Coleman Hawkins - In A Mellow Tone (1960)
Coleman Hawkins - In A Mellow Tone (1960)
1 You Blew Out The Flame In My Heart 5:56 2 I Want To Be Loved 5:34 3 In A Mellow Tone 6:45 4 Greensleeves 3:13 5 Through For The Night 5:12 6 Until The Real Thing Comes Along 4:42 7 The Sweetest Sounds 4:18 8 Then I'll Be Tired Of You 5:09 9 Jammin' In Swingville 9:31 Personnel: Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone); Hilton Jefferson (alto saxophone); Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis (tenor saxophone); Joe Thomas, Joe Newman, Charlie Shavers (trumpet); Vic Dickenson, J.C. Higginbotham (trombone); Jimmy Hamilton (clarinet); Tommy Flanagan, Red Garland, Claude Hopkins, Ray Bryant (piano); Kenny Burrell, Tiny Grimes (guitar); Doug Watkins, Wendell Marshall, Major Holley, George Duvivier (bass); Osie Johnson, Charles Wright, Eddie Locke, Bill English, Gus Johnson (drums).
Many critics dislike greatest hit packages, perhaps because they believe these compilations destroy the musical integrity of the artist's initial release. If intelligently done, I find greatest hits as a wonderful way to sample an artist's work. If you like what you hear on the compilation, you can then buy the original source material. With so many good musical recordings competing for our discretionary dollars, its a good way to make an educated purchase.
In A Mellow Tone is one "best of" compilation worth looking into. Coleman Hawkins, the great tenor saxophonist, was an important jazz innovator who transformed the saxophone from a big-band, rhythmic instrument to a potent soloing force. He recorded for Prestige during the years 1958 to 1962, and Original Jazz Classics has chosen nine songs from eight of his albums. All the selections are exciting and absorbing as Hawkins, playing with a veritable "who's who" of fifties and sixties jazz, burns with passion and imagination.
Hawkins had been playing and recording professionally for thirty years when most of these albums were made. Playing with a total command of his instrument, he generated one tasteful solo after another, as his musical ideas constantly commanded the listener's attention. Hawkins coaxed a heavy sound from his tenor, and when playing ballads, his music is near irresistible. His version of the traditional song "Greensleeves" is definitive!
If you are not familiar with the music of Hawkins, a true giant of jazz, or if you own only one or two of his Prestige recordings from the late fifties/early sixties, then I highly recommend you purchase In A Mellow Tone. The only thing mellow about this recording is the title. Hawkins music will reward close and careful study. --- Ron Saranich, cosmik.com