The Best Of Buddy Rich: The Pacific Jazz Years

The Best Of Buddy Rich: The Pacific Jazz Years

ASIN: B000005HA0

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
The Best of Buddy Rich: The Pacific Jazz Years features 10 tracks culled from Rich's explosive years at Pacific Jazz. There are eight near-standards - including "Groovin' Hard," "Love for Sale," "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" and "Greensleeves" - as well as two previously unreleased cuts: a live version of "Apples" recorded at the Chez Club in LA and an alternate take of "Diabolus." Although the compilation isn't definitive, it remains a good sampling of a short period of Rich's long, prolific career.

Tracks:

West Side Story
Love For Sale
Apples
Diabolus
Rotten Kid
Chelsea Bridge
Mercy, Mercy, Mercy
Channel 1 Suite
Greensleeves
Groovin' Hard

Album Description

The Best of Buddy Rich: The Pacific Jazz Years features 10 tracks culled from Rich's explosive years at Pacific Jazz. There are eight near-standards - including "Groovin' Hard," "Love for Sale," "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" and "Greensleeves" - as well as two previously unreleased cuts: a live version of "Apples" recorded at the Chez Club in LA and an alternate take of "Diabolus." Although the compilation isn't definitive, it remains a good sampling of a short period of Rich's long, prolific career.

Customer Reviews:

BUDDY RICH AND THE ONE HANDED PRESS ROLL.......2006-01-21

guy's the buddy rich albums shown here are very much worth owning I agree but I need to dispel rumours of a one handed press roll that is not what he is doing! a press roll is akin to a hold note or whole note that is not possible even if you are buddy rich!! what buddy is doing with his left hand is really a shuffle played with one hand, it is more a one handed ostinado pattern if you will, ostinado is a pattern played over and over again, I wanted to clarify this as there is already to much "mystery " surrounding this subject as it stands now with out calling it a one handed press roll

THANK YOU, KENNY ALDRICH

PHENOMENAL EVERYTHING!!!.......2005-09-13

Unbelivable!!! buddy rich is the master when it comes to drumming!!! This CD is filled with many solos... not just from the master, but also from others in the band. he had by far the best horn section in the the world and it is definitely captured by this AWESOME cd. I find NO problems when it comes to sound or anything else. If you like jazz, druming, solos, or just buddy rich, you NEED to get this.

Buddy is the man!.......2003-01-08

I've always been interested in good drumming. From metal drummers like Gene Hoglan and Dave Lombardo, to prog. drummers like Mike Portnoy and Neil Peart, I have always admired guys that did more than just keep time. However, it wasn't until I bought this album that I realized I had no idea what drumming really was. Buddy Rich was often referred to as "the world's greatest drummer", and that was certainly no exaggeration. I have never heard anyone, in any kind of music, play like this guy did (there are a few guys in death metal that can match him in speed alone, but that's it). Not only was he incredibly fast and intricate, but he could lay back and groove very well too. A lot of his music was merely a vehicle for showing off his incredible prowess, but he was a very dynamic drummer as well. He could do it all.

This collection is a great example of the diversity that could be found in his music throughout the course of his career. You've got straight-out swing tracks, like "Rotten Kid" and "Love for Sale", more laid-back Miles Davis-type songs like "Diabolus", and even some rock/fusion stuff, like "Chelsea Bridge" and "Mercy Mercy Mercy", which add piano and guitar to the traditional big-band lineup.

However, the stand-out tracks, for me, are definitely the two epics, "West Side Story" and "Channel One Suite". Both around 12 minutes, they feature multiple tempo changes, excellent work from the horn section (the latter has an incredible saxophone solo spot), and of course some unbelievable drum solos from Buddy.

Apparently, Buddy was more of a performer than a songwriter, as most of these songs were originally composed by someone else, but the way he makes them his own is quite amazing. The swing version of "Greensleeves" is a perfect example. The melody is played on horns, and Buddy works in another of his jaw-dropping solo spots, and it sounds as if he wrote it himself. Very cool indeed.

I highly recommend this album, not only to fans of jazz, but to everyone who appreciates excellent drumming. I'm generally not a huge fan of the swing-style jazz, I'm more into the modern fusion type stuff, but I still think this is a highly enjoyable album from start to finish.

If you're only going to listen to one Buddy Rich album:.......2002-06-15

These tracks capture the early fire and excitement of the Rich band. His sidemen were OUTSTANDING players, and blended like no other big band. Menza's circular-breathing cadenza in Channel 1 is THE zenith for every reed player; Boice and Trimble are unequaled for range, clarity, and technical expertise; the trumpet section is tight, sharp, and clean WAY UP there. Yet, it's Buddy's percussion (not mere drumming) which is the catalyst! West Side and Channel 1 MUST be consumed by every drummer...the one-handed press rolls alone are a clinic!
A must for anyone thinking themselves a jazz listener.

The Definitive Buddy Rich CD.......2002-02-05

This CD is the absolute best when it comes to Buddy Rich, and even jazz. It starts off with a ten-minute version of West Side Story, with a drum solo at the end. After that comes my favourite song on the CD, Love For Sale. If you have to listen to one BR song, listen to this. It starts off with hi-hat work, 4 minutes of ensembles and solos, and a 10-second blisteringly fast snare drum solo, unbelievably using single strokes. The song finishes with a huge ensemble, and then into a 21/2 minute long drum solo with occasional bursts of other instruments, a song called Apples. A Masterpiece, should be in any BR fan's, any drummer's or any jazz fan's collection. Amazing

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Jazz Music