The Modern Jazz Sextet [Original recording remastered]

The Modern Jazz Sextet [Original recording remastered]

ASIN: B00002DDQN

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
In some ways, the name of this group makes sense, as pianist John Lewis and bassist Percy Heath represent half of the Modern Jazz Quartet. But in other ways, the tag is a bit misleading. For one, this 1956 blowing session is much looser and more high-spirited than your typical MJQ set. For another, a few of the cuts seem to have a retro swing feel (even for 1956), thanks to a relaxed rhythm section that adds guitarist Skeeter Best and drummer Charlie Persip to the Lewis-Heath tandem. That said, the dominant forces here are the two ferocious bop hornmen Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Stitt, who sticks to alto throughout. Even when the rhythm section, anchored by Best's steady pulse, lays back in an easy-flowing swing groove, as on the Gillespie original "Tour de Force," the standard "Mean to Me," or the slow-blues finale, Gillespie and Stitt offer fiery, decidedly boppish lines. In contrast, "Dizzy Meets Sonny" finds everyone in a "modern" high-tempo frenzy. Much has been made of Stitt's resemblance to Charlie Parker on alto, and while those similarities are evident here, Stitt's playing still astonishes, bursting with flurries of notes that seem to flow uncontrollably from his horn--just listen to him explode in the middle of introducing the "Old Folks" melody. Dizzy, as usual, shows great command of the trumpet, whether blaring proudly, moaning low, or scurrying quickly along. --Marc Greilsamer

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