Search - Art Blakey :: Jazz Message

This disc just plain swings!

tyrone davis | U S A | 12/25/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is a very melodic and tight performance. All the players are at the top of their game. Art stays mostly in the background aside from a few very tasteful drum breaks. He is so on time....he needs no soloing to get his Jazz Message across. I wish these players had more sessions. McCoy, Sonny and the fabulous Art Davis! Wow! A must for all jazz fans. Get it and enjoy it over and over. I first purchased this on vinyl in High School!"

Skip this sermon.

Samuel Chell | Kenosha,, WI United States | 03/16/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

""Have horn will travel." I can think of few musicians who sustained as many physical and mental shocks throughout the course of a nomadic, non-stop and frequently solitary career as Sonny Stitt. Occasionally he might do several months with Jazz at the Philharmonic or, following Coltrane's departure, with Miles Davis' group. But more often than not, Sonny would arrive in town, call up the best local rhythm section and try to keep his spirits up for a five-night stand, finding time during the day to cut a couple of quick sides at the nearest recording studio before flying to Japan for a whirlwind tour. The life and substances required to fuel it took their toll, and by 1963 Sonny was having at least as many bad days as good days.



This was not one of Sonny's good days. Even the session photo of him (inside cover) suggests some of the exaggerated animation that libations can provide. Blakey and company pretty much go with the flow, counting on a relaxed if uneventful exchange. Sonny obliges, turning in an agreeable set that's likely to disappoint fans of Blakey as much as Stitt. The song choices are uninspired (with the exception of "The Song Is You"), Sonny's intonation is occasionally shaky on both horns, his solos are largely delivered courtesy of autopilot.



This is not the same Sonny Stitt you'll hear on "Sonny Stitt Meets the Oscar Peterson Trio" (unfortunately, out of print) or "New York Jazz" (currently back in the catalog) or on the newly issued "Work Done." It's too bad that Sonny wasn't better rested or that Dizzy wasn't brought in as a 2nd horn for this session. I followed Sonny through many of his ups and downs. He was always good, but at his best (even late in his career--listen to "Endgame Brilliance"), he was nothing less than perfect."