The Jazz Crusaders • The Festival Album

 

Review
by Thom Jurek  
The Festival Album was the only live set by the Jazz Crusaders not recorded at the Lighthouse. As such, it is a compilation of performances recorded at the Pacific Jazz and Newport Festivals in 1966. The band had two different bass players during these gigs: Jimmy Bond was at the Newport Festival, while Herbie Lewis joined for the Pacific Jazz Festival. The band was well established everywhere but in New York, bewilderingly, and had recorded a dozen records, all of which were popular. And it's easy to see why. The version of Ken Cox's "Trance Dance" that opens the set showcases all of the band's strengths: solid hard bop chops and arrangements with a deep accent on the blues as it was emerging into soul-jazz. Soloists Joe Sample, Wayne Henderson, and Wilton Felder are all in fine form here. The deep groove on "Summer's Madness" by the trio is actually the signature piece of the Jazz Crusaders' sound at the time. Sample's "Freedom Sound," from the Pacific Jazz gig, illustrates the deep lyricism at the heart of the band's front line. The CD version contains two bonus tracks recorded later that year at Shelly Manne's Hole, with Buster Williams on bass. The sound gels here to make something truly unique, as evidenced by the funkier than funky "Wilton's Boogaloo," with killer solos by the saxophonist and Henderson, and a smoking beat by Stix Hooper. It's loose, in the pocket and freewheeling -- and over 11 minutes in length! The set closes with the driving "Half and Half" by Charles Davis, which is a vamp on "My Favorite Things," with a knotty arrangement, a sprightly tempo, and features some incredible snare and cymbal work by Hooper.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-festival-album-mw0000344340

///////

Reseña
por Thom Jurek  
The Festival Album fue el único directo de los Jazz Crusaders que no se grabó en el Lighthouse. Como tal, es una recopilación de actuaciones grabadas en los festivales de jazz del Pacífico y de Newport en 1966. La banda tuvo dos bajistas diferentes durante estos conciertos: Jimmy Bond estuvo en el Festival de Newport, mientras que Herbie Lewis se unió para el Festival de Jazz del Pacífico. La banda estaba bien establecida en todas partes menos en Nueva York, desconcertantemente, y había grabado una docena de discos, todos ellos populares. Y es fácil ver por qué. La versión de "Trance Dance" de Ken Cox que abre el set muestra todos los puntos fuertes de la banda: sólidos chops de hard bop y arreglos con un profundo acento en el blues cuando estaba emergiendo en el soul-jazz. Los solistas Joe Sample, Wayne Henderson y Wilton Felder están en buena forma. El profundo groove de "Summer's Madness" del trío es en realidad la pieza distintiva del sonido de los Jazz Crusaders de la época. "Freedom Sound" de Sample, del concierto de Pacific Jazz, ilustra el profundo lirismo en el corazón de la primera línea de la banda. La versión en CD contiene dos temas extra grabados ese mismo año en Shelly Manne's Hole, con Buster Williams al bajo. El sonido se fusiona aquí para hacer algo verdaderamente único, como lo demuestra el más que funky "Wilton's Boogaloo", con solos asesinos del saxofonista y Henderson, y un ritmo humeante de Stix Hooper. Es un tema suelto, en el bolsillo y libre - ¡y de más de 11 minutos de duración! El conjunto se cierra con la impulsora "Half and Half" de Charles Davis, que es una versión de "My Favorite Things", con un arreglo nudoso, un ritmo ágil, y con un increíble trabajo de caja y platillos de Hooper.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-festival-album-mw0000344340

Tracks:
1 - Introduction 0:34
2 - Trance Dance 9:54
3 - Summer's Madness 10:06
4 - Young Rabbits 7:49
5 - Freedom Sound 7:59
6 - Wilton's Boogaloo 11:35
7 - Half And Half 9:14


Credits:
    Art Direction – Woody Woodward
    Bass – Buster Williams (tracks: 6-7), Herbie Lewis (tracks: 4-5), Jimmy Bond (tracks: 1-3)
    Design – Gabor Halmos
    Drums – Stix Hooper
    Liner Notes – Bob Porter, Herb Wong
    Photography By – Fred Seligo
    Piano – Joe Sample
    Producer – Richard Bock
    Reissue Producer – Michael Cuscuna
    Remastered By – Ron McMaster
    Remix – Ron McMaster
    Tenor Saxophone – Wilton Felder
    Trombone – Wayne Henderson

Tracks 1-3 recorded on October 8, 1966 at the Pacific Jazz Festival, Costa Mesa, CA.
Tracks 4 & 5 recorded on July 4, 1966 at the Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, RI.
Tracks 6 & 7 recorded on July 19, 1968 at Shelly's Manne-Hole, Los Angeles, CA.
Tracks 1-5 originally issued as The Festival Album (Pacific Jazz ST-21015).
Tracks 6 & 7 are previously unissued.

Label:    Pacific Jazz – 7243 5 60434 2 8
Released:    2005
Genre:    Jazz
Style:    Hard Bop, Soul-Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/release/8552213-The-Jazz-Crusaders-The-Festival-Album

MORE The Jazz Crusaders ...

This file is intended only for preview!
I ask you to delete the file from your hard drive or device after reading it.
thank for the original uploader

 

Tip: Use JDownloader