recordings

by Francis Lo Kee
August 22, 2005

The first thing that piqued my interest about Complete Fifties Studio Recordings (compiled from the Savoy, Prestige, Columbia, and Bethlehem labels) was the inclusion of a rare Mingus piece called “Reflections. When you get to track number six after traveling through the preceding tunes (including the delightful “Bernie's Tune ) you might utter “Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

The piece starts off with the lowest “F on arco bass, and then the first trombone plays a slightly ...

Conte Candoli/Max Roach: Jazz Structures

by Rico Cleffi
August 17, 2005

The inclusion of Max Roach's name on the cover of Jazz Structures is somewhat disingenuous. Upon opening the CD insert, we're informed that Max Roach appears on only four out of eighteen tracks. This information was conspicuously absent from the back cover, where a potential buyer would look to see if a disc's worth spending hard-earned cash on. Jazz Structures is a reissue of two of Howard Rumsey's “Light House All Stars discs. The first, 1957's Drummin' the ...