Search - George Wallington :: Complete Live at the Bohemia

Wonderful Wallington

Michael B. Richman | Portland, Maine USA | 07/18/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"George Wallington's "Complete Live at the Cafe Bohemia" is another one of those CDs that I got the other day from the Berkshire Record Outlet (see my review of Bobby Hutcherson's Al Grey and Dave Burns Sessions). Some of this material, from a wonderful September 9, 1955 night at the New York club, has been previously available on a CD in the OJC series, which has recently gone out of print. I'm not too familiar with the Spanish Lone Hill Jazz label, and its licensing arrangement for these recordings, but the sound is comparable to the aforementioned OJC disc. (Speaking of licensing, the same Francis Wolff photo of Jackie McLean that appears on the cover of the Mosaic set, is used in the booklet here and is simply credited as "Photos: X" -- sketchy!) Regardless of labels, the music here is classic. The stellar band of Wallington, Donald Byrd, Jackie McLean, Paul Chambers and Art Taylor rivals that of their contemporaries in the Jazz Messengers. In fact, the JMs at the Cafe Bohemia volumes are two of my favorite early Blue Notes (see my review of At the Cafe Bohemia, Vol. 2), and the performance the Wallington Quintet gives is nearly as good -- money, it must be da club! Toss in the fact that disc two features the 1954 album "George Wallington Showcase" as a bonus, and you've got an essential purchase."

Crossing the Equator

Giordano Bruno | Wherever I am, I am. | 07/30/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"On old-time sailing ships, when a shipmate crossed the equator for the first time, it was an occasion for festivity and a rite of initiation. There could well have been such a rite of passage celebrated at the Café Bohemia in NYC on September 9th, 1955, when this double session of 'driving' jazz was recorded. The 'crossing' there and then was from "bebop" to "free" jazz, and it was not a complete transition, just an inkling of 'the shape of things to come'. Pianist George Wallington and bassist Paul Chambers remained firmly in the idiom of 1940s bebop in this session. I don't mean denigrate their musicianship; in fact, they kept the ship on course with their walking chords. Trumpeter Donald Byrd took full advantage of their steadiness to explore the cross-currents of "hard bop". Frankly, this is the best 'work' Byrd ever did on record, at least to my ears... the freest from any urge toward commercial fusion. Alto sax Jackie McLean felt even freer that evening; some of his solos are solid Parkeresque bebop, and very good bebop at that, but now and then he truly wails with freedom, casting tonality aside, letting his energy spill in cascades of notes as frenzied as early Coltrane or Coleman. McLean and Byrd feed off each other on these cuts, goosing each other into melodic risks, but always kept from centrifugal randomness by their shapely rhythm section and piano. If I remember correctly, both Byrd and McLean went different directions later in their careers; both departed the club scene and turned to teaching, I think. I'm hardly an "encyclopedia" of jazz knowledge, but I'll venture to guess that this ensemble was the apex of both their performing careers.



Both sessions that evening were recorded, and both are included on these two CDs, along with ten short takes performed by a larger version of the George Wallington Ensemble a year earlier. Thus there are two tracks of most numbers, one from each session, but the duplication doesn't result in monotony. The 'vibes' were patently different during the two sessions. Sound quality is remarkably clean, and crowd noise is minimal; the result is a rare blend of the excitement of a live 'club' performance and the controlled acoustics of a concert."