Lester Young - Live and in Chronological Order

Here's the whole shebang... a re-upload of the 16CD set of (nearly) all of Lester Young's known live recordings. I got this from a kind soul many years ago, and the files that are still up (about half of them) from the first round are among the most downloaded of all the years I've had this blog... so I figured it would be time to bring this on again.

The files are unchanged - but the information for the two August 1956 sessions has been updated below (and in the overview file that you'll find in the comments).

If you have any corrections or additions to the discography, please leave a comment and do let me know!

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 1 /1941-1946

July 6, 1938
Jam Session
WNEW Studios, New York City
Benny Goodman cl; Lester Young ts; Teddy Wilson p; others unknown (?)
1. unidentified (?) 3:31

Between February 27 and March 17, 1941 (February 15, 1941?)
Lester Young & his Band
Manhattan Center, New York City
Shad Collins t; Lester Young ts; John Collins g; Nick Fenton b; Doc West d
2. Tickle Toe (Young) 5:25
3. Taxi War Dance (Basie-Young) 5:19

December 2, 1941
Lester & Lee Young’s Band
Club Capri, Hollywood
Paul Campbel t; Lester Young & Bumps Myers ts; Jimmy Rowles p; Red Callender b; Lee Young d
4. Untitled Original (Young) / Blues (Theme) 3:36

1941/1942
Unknown Band
Trouville Club, Los Angeles (Porter: prob. Club in Hollywood)
Lester Young ts, prob. voc; others unknown
5. Just A Little Bit South of North Carolina (Skylar-Cannon-Shaftel) 3:04

August, 1944
Jammin’ the Blues
Hollywood/Los Angeles, CA
Harry Edison t; Lester Young ts; Marlowe Morris p; Barney Kessel g; Red Callender b; Sid Catlett d
6. The Midnight Symphony (Young) 3:02 Morris, Young, Edison, Young
Young ts; Morris p; Kessel g; Callender b; Catlett d; Marie Bryant voc
7. On The Sunny Side of The Street (Fields-McHugh) 3:14 [Bryant, Young, Bryant (with Young)]
Edison t; Dickie Wells tb; Young ts & Illinois Jacquet ts; Morris p; Kessel g; Callender b; Catlett d
8. Sweet Georgia Brown (Bernie-Pinkard-Casey) 5:18 [Morris, Young, Edison, Kessel, Catlett, Young]
Edison t; Wells tb; Young ts; Morris p; Kessel g; Callender b; Catlett d; Bryant voc
9. If I Could Be With You (Johnson-Creamer) 2:12 [Young, Wells, Bryant, Edison, Young]
Edison t; Wells tb; Young & Jacquet ts; Morris p; Kessel g; Callender b; Catlett d
10. Blues For Marvin (Young) 4:49 [Young, Wells, Edison, Kessel, Jacquet, Young]
Edison t; Young & Jacquet ts; Morris p; Kessel g; John Simmons b; Jo Jones d
11. Jammin’ The Blues (Young) 4:12 [Young, Kessel, Edison, Morris, Simmons, Jacquet]
12. Jammin’ The Blues (Young) 4:56 [same solo order]
The identity of the drummers on these tracks is not confirmed (see notes of Lester Young MoJ Vol. 6)

Prob. early April 1946
Lester Young with King Cole Trio & Buddy Rich
AFRS Jubilee #184, Hollywood, CA
Lester Young ts; Nat “King” Cole p; Oscar Moore g; Johnny Miller b; Buddy Rich d
13. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 4:35
14. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:33
The booklet gives ca. March 20, 1946 as recording date for this item.

Prob. early April 1946
Lester Young Quartet
AFRS Jubilee #190, Hollywood, CA
Lester Young ts; Kenny Kersey p; Billy Hadnott b; Shadow Wilson d
15. D. B. Blues (Young) 4:10


Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 2 /1946-1948

Ca. April 22, 1946
Jubilee All Stars
AFRS Jubilee #190/192, Hollywood, CA
Buck Clayton t; Coleman Hawkins & Lester Young ts; Kenny Kersey p; Irving Ashby g; Billy Hadnott b; Shadow Wilson d
1. Sweet Georgia Brown (Pinkard-Bernie-Casey) 8:20
2. Oh, Lady Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 4:06
3. I Got Rhythm (Gershwin) 8:33

May 27, 1946
Jazz At The Philharmonic
Carnegie Hall, New York City
Buck Clayton t; Coleman Hawkins, Illinois Jacquet & Lester Young ts; Kenny Kersey p; Curley Russell b; J. C. Heard d
4. Oh, Lady Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 10:45
5. Sweet Georgia Brown (Bernie-Pinkard-Casey) 7:36
These two titles were eventually released on the Verve 10CD JATP box

November 27, 1948
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Ted Kelly tb; Lester Young ts; Freddie Jefferson p; Ted Briscoe b; Roy Haynes d
6. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 0:44
7. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:05
8. A Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 4:36
9. Just You, Just Me (Greer-Klages) 5:09
10. Sweet Georgia Brown (Bernie-Pinkard-Casey) 5:09
same date, add Kai Winding tb; Allen Eager ts; Hank Jones p; Ray Brown b; Ella Fitzgerald voc; probably omit Jefferson and Briscoe, maybe Kelly
11. How High The Moon (Morgan Lewis) / Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 7:17
MC: Symphony Sid

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 3 /1948-1949

December 4, 1948
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Ted Kelly tb; Lester Young ts; Freddie Jefferson p; Ted Briscoe b; Roy Haynes d
1. Be Bop Boogie (Young) 4:09
2. I’m Confessin’ (Neiburg-Daugherty-Reynolds) 3:21
3. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 5:46
4. How High The Moon (Morgan Lewis) 4:37
5. Sunday (Coots-Grey) 4:15
6. Jumping With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) 0:55

March 19, 1949
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Jerry Elliott tb; Lester Young ts; Junior Mance p; Ted Briscoe b; Roy Haynes d
7. Bebop Boogie (Young) 3:16
8. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 3:30
9. D. B. Blues (Young) 2:26
10. Just You, Just Me (Greer-Klages) 3:07

March 26, 1949
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Jerry Elliott tb; Lester Young ts; Junior Mance p; Ted Briscoe b; Roy Haynes d
11. Lester Leaps In (Young) 2:23
12. She’s Funny That Way (Moret-Whiting) 3:40
13. Lavender Blue (Daniel-Morey) 4:10
14. Tea For Two (Youmans-Caesar) 3:00

April 9, 1949
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Jerry Elliott tb; Lester Young ts; Junior Mance p; Ted Briscoe b; Roy Haynes d
15. Lavender Blue (Daniel-Morey) 5:07
16. A Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:29
17. Mean To Me (Turk Ahlert) 3:21
18. Sunday (Coots-Grey) 3:06

MC on all tracks: Symphony Sid

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order (Discs 4-6)

February 22, 1950
Lester Young Quintet
Savoy Ballroom, New York City

Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Kenny Drew p; Leroy Jackson or Aaron Bell b; Jo Jones d

Disc 4 /1950
1. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) 0:53
2. Neenah (Young) 3:53
3. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 7:20
4. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 4:09
5. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:11
6. Sunday (Coots-Grey) 7:51
7. Destination Moon (?) 8:48
8. Mean To Me (Turk Ahlert) 4:36
9. Pennies From Heaven (Johnston-Burke) 6:52
10. Stardust (H. Carmichael) 7:39
11. Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby) 6:46

Disc 5 /1950
1. On The Sunny Side Of The Street (Fields-McHugh) 6:03
2. Oh, Lady, Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 6:32
3. ‘Deed I Do (Hirsch-Rose) 6:31
4. Almost Like Being In Love (Lerner-Loewe) 5:02
5. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 5:03
6. I Got Rhythm (Gerswhin) 12:58
7. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:30
8. Perdido (Juan Tizol) 10:56
9. One O’Clock Jump (Count Basie) 5:57

Disc 6 /1950
1. D. B. Blues (Young) 10:49
2. ‘Deed I Do (Hirsch-Rose) 8:54
3. Untitled Blues (Young) 2:22
4. Lester Leaps In (Young) 6:10
5. Blues with Bridge (Young) 6:49
6. Seventh Avenue Romp (?) 6:59
7. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 10:39
8. Oh, Lady, Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 8:30


The above date is spoken on one of the source recordings, but it appears that these titles derive from more than one night.
More tunes are known to be recorded at these date(s) than on discs 4-6

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 7 /1950-1951

March 15, 1950
Lester Young Band
Royal Roost, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Ted Kelly tb; Lester Young ts; unknown p; Al McKibbon b; Buddy Rich d
1. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 5:46
2. Be Bop Boogie (Young) 3:14
3. D. B. Blues (Young) 2:21
4. Just You, Just Me (Greer-Klages) 3:05
5. Sunday (Coots-Grey) 4:17

prob. April 2, 1950
Lester Young Quintet
Chicago
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; unknown p, b, d
6. Tea For Two (Youmans-Caesar) 4:32
7. Blues in D-Flat (aka D.B. Blues) (Young) 6:25
8. Blue And Sentimental (Basie-David-Livingston) 7:18
9. Lester Leaps In (Young) 5:56

January 6, 1951
Lester Young Quartet
Birdland, New York City
Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey b; Jo Jones d
10. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 3:47
11. Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby) 5:30
12. Neenah (Young) 4:25
13. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 5:27
14. Lester Leaps In (Young) 5:06


Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 8 /1951

January 13, 1951
Lester Young Quartet
Birdland, New York City
Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey b; Jo Jones d
1. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 4:01
2. Too Marvellous For Words (Whiting-Mercer) 6:00
3. Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 4:33

January 20, 1951
Lester Young Quartet
Birdland, New York City
Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey b; Jo Jones d
4. Neenah (Young) 3:38
5. A Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:43
6. Lester Leaps In (Young) 5:00
7. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 4:37

February 24, 1951
Lester Young Quartet
Birdland, New York City
Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey b; Jo Jones d
8. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 3:45
9. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 3:25
10. Neenah (Young) 3:45
11. Lester Leaps In (Young) 4:24
12. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 1:04

March 17, 1951
Lester Young Quartet
Birdland, New York City
Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey b; Jo Jones d
13. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) / Up ‘N Adam (Young) 4:22
14. Too Marvellous For Words (Whiting-Mercer) 4:52
15. Neenah (Young) 4:27
16. Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:58
17. Lester Leaps In (Young) 5:01

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 9 /1951-1952

May 19, 1951
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; John Lewis p; Gene Ramey; Jo Jones d
1. Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 7:23
2. A Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:53
3. How High The Moon (Morgan Lewis) 6:28
4. D.B. Blues (Young) 3:13

August 4, 1951
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight p; Gene Ramey or Aaron Bell b; Jo Jones or Joe Harris d
5. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) / Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:12
6. Blue And Sentimental (Basie-David-Livingston) 3:12
7. Neenah (Young) 4:56
8. Lester Leaps In (Young) / Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) 6:09

April 6, 1952
Jazz At The Philharmonic
Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
Lester Young ts; Hank Jones p; Ray Brown b; Max Roach
9. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 4:02


Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 10 / 1952

April 25, 1952
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight or Wynton Kelly p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
1. Neenah (Young) 4:17
2. A Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:07
3. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 7:29
4. Destination Moon (?) 6:36
5. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:21

May 2, 1952
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight or Wynton Kelly p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
6. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:01
7. ‘Deed I Do (Hirsch-Rose) 7:24
8. How High The Moon (Morgan Lewis) 5:21
9. Pennies From Heaven (Johnston-Burke) 2:38

May 3, 1952
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight or Wynton Kelly p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
10. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:34
11. ‘Deed I Do (Hirsch-Rose) 6:54

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 11 /1952-1953

August 2, 1952
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Gil Coggins p; unknown b, d
1. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:20
2. Ghost Of A Chance (Young-Washington-Crosby) 3:23
3. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 7:25
4. Too Marvellous For Words (Whiting-Mercer) 6:11
5. Neenah (Young) 3:45

January 3, 1953
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
6. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:07
7. Blue And Sentimental (Basie-David-Livingston) 5:59
8. After You’ve Gone (Creamer-Layton) 6:30
9. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 6:09
10. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Theme) (Young) 1:21


Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 12 /1953

January 10, 1953
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
1. Lullaby Of Birdland (Theme) (George Shearing) / Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 6:31
2. Almost Like Being In Love (Lerner-Loewe) 5:15
3. Neenah (Young) 5:09
4. D. B. Blues (Young) 3:44

January 15, 1953
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Horace Silver p; Franklin Skeete b; Lee Abrams d
5. Lullaby Of Birdland (Theme) (George Shearing) / Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:36
6. Too Marvellous For Words (Whiting-Mercer) 5:48

January 17, 1953
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight p; Aaron Bell b; Lee Abrams d
7. Oh, Lady, Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 7:55
8. A Foggy Day (G. & I. Gershwin) 8:15
9. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 7:46
10. Lester Leaps In (Young) 6:10

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 13 /1953-1956

March 3, 1953
Jazz At The Philharmonic
Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
Lester Young ts; Hank Jones p; Ray Brown b; J.C. Heard d
1. Flashes of Pres (Medley) 7:14
These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link)
I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman)
Lester Leaps In (Young)
Blues In C (Young)

July 4, 1953
Lester Young Band
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight or Horace Silver p; Gene Ramey b; Connie Kay d
2. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 6:25
3. I Can’t Get Started (Duke-Gershwin) 7:02
4. Lester Leaps In (Young) 6:00

July 11, 1953
Lester Young Band
Birdland, New York City
Jesse Drakes t; Lester Young ts; Earl Knight or Horace Silver p; Gene Ramey b; Connie Kay d
5. Lullaby of Birdland (Theme) (George Shearing) / Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 6:18
6. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) 7:42
7. D Flat Blues With A Bridge (Young) 6:40

March 3, 1953 (?)
Jazz At The Philharmonic
Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
Lester Young ts, Ella Fitzgerald voc; others unknown
8. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:01
Unknown date and place 1952/1953, possibly from the March 3, 1953 broadcast.

February 1956
Lester Young with unknown band
unknown place, tv show
Lester Young ts; others unknown
9. Pennies From Heaven (Johnston-Burke) 2:08
Probably recorded in Paris, October 12, 1956 (handwritten on photocopy of 16CD set discography)

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 14 /1956

August 8, 1956
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City
Don Ferrara t; Lester Young ts; Bill Triglia p; Gene Ramey b; Gus Johnson d
1. Lullaby of Birdland (Theme) (George Shearing) / Lester Leaps In (Young) 7:21
2. Polka Dots And Moonbeams (Burke-Van Heusen) 4:18
3. Up ‘N Adam (Young) 5:57
4. In A Little Spanish Town (Lewis-Wayne-Young) / Lullaby of Birdland (Theme) 3:11
Date given on photocopies of discography of 16CD set is late summer 1956 – exact date handwritten into photocopies.

August 15, 1956
Lester Young Quintet
Birdland, New York City, ABC Broadcast
unknown (prob. Jesse Drakes) t; Lester Young ts; Bill Triglia p; Gene Ramey b; Gus Johnson d
5. Lullaby of Birdland (Theme) (George Shearing) / Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby) 8:21
6. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 4:36
7. Blues in G (Lester’s Mop Mop Blues) (Young) 6:00
Same, omit Drakes
8. Tea For Two (Youmans-Caesar) 2:25
Porter does not list Tea for Two. He lists In A Little Spanish Town on August 15, and gives August 7 instead of August 8 for #1-4.

October 1956
Lester Young Quartet
Unknown club, Frankfurt, Germany
Lester Young ts; “Horst Ornimert” p; Al King b; Lex Humphries d
9. Lester Leaps In (Young) 9:48
10. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 3:27
11. Blues (Lester’s European Blues) (Young) 9:08
This date continues on disc 15.
These tracks were probably recorded in November 9, 1956, with Lasse Werner on piano.

Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 15 /1956

October 1956
Lester Young Quartet
Unknown club, Frankfurt, Germany
Lester Young ts; “Horst Ornimert” p; Al King b; Lex Humphries d
1. Lullaby of Birdland (George Shearing) 2:56
2. There’ll Never Be Another You (Warren-Gordon) 7:38
This date begins on disc 14.
These tracks were probably recorded in November 9, 1956, with Lasse Werner on piano.

November 12, 1956
Birdland All-Stars
Freiburg, Germany
Lester Young ts; René Urtreger p; Pierre Michelot b; Christian Garros d
3. Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 2:33
Same date: Miles Davis t; Lester Young ts; Milt Jackson vib; John Lewis p; Percy Heath b;
Connie Kay d
4. How High The Moon (Morgan Lewis) 8:11
Same date, Lester Young ts; Kurt Edelhagen big band, unknown personnel
5. Lester Leaps In (Young) 9:10

January 2, 1957 or November 1956
Lester Young Quartet
Unknown European city
Lester Young ts; unknown p, b, d
6. Polka Dots And Moonbeams (Burke-Van Heusen) 2:29
7. Lester Leaps In (Young) 1:53
These tracks may be identical with the respective titles on “Pres in Europe” (Highnote). Personnel would then be: Young ts; René Urtreger p; Pierre Michelot b; Christian Garros d

December 8, 1956 (afternoon)
Lester Young with Earl Swope & Bill Potts
Olivia’s Patio Lounge, Washington DC
Earl Swope tb; Lester Young ts; Bill Potts p; Norman Williams b; Jim Lucht d
8. Oh, Lady, Be Good (G. & I. Gershwin) 7:15
9. Blues In G (Up ‘N Adam) (Young) 7:53
10. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 7:34
11. Lullaby of Birdland (George Shearing) 1:36


Lester Young – Live and private recordings in chronological order
Disc 16 /1956-1959

December 8, 1956 (night)
Lester Young with the Bill Potts Trio
Olivia’s Patio Lounge, Washington CD
Lester Young ts; Bill Potts p; Norman Williams b; Jim Lucht d
1. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 3:32
2. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 3:37
3. Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby) 4:20

December 15, 1956
Lester Young
Café Bohemia, New York City
Idrees Sulieman t; Lester Young ts; Sinclair Raney p; Gene Ramey b; Willie Jones d
4. Lester Leaps In (Young) 3:13
5. These Foolish Things (Morrell-Strachey-Link) 3:38
6. Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby) 4:41

December 22, 1956
Lester Young Quartet
Café Bohémia, New York City
Lester Young ts; Sinclair Raney p; Gene Ramey b; Willie Jones d
7. Pennies From Heaven (Johnston-Burke) 3:02
8. Polka Dots And Moonbeams (Burke-Van Heusen) 3:44
same, add Idrees Sulieman t
9. Indiana (Hanley-MacDonald) 4:01

December 8, 1957
The Sound of Jazz All-Stars
CBS TV Studio, New York City
Roy Eldridge & Doc Cheatham t; Vic Dickenson tb; Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins & Ben Webster ts; Gerry Mulligan bari;
Mal Waldron p; Danny Barker g; Milt Hinton b; Osie Johnson d; Billie Holiday voc
10. Fine And Mellow (Billie Holiday) 8:05

July 5, 1958
The Newport All-Stars
Newport, Rhode Island
Buck Clayton t; Jack Teagarden tb; Pee Wee Russell cl; Lester Young ts; Don Ewell p; Tom Bryant b; Jo Jones d
11. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 3:38
12. Jump the Blues (Royal Garden Blues) (W.C. Handy) 7:07

September 25, 1958
Coleman Hawkins and Friends
WNTA-TV Studio, New York City, Art Ford’s Jazz Party (TV Show)
Henry “Red” Allen & Charlie Shavers t; J.C. Higginbotham tb; Pee Wee Russell cl; Coleman Hawkins & Lester Young ts;
Willie “The Lion” Smith p; Harry Shepherd vib; Dick Thompson g; Vinnie Burke b; Sonny Greer d
13. Mean To Me (Turk Ahlert) 3:25
14. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid (Young) 8:36

March 1959 (March 11, 1959?)
Lester Young
Blue Note, Paris, France
Lester Young ts; H. Kaufmann (?) p; Jimmy Gourley g; Jean-Marie Ingrand b; Kenny Clarke d
15. I Cover The Waterfront (Green-Heyman) 0:59
16. There’ll Never Be Another You (Warren-Gordon) 5:02

Norman Howard - Burn Baby Burn

Here's a rare tape release from Norman Howard. A portion of these recordings has made it to CD (under the same title) on ESP-Disk' - go get it! Some titles are identical, but there are others here and some different versions (edits?), too.

Clifford has kindly allowed me to use his write-up - though it took me ages to finally get this up here... it's an honour to present a few more missing parts of the puzzle that is Norman Howard!

In November 1968 this quartet recorded nearly enough material for two records in a Cleveland studio session, some of which was sent to ESP but remained unreleased (though there is talk of Bernard Stollman's label revisiting the music on CD in the future [see link above! - ubu]), the remainder later issued as a limited-edition cassette by UK collector-musicologist Roy Morris (Signals, Homeboy Music 1, 1989). Both the ESP master and Signals were subsequently reissued together on the Burn, Baby, Burn cassette (Homeboy 2), a release that disappeared underground almost immediately. Rumor has it that Howard's technical abilities as a trumpeter kept his music from being issued at the time, but his conception as a soloist reveals much more. The fat smears of sound on Albert Ayler's "Spirits" prefigure his brother Donald's scattershot explosions and reference a school of brass playing uniquely suited to energy music and complementary to the fire of Ayler and post-Ayler saxophonists. And yet Howard's playing at slower tempi is disarmingly tentative, wrought with the wavering uncertainty of an Alan Shorter translated into a series of pointillistic stabs. With all the conviction voiced in a weighty, measured theme like "Soul Brother Genius", which opens Signals, it is a tense uncertainty that Howard produces in his startlingly brittle opening statements. Howard, Phillips and an arco Cliff voice the minor ghetto dirge over scattered percussive rolls, the composer's solo a series of persistently morbid and instantly shattered statements never more than a few bars in length. "Burn, Baby, Burn" is a manic, brief collective theme very much in the spirit of Ayler's "Bells," in which Howard's quick, blurred solo is followed by Phillips' first alto evisceration of the session (Arthur Jones clearly had precursors in Cleveland), a passionate yet carefully assembled paean to the wild leaps of Ayler and Eric Dolphy. The theme of "Haunted" returns to the measured delicacy of the opener, yet Cliff's perversely bent Silva-isms pull it apart into a psychoactive tone poem, mocking and goading Howard's trumpet. Phillips' huge vibrato follows, sticking close to the theme in a careful soliloquy before Cliff is given his own space to sonically upend the bass, after which Millsap edges in a rare unaccompanied bashing before the theme returns.
Norman Howard's compositions do have their limitations and cracks – there are only two tempi / moods as such, either excruciatingly slow pathos or inordinately fast, raw runs on very simple thematic elements. "Bug Out" introduces a few bars of singsong melody that merely open into a set of screaming solos from the participants (though Phillips's is especially strong), never quite holding the atmospheric weight of the dirges. The exploratory openness in pieces like "Haunted" and its uptempo analogue "Soul Resurrection" makes thematic simplicity an asset rather than a hindrance. Most of the ESP demo, false starts and voice-overs included, is made up of Phillips's compositions (though "Burn, Baby, Burn" does make an appearance):"Sound From There" offers a uniquely delicate pan-tempo ballad, unison alto-bass drones girding and then engaging Howard's glassy trumpet line, while "Satan's Holiday" is essentially "Bug Out" at a slower tempo."Sadness Holiday" also resembles other ballads in the set; though sadly marred by several false starts and voice-overs, the Hodges-like sweetness that characterizes Phillips's tone reveals his versatility as an improviser and his allegiance to his colleague Arthur Jones – also a player of searing intensity and warm delicacy.

~ Clifford Allen, from: Paris Transatlantic, Dec. 2005

Norman Howard
Burn, Baby, Burn

Norman Howard – trumpet
Joe Phillips – alto sax
Walter Cliff – bass
Corney Milsap – drums

10/68, Cleveland, OH

1. Soul Brother Genius
2. Burn Baby Burn
3. Haunted
4. Bug Out
5. Deep Black Mystery
6. Soul Resurrection
7. Divine Tiding
8. Sound from There
9. Satan's Village
10. Sadness Holiday (Sad Miss Holiday)
11. Time and Units
12. Burn, Baby, Burn

Homeboy Music 2 (includes tracks from Homeboy Music 1, Signals)

Marion Brown - Yale 1982

Got this one from "trane" in a trade a while back - thanks a lot!
It makes for a very, very nice coda to the Brown sets I shared last fall.

Marion Brown
Yale, Ohio (USA), Yale University
1982

Marion Brown - alto sax

1. Hurry Sundown - 6:32
2. Since I Fell for You - 5:01
3. Black and Tan Fantasy - 5:36
4. I Can't Get Started - 7:29
5. Don't Take Your Love from Me - 3:15
6. Monk's Mood/Epistrophy - 10:23

TT: 38:18

Sound: A-
Source: SDB

:: ubu edits ::

removed 2 second gaps

Additional lineage: FLAC > TLH > WAV > Cool Edit Pro > TLH > FLAC (8,asb)

James Brown - Hartford, CT, 1974

This set seems to be from just a few days after the Apollo set just posted. The band is on fire, playing some great funky music. And JB himself reacts with an energized show.

We only get two opening tracks by the J.B.'s this time and the whole show runs shorter, but there's some great funk all the way through!

Again, sound is rough here, but to me, it's good enough to enjoy the music (the famous Kinshasa show is similar, soundwise... these two might even be a bit better, less muddy).

Again, if you have any further information, be it on the line-up, the date or location, please do post a comment!

Both of these sets come from dime, and these are the original FLAC files I got from there - thanks go out to the kind folks over there sharing all this amazing stuff!

James Brown and the J.B.'s
Hartford, CT (USA) (prob. Hartford Civic Center)
1974 (prob. December 3, 1974)

James Brown - vocals
prob. line-up:
Russell Crimes - trumpet
Fred Wesley* - trombone
Maceo Parker*, prob. Jimmy Parker - alto sax
St. Clair Pinckney - tenor sax
Jimmy Nolen & Hearlon "Cheese" Martin - guitars
Fred Thomas - bass
John Morgan - drums
Johnny Griggs - congas & percussion
Lyn Collins & Martha High - vocals

*) confirmed

MC: Danny Ray


J.B.'s
1. Rockin' Funky Watergate (3:32)
2. Soul Power 74 (4:52)

3. Intro (1:29)

STAR TIME
4. The Payback (2:37)
5. Soul Power (2:15)
6. I Got Ants in My Pants (And I Want to Dance) (2:28)
7. Doin' It to Death (4:20)
8. Try Me (3:50)
9. What My Baby Needs Now Is a Little More Lovin' (1:35) [cuts in]
10. Gimme Some More (1:39)
11. Get on the Good Foot (6:13)
12. Stone to the Bone (5:05)
13. Sex Machine (1:23) [inc]

TT: 41:27

Sound:
Source: audience tape


:: dime seeder's comments ::

Received this in trade, around 1992.
This is a nice audience recording,some distortion in the lower frequencies.
To me this is a good example how tight the JB's were in the early seventies.You can hear the excitement,
for instance in Gimme Some More where James probably did some splits.
Listen to Get On The Good Food, when the bass drops out you can here why funk isn't funk without a good bass.

Enjoy!
Mantra
September, 2009


:: dime-comment #4271084 by kingmike at 2010-09-25 22:56:18 GMT ::

probably "Hartford Civic Center" and I'd estimate the date to be December 03, 1974 based on gigs in the North East at the time etc.....educated guess on the date....I'm pretty sure on the venue....

James Brown - Apollo Theater, NYC 1974-11-30

Another JB show - one more to come... sound is much less good than on the Swiss set, but the band and its boss is on home turf and livelier than in the previous set. Brown strays a bit during "Crossroads" and "Try Me" and the bad sound becomes a bit of an issue during these more quiet parts, but the opening bits by the J.B.'s and the final quarter of an hour are some dead heavy funk!

If you have any further additions or corrections to the line-up, please post a comment!

James Brown and the J.B.'s
Harlem, NY (USA), Apollo Theater
November 30, 1974

James Brown - vocals
prob. line-up:
Russell Crimes - trumpet
Fred Wesley* - trombone
Maceo Parker*, prob. Jimmy Parker - alto sax
St. Clair Pinckney - tenor sax
Jimmy Nolen & Hearlon "Cheese" Martin - guitars
Charles Sherrell* - bass
John Morgan - drums
Johnny Griggs - congas & percussion
Lyn Collins* & Martha High - vocals

*) confirmed

MC: Danny Ray


1. Intro (0:30)

THE J.B.'s
2. All for One (4:32)
3. Intro by Danny Ray (1:19)
4. Same Beat (4:05)
5. Damn Right I Am Somebody (4:55)
6. Pass the Peas (2:53)

STAR TIME
7. The Payback (3:37)
8. Soul Power (2:16)
9. The Boss / Make It Funky (4:01)
10. Doin' It to Death (5:25)
11. James talking (2:10)
12. Man Has to Go Back to the Crossroads (15:31)
13. Try Me / Gimme Some More (7:05)
14. Cold Sweat / Can't Stand It (4:12)
15. Papa's Got a Brand New Bag (4:39)
16. Sex Machine (1:20)
17. Papa Don't Take No Mess (5:13) [incomplete]

TT: 73:57

Sound: B+
Source: audience tape

James Brown - Switzerland 1973

I'm still deeply into James Brown's music, proceeding roughly chronologically (but so far without also playing the Hip-O-Select 2CD sets compiling all the Singles... Vols. 1, 2, and 5 are far gone, Vol. 6 has been around and several of the others shall be here soon, too). Some listening protocols and stuff will be published on my new blog (in German only, sorry) over here:
http://ubus-notizen.blogspot.com/

Anyway, I've arrived at the 1971-75 period recently and yesterday, it was all 1973. There's a pretty good live set around that seems to be from early 1973 - Brown embarked on a five week European tour within days after recording "Mind Power" for the album The Payback). The stage announcer also mentions an exclusive concert by José Feliciano coming up on March 30 in Lausanne... so my best guess for this is: poss. Lausanne (Switzerland), February/March 1973.

The line-up is taken from what I heard... Maceo, Fred, St. Clair, Nolen and the two funky divas are announced, the rest is guesswork on my part. Thomas, Starks and the trumpet players were around at that time - and I do think there are three trumpets audible in CD1#6 during those fanfare kinds of thing they play there.
The mystery remains if there's a third sax player or not... in "Shaft", Maceo's on flute and there's a tenor and baritone (? or two tenors ?) audible. Maceo to my knowledge never played tenor with Brown at that time, so Eldee Williams (who was present on some sessions in that time) would be my best guess - but I'm really not sure there!

If you have any additional information to add, please do let me know! I'd also like to know the two unknown tunes in the opening J.B.'s set!

The band here isn't as exciting as it was at the time of the Paris concert in 1967 - Brown had the Collins brothers and their exciting rough bred of youngsters pushing the funk to its limits for a year in 1970/71, but by early 1971, they had defected as well and were soon to take a ride on George Clinton's spaceship. Brown hurriedly had Fred Wesley put together a new band, which included loyalists St. Clair Pinckney and "Jabo" Starks. Wesley simplified the music, put together tight grooves that were very effective and fun to hear, yet were adapted to the abilities of the new band. By late 1972 they got a major rhythmic push by Jimmy Nolen returning on guitar, and in early 1973, finally, another fine horn soloist was added: returning star Maceo Parker!

We hear the J.B.'s at that point - with Lyn Collins (ably supported by Martha Harvin aka Martha High) doing some very mean funky songs towards the end of the opening set. The J.B.'s are putting on a mighty fine show here though, playing some of their own hits like "Pass the Peas" and having their go at Isaac Hayes classic theme from "Shaft". Lyn Collins' features then are the icing on the cake!

The Startime set is alas cut short, and as I hear it, things only fully gel in "Sex Machine", while before, it's good but not great. The final few cuts are great though, and the ten minutes of "Sex Machine" and "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" are the highlight of the whole set, to me!

James Brown and The J.B.'s
Avalanche Of Funk (liberated boot)
Switzerland (poss. Lausanne)
1973 (prob. February/March)

James Brown - vocals, organ, drums
prob. Darryl "Hasaan" Jamison, prob. Isiah "Ike" Oakley & prob. Jerone "Jasaan" Sanford - trumpet
Fred Wesley - trombone
Maceo Parker - alto sax, flute
St. Clair Pinckney - tenor sax (& baritone sax?)
poss. Eldee Williams - tenor sax
Jimmy Nolen & prob. Hearlon "Cheese" Martin - guitar
prob. Fred Thomas - bass
prob. John "Jabo" Starks - drums
prob. John Morgan or Johnny Griggs - percussion
Lyn Collins, Martha High - vocals
Danny Ray - MC

CD1/49:23 - THE J.B.'S
01. Intro (1:06)
02. Backstabbers (4:43)
03. Hot Pants Road (3:04)
04. Theme from "Shaft" (3:27)
05. instrumental (4:18)
06. instrumental (3:40)
07. Pass the Peas (6:14)
08. Parrty (5:51)
09. Me & Mrs. Jones (1:51) [Maceo Parker, vocals]
10. I'll Take You There (2:59)
11. Never Gonna Give You Up (3:05)
12. Do Your Thing (4:39)
13. Think (4:20)

CD2/52:18 - JAMES BROWN
01. Intro (1:19)
02. Get On the Good Foot (3:48)
03. Soul Power (4:22)
04. Make It Funky (4:25)
05. Bewildered (8:04)
06. Super Bad (5:51)
07. Try Me (3:51)
08. Hot Pants (2:23)
09. Sex Machine (7:23)
10. I've Got a Brand New Bag of My Own (3:00)
11. It's A Man's, Man's, Man's World (2:42)
12. Please Please Please (2:06)
13. I Can't Stand Myself (1:21)
14. Cold Sweat (1:38) [inc]

TT: 101:41

Sound: A-
Source: SBD

A complete recording of a 1973 James Brown Show/Revue concert including the full JB's opening set. I have not listened to this in quite a while... It was nice to kick back and check this show out. The band is tight!
The CD's I obtained was released by Big Fro Discs


:: ubu notes ::

In the Intro on CD1, an upcoming event (Jose Feliciano) for March 30th is mentioned, and Brown was on tour in Europe for five weeks beginning early February 1973 (see Alan Leeds' liners to the CD reissue of "The Payback")
First time that JB plays in Switzerland
Martha High is announced with her birthname as Martha Harvin
Not sure about Eldee Williams, but I seem to hear ts and bari during "Shaft", while Maceo is on flute there (and never seems to have played ts with Brown at this time anyway).
Also not sure about the number of trumpet players - the three listed were the regulars in studio sessions of the time - but ther may be only two present, but there are parts (for instance in CD1#6) where there seem to be three audible.

Steven Bernstein "Diaspora Soul" - Berlin 2000 (re-post)

So then, here we go again, upon request - had to re-rip (with EAC in secure mode, of course) from my CDR as I didn't have the FLAC stored anywhere.

Here's a great recording by Steven Bernstein's "Diaspora Soul". It's the only live show I have by this band. With Briggan Krauss (also part of Sex Mob), Paul Shapiro (check out his album "Twilight"!), the great Michael Blake and the Rodriguez Brothers, there's plenty of talent in this band!

Steve Bernstein's Diaspora Soul
Jazz Across the Border
Berlin (Germany), Haus der Kulturen der Welt
June 23, 2000

Steve Bernstein - trumpet, slide trumpet
Paul Shapiro - tenor sax
Michael Blake - tenor sax
Peter Apfelbaum - tenor sax
Briggan Krauss - baritone sax
Brian Mitchell - wurlitzer electric piano, organ
Tony Scherr - electric bass
Robert Rodriguez - postizo drums, percussion
EJ Rodriguez - congas, bongos, maracas, clave

1. Manishtana (10:52)
2. Chusen Kalah Mazel Tov (8:47)
3. Cha (Steven Bernstein) 6:44
4. Let My People Go (9:09)
5. Mazinka (5:54)
6. Shabbat Candles (aka Hannuka Candles) (12:18)
7. band intros > Ani Mamin (16:50)

All music arranged by Steven Bernstein
All songs traditional except where noted

TT: 70:36

Sound: A
Lineage: FM > ? > CDR > dime > CDR (data) in trade

:: ubu edits ::

fixed marks
delete fm talk at end of #6
added fade-out/fade-in at mark #6/7
added fade-out at end of #7

Additional lineage: FLAC > WAV > Cool Edit Pro > FLAC (8,asb,verify)

Notes:
#6 is not from the CD I think
This came as from June 24, 2000, but the (deleted) announcer stated 23rd as the date!
This also came with no location (again, the announcer gave it)
And lastly, this came as SBD, but it's obvious it's from an FM broadcast...
The Bernstein announcement at the end of #3 was repeated during the opening of #7 - seems someone in the radio studio goofed when they chose and spliced the parts of the concert for broadcast.
I deleted the announcement there, as there seemed to be a splice just after it anyway!

2011 EAC re-rip