Search - John Lewis :: Complete Verve Studio Sessions With Lester Young

A legendary record in Jazz circles

Michael J. Brett | London, England | 05/27/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"John Lewis (I hope he is still alive) was a founding member of the Modern Jazz Quartet way back in the late 1950s, early 1960s (I think!) In this recording he is working with tenor saxophone giant Lester Young.



Lester Young is an important figure in Jazz because he marks a transition from a kind of Jazz playing that was, to put it simply, based on arpeggios.



This is called vertical playing. Coleman Hawkins (1920s- '30s) was the great exponent of vertical playing, and his most famous record was a version of a then popular tune called 'Body and Soul' which lived on American 78RPM jukeboxes for about twenty years.



Lester Young's style broke with this kind of playing. His improvisations were not vertical, but linear, in other words each note -he has to be heard really- is more about developing melodies and seems more connected to the pulse of the other musicians. He developed this style when playing with the powerhouse Count Basie band, that formed in Kansas City in the mid-1930s, then moved to New York.



This recording was made towards the end of Lester Young's life. His playing had become more introspective and expressive. When he sometimes becomes lost, momentarily, John Lewis' piano playing gently reminds him where he is and nudges him forward.



Lester Young was a very stylish figure in many ways and is credited with inventing many American slang expressions, such as 'bread' for money. He wore a pork pie hat and was more at home in a hotel room than anywhere else. There are some good biographies of him and some wonderful playing on Basie late 1930s recordings. His own favourite solo with Basie was on 'Taxi War Dance.'



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