Jazz / Bop, Mainstream Jazz
Buddy DeFranco - Clarinet
David Stone Martin - Cover Art
Derek Smith Piano (Electric), Piano
George Duvivier Bass
Gus P. Statiras Text, Production Coordination, Producer
Ronnie Bedford Drums
Tal Farlow Guitar
An all-star quintet comprised of clarinetist Buddy DeFranco, guitarist Tal Farlow, pianist Derek Smith, bassist George Duvivier, and drummer Ronnie Bedford performs two obscure DeFranco originals, Jim Gillis' "Coasting at the Palisades," a couple of Gershwin classics, and the title cut. DeFranco and Farlow made for an appealing team in the mid-'50s when they briefly played together regularly and the old magic (fueled by Derek Smith's fine swing solos) was still present for this excellent 1977 session. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
Buddy DeFranco
Active Decades: '40s, '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s
Born: Feb 17, 1923 in Camden, NJ
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Bop, Post-Bop
Buddy DeFranco is one of the great clarinetists of all time and, until the rise of Eddie Daniels, he was indisputably the top clarinetist to emerge since 1940. It was DeFranco's misfortune to be the best on an instrument that after the swing era dropped drastically in popularity and, unlike Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, he has never been a household name for the general public.
When he was 14 DeFranco won an amateur swing contest sponsored by Tommy Dorsey. After working with the big bands of Gene Krupa (1941-42) and Charlie Barnet (1943-44), he was with TD on and off during 1944-48. DeFranco, other than spending part of 1950 with Count Basie's septet, was mostly a bandleader from then on. Among the few clarinetists to transfer the language of Charlie Parker onto his instrument, DeFranco has won a countless number of polls and appeared with the Metronome All-Stars in the late '40s. He recorded frequently in the 1950s (among his sidmeen were Art Blakey, Kenny Drew and Sonny Clark) and participated in some of Norman Granz's Verve jam session. During 1960-63 DeFranco led a quartet that also featured the accordion of Tommy Gumina and he recorded an album with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers on which he played bass clarinet. However work was difficult to find in the 1960s, leading DeFranco to accept the assignment of leading the Glenn Miller ghost band (1966-74). He has found more artistic success co-leading a quintet with Terry Gibbs off and on since the early '80s and has recorded through the decades for many labels.
---Scott Yanow, All Music Guide |
