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JazzMasters

An upper room to gather and share facts and music; to contemplate and find stimulation in the heritage bestowed upon us by the Masters of Jazz, of Beauty.

Members: 13
Latest Activity: Feb 15

Welcome To JazzMasters

01 All of Me
02 Prisoner of Love
03 Louise
04 Love Me or Leave Me
05 Taking a Chance on Love
06 Love Is Here to Stay
07 Pres Returns
In the 1950s, producer Norman Granz brought many of the previous decade's biggest jazz stars into the studio in order to capture their immense talent, and hopefully revive some careers in the process. The names now read like a who's who of the jazz hall of fame -- Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Lionel Hampton, Art Tatum (for a different label however), Teddy Wilson and Lester Young. "Pres" as he was also known, was famous for his smooth, singing tenor saxophone voice, and it has never been better showcased than on his collaboration with pianist Teddy Wilson. The quartet, which is rounded out by Gene Ramey on bass and Jo Jones on drums, glides through six standards, and one Young original (the CD bonus track "Pres Returns"). "Pres and Teddy" has to rank right up there with any and all Verve recordings from the 50s -- which is pretty impressive considering the competition is classic albums like "Ben Webster Meets Oscar Peterson," not to mention all those great Bird recordings. "Pres and Teddy" is truly a summit meeting of presidential powers.
Pres and Teddy

LESTER YOUNG

Lester Young was one of the true jazz giants, a tenor saxophonist who came up with a completely different conception in which to play his horn, floating over bar lines with a light tone rather than adopting Coleman Hawkins' then-dominant forceful approach. A non-conformist, Young (nicknamed "Pres" by Billie Holiday) had the ironic experience in the 1950s of hearing many young tenors try to sound exactly like him.

Although he spent his earliest days near New Orleans, Lester Young lived in Minneapolis by 1920, playing in a legendary family band. He studied violin, trumpet, and drums, starting on alto at age 13. Because he refused to tour in the South, Young left home in 1927 and instead toured with Art Bronson's Bostonians, switching to tenor. He was back with the family band in 1929 and then freelanced for a few years, playing with Walter Page's Blue Devils (1930), Eddie Barefield in 1931, back with the Blue Devils during 1932-1933, and Bennie Moten and King Oliver (both 1933). He was with Count Basie for the first time in 1934 but left to replace Coleman Hawkins with Fletcher Henderson. Unfortunately, it was expected that Young would try to emulate Hawk, and his laid-back sound angered Henderson's sidemen, resulting in Pres not lasting long. After a tour with Andy Kirk and a few brief jobs, Lester Young was back with Basie in 1936, just in time to star with the band as they headed East. Young made history during his years with Basie, not only participating on Count's record dates but starring with Billie Holiday and Teddy Wilson on a series of classic small-group sessions. In addition, on his rare recordings on clarinet with Basie and the Kansas City Six, Young displayed a very original cool sound that almost sounded like altoist Paul Desmond in the 1950s. After leaving Count in 1940, Young's career became a bit aimless, not capitalizing on his fame in the jazz world. He co-led a low-profile band with his brother, drummer Lee Young, in Los Angeles until re-joining Basie in December 1943. Young had a happy nine months back with the band, recorded a memorable quartet session with bassist Slam Stewart, and starred in the short film Jammin' the Blues before he was drafted. His experiences dealing with racism in the military were horrifying, affecting his mental state of mind for the remainder of his life.

Although many critics have written that Lester Young never sounded as good after getting out of the military, despite erratic health he actually was at his prime in the mid- to late-'40s. He toured (and was well paid by Norman Granz) with Jazz at the Philharmonic on and off through the '40s and '50s, made a wonderful series of recordings for Aladdin, and worked steadily as a single. Young also adopted his style well to bebop (which he had helped pave the way for in the 1930s). But mentally he was suffering, building a wall between himself and the outside world, and inventing his own colorful vocabulary. Although many of his recordings in the 1950s were excellent (showing a greater emotional depth than in his earlier days), Young was bothered by the fact that some of his white imitators were making much more money than he was. He drank huge amounts of liquor and nearly stopped eating, with predictable results. 1956's Jazz Giants album found him in peak form as did a well documented engagement in Washington, D.C., with a quartet and a last reunion with Count Basie at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival. But, for the 1957 telecast The Sound of Jazz, Young mostly played sitting down (although he stole the show with an emotional one-chorus blues solo played to Billie Holiday). After becoming ill in Paris in early 1959, Lester Young came home and essentially drank himself to death. Many decades after his death, Pres is still considered (along with Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane) one of the three most important tenor saxophonists of all time. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

The Best of Teddy Wilson & His Orchestra

Teddy Wilson was the definitive swing pianist, a solid and impeccable soloist whose smooth and steady style was more accessible to the general public than Earl Hines or Art Tatum. He picked up early experience playing with Speed Webb in 1929 and appearing on some Louis Armstrong recordings in 1933. Discovered by John Hammond, Willie joined Benny Carter's band and recorded with the Chocolate Dandies later that year. In 1935, he began leading a series of classic small-group recordings with swing all-stars which on many occasions featured Billie Holiday. That was also the year that an informal jam session with Benny Goodman and Gene Krupa resulted in the formation of the Benny Goodman Trio (Lionel Hampton made the group a quartet the following year). Although he was a special added attraction rather than a regular member of the orchestra, Wilson's public appearances with Goodman broke important ground in the long struggle against segregation. Between his own dates, many recordings with Benny Goodman's small groups and a series of piano solos, Teddy Wilson recorded a large number of gems during the second half of the 1930s. He left B.G. in 1939 to form his own big band but, despite some fine records, it folded in 1940. Wilson led a sextet at Cafe Society during 1940-1944, taught music at Juilliard during the summers of 1945-1952, appeared on radio shows, and recorded regularly with a trio, as a soloist and with pick-up groups in addition to having occasional reunions with Goodman. Teddy Wilson's style never changed, and he played very similar in 1985 to how he sounded in 1935; no matter, the enthusiasm and solid sense of swing were present up until the end. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

Discussion Forum

The Mellow Moods Of Edie2k2

Started by Edie Antoinette. Last reply by Edie Antoinette Aug 6, 2010. 1 Reply

JAZZ GEMS - JON LUCIEN

Started by Edie Antoinette. Last reply by Edie Antoinette Dec 30, 2009. 2 Replies

JAZZ GEMS - QUINCY JONES

Started by Edie Antoinette. Last reply by Tonya Anderson Jun 18, 2009. 5 Replies

My Grandfather, The Cotton Club, and Billy Eckstine

Started by Shelley "SoleMann" King. Last reply by Tonya Anderson Jun 18, 2009. 7 Replies

Billy Eckstine

Started by Edie Antoinette. Last reply by Shelley "SoleMann" King Mar 20, 2009. 5 Replies

Jazz Dance

Started by Saint. Last reply by Edie Antoinette Mar 16, 2009. 1 Reply

JAZZMASTER::DEXTER GORDON

Started by Edie Antoinette Dec 26, 2008. 0 Replies

Jazz Sleeves -The Series

Started by The Chillounge. Last reply by Edie Antoinette Dec 25, 2008. 1 Reply

Chuck Mangione

Started by Shelley "SoleMann" King. Last reply by Edie Antoinette Apr 26, 2008. 3 Replies

EDIE'S JAZZ VAULT

Started by E ♪♫♪ Mar 5, 2008. 0 Replies

Jazz Gems

Started by Edie Antoinette Feb 29, 2008. 0 Replies

JAZZ GEMS - MAE ARNETTE

Started by Edie Antoinette Feb 29, 2008. 0 Replies

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Comment by Edie Antoinette on December 30, 2008 at 7:59pm
Welcome Tasha! That's one of my favorite Lady Jazz Masters-Shirley Horn. See the extensive write up that I did on her in The Jazz Lounge where I also put her full album: Here's To Life for your listening pleasure.

Shirley Horn

~e
Comment by Tasha Maria on December 30, 2008 at 7:23pm
Edie, I love that "If you go away" Track. What can you tell me about the artist? What other songs is she known for? I really like it.
Comment by Edie Antoinette on December 30, 2008 at 6:04pm
FYI: I'm going to combine JazzMasters with The Jazz Lounge..
Comment by Edie Antoinette on December 24, 2008 at 11:56pm
Everybody--Welcome our newest member...TJ.
Comment by Edie Antoinette on October 26, 2008 at 3:23am
Welcome to the group Big Papa!
Comment by JACK-OF-HEARTS (AKA WIN) on April 18, 2008 at 11:37am
I JUST WANNA SIDE BACK AND SIP N GET MELLOW UP IN HERRE, LOL SOUNDING JOOD
 

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The history of the Butlers/Raw Soul is dense, but for all of us music nerds, that's normal. It is not totally clear what year the Butlers actually formed but they released their first single in 1963 on Liberty Records. That single was "She Tried To Kiss Me" and another single followed on Guyden entitled "Lovable Girl." After the Guyden single the Butlers took a break not recording another record until the single "Laugh, Laugh, Laugh" was released on the Phila label in 1966. The group also backed Charles Earland and Jean Wells on one Phila single ("I Know She Loves Me"). 


As you might be noticing, the Butlers were doing a fair amount of recording but not achieving much success. The group's recordings sold regionally but never had the promotion to make an impact on the national scene. After the single with Phila, the Butlers moved to the Fairmount label (part of the Cameo-Parkway family) and released a handful of singles, some being reissued singles of the past. The Butlers were with Fairmount for 1966-67 and then moved to Sassy Records. Sassy released the group's greatest single (in my opinion) "Love (Your Pain Goes Deep)" b/w "If That's What You Wanted." A copy of that 45 sold for just under $500 last summer on eBay. Even though that isn't that much in the world of record collecting--it's still a hefty sum. The Butlers released another single on Sassy ("She's Gone" b/w "Love Is Good") that appears to be even 
harder to come by then the "Love (Your Pain Goes Deep)" single.

 

The true history become a bit blurred here as the AMG biography states that the Butlers last record was released on C.R.S. in 1974 (". However, between 1971 and that single, Frankie Beverly formed a group called Raw Soul and released a number of singles. Some of the songs recorded by Beverly during this period are "While I'm Alone," "Open Up Your Heart," (both on the Gregor label) and "Color Blind." "Color Blind" was released by the Eldorado label and rerecorded by Maze. Beverly's big break came when Marvin Gaye asked Raw Soul to back him on a tour. Gaye helped Beverly/Raw Soul get a contract at Capitol. Beverly decided to take the group in a different direction, a name change occurred, and Maze was created. 

The above isn't the most complete history of Beverly but hopefully someone will know a way to get in touch with the man or his management because a comprehensive pre-Maze history needs to be done on Frankie Beverly (his real name is Howard, by the way). Below you'll find every Frankie Beverly (pre-Maze) song available to me right now ("Color Blind" will be up soon). 

If you have a song that is not included below, shoot it over to funkinsoulman (at) yahoo.com and it will go up in the next Frankie Beverly post (later this week--highlighting Maze). Also, if you have any more information please share your knowledge. The Butlers material has been comp-ed sporadically (usually imports) but the entire Maze catalog has been reissued and is available. 

Enjoy.  "She Kissed Me" (Fairmount, 1966 or 1967) 
 
 "I Want To Feel I'm Wanted" (not sure which label or year) "Laugh, Laugh, Laugh" (Phila, 1966) "Because Of My Heart" (Fairmount, 1966 or 1967)
   
 "Love (Your Pain Goes Deep)" (Sassy, 1967)
   
 "If That's What You Wanted" (Sassy, 1967)
 



Frankie Beverly is one of those cats that has lasting power. He started in the music business doing a tour with doo wop group the Silhouettes and then formed his own group called the Blenders. The Blenders never recorded a single, Beverly wouldn't appear on wax until forming the Butlers a few years later. Along with Beverly, the Butlers included Jack "Sonny" Nicholson, Joe Collins, John Fitch, and Talmadge Conway.

Beverly would later enjoy great success fronting Maze and Conway would become a
well-known penning Double Exposure's
"Ten Percent" and the Intruders' "Memories Are Here To Stay." 
 While Maze is a phenomenal group, Beverly's work before that group will always stand out as his best (imo).
The Butlers produced tunes that most Northern Soul fans would kill for and Raw Soul gave the funksters something to pursue. The Butlers recorded their first single in 1960 titled "Loveable Girl". Left to right John Fitch, T Conway, Frankie Beverly, Sonny Nicholson and Joe Collins. 

Frankie Beverly12/6/46 - 9/10/24

Power...Through Simplicity ♪♫♪

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