SpenniesLouis Armstrong - Mack the Knife
July 19th 2006 09:24
LOUIS ARMSTRONG
Mack The Knife (1957 / 1990)
Pablo Records/Festival
Produced by Norman Granz
This is a live recording from Louis Armstrong's esteemed set at the Newport Jazz Festival on July 4th, 1957. Over the 45 minutes you are given 11 tracks of Armstrong at his finest, both musically and personally. His more than competent band (including some jazz greats such as Billy Kyle on piano and Squire Gersh on bass) accompany him through some classic tunes and basically sound as though they are having a lot of fun.
I think that is what has appealed to me the most over the years I have owned this slice of music history. These guys are total dudes, real cool cats and apart from being great muso's, they are laughing along, cracking jokes with the audience and being all-round entertainers. This is an element that sets "Mack The Knife" apart from the plethora of jazz releases out there, it has a definite vibe that also runs through the music. "Now You Has Jazz" is played with great proficiency and a lot of humour as the band builds up the jazz sound and wails along, and the clever "High Society Calypso" (from the famous motion picture) is also lots of fun.
The man himself does what he is famous for. He croons in that way that he does, and he shows you why he is one of the most well-respected and influential jazz musicians of all time. While I don't think Armstrong is on the same plane as technical trumpet players as Dizzy Gillespie, he has such an excellent ear for melody - all of his solo's and general playing style is unmistakable; hell - the man practically invented New Orleans jazz!
The combination of the classic small jazz-band setup of trumpet, trombone and clarinet over a traditional rhythm section has Armstrong in stripped-back mode (not string sections etc) and the jams are excellent. He is in the foray, of course, but he also gives the band ample lead breaks and their own songs ("Riff Blues" featuring Squire Gersh on bass) to play around for a bit in. Other staples they run through include "When It's Sleepy Time Down South" and (a good ol' good one) "Stompin' at the Savoy" along with "Mack the Knife" which suits his gravelly vocal approach perfectly.
Basically, if you dig your jazz, or just want something a bit different for your collection, I really recommend you check this out. It's a lot of fun, very easy to listen to, and is an excellent introduction to the New Orleans jazz style.
Mack The Knife (1957 / 1990)
Pablo Records/Festival
Produced by Norman Granz
I think that is what has appealed to me the most over the years I have owned this slice of music history. These guys are total dudes, real cool cats and apart from being great muso's, they are laughing along, cracking jokes with the audience and being all-round entertainers. This is an element that sets "Mack The Knife" apart from the plethora of jazz releases out there, it has a definite vibe that also runs through the music. "Now You Has Jazz" is played with great proficiency and a lot of humour as the band builds up the jazz sound and wails along, and the clever "High Society Calypso" (from the famous motion picture) is also lots of fun.
The man himself does what he is famous for. He croons in that way that he does, and he shows you why he is one of the most well-respected and influential jazz musicians of all time. While I don't think Armstrong is on the same plane as technical trumpet players as Dizzy Gillespie, he has such an excellent ear for melody - all of his solo's and general playing style is unmistakable; hell - the man practically invented New Orleans jazz!
Armstrong at Newport in 1955
Basically, if you dig your jazz, or just want something a bit different for your collection, I really recommend you check this out. It's a lot of fun, very easy to listen to, and is an excellent introduction to the New Orleans jazz style.
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