Jazz / Mainstream Jazz
Harry "Sweets" Edison - Trumpet
Anilda Carrasquillo - Art Direction
Bill Titone Producer
Clark Terry Trumpet, Flugelhorn
David Gibson Drums
Donald Elfman Liner Notes
Erica Brenner Production Supervisor
Eugene Gologursky Photography
Frank Micelotta Photography
Frank Wess Flute, Sax (Tenor)
Jack Renner Engineer
John Windt Engineer
Junior Mance Piano
Kenneth Hamann Engineer
Marcus McLaurine Bass
Robert Friedrich Technical Assistance, Mastering
Robert Woods Executive Producer
Rosalind Ilett Editing
Susan Azzarello Cover Design
Even for a label that likes to catch veteran jazz stars very late in their careers, Telarc nearly outdoes itself by rounding up Harry "Sweets" Edison (81), Clark Terry (76), Frank Wess (75) and Junior Mance (68) and recording them in a West Side New York nightclub a stone's throw from Lincoln Center. Though the flesh is a little weak at times in the trumpeters, the spirit is fortunately more than willing, and plenty of their inimitable trademarks -- Edison's terse repeated notes and Terry's slippery phrases -- come through in this swinging, blues-dominated mainstream session. Wess is in fine shape on flute and tenor, and pianist Mance contributes a lot of sturdy, stirring, two-fisted blues and a lovely, searching interpretation of "Emily." Edison wrote half of the eight songs on the disc -- three blues (including his standard "Centerpiece") and a pleasing token bossa nova ("Sweets' Bossa"). If this gig often has the joyous ambience (and occasional signatures) of a Basie jam, why not?; all three horns are Basie alums. ~ Richard S. Ginell, All Music Guide
Harry "Sweets" Edison
Active Decades: '40s, '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s
Born: Oct 10, 1915 in Columbus, OH
Died: Jul 27, 1999
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Swing, Mainstream Jazz
Harry "Sweets" Edison got the most mileage out of a single note, like his former boss Count Basie. Edison, immediately recognizable within a note or two, long used repetition and simplicity to his advantage while always swinging. He played in local bands in Columbus and then in 1933 joined the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra. After a couple years in St. Louis, Edison moved to New York where he joined Lucky Millinder and then in June 1938, Count Basie, remaining with that classic orchestra until it broke up in 1950. During that period, he was featured on many records, appeared in the 1944 short Jammin' the Blues and gained his nickname "Sweets" (due to his tone) from Lester Young. In the 1950s, Edison toured with Jazz at the Philharmonic, settled in Los Angeles, and was well-featured both as a studio musician (most noticeably on Frank Sinatra records) and on jazz dates. He had several reunions with Count Basie in the 1960s and by the '70s was often teamed with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis; Edison also recorded an excellent duet album for Pablo with Oscar Peterson. One of the few swing trumpeters to be influenced by Dizzy Gillespie, Sweets led sessions through the years for Pacific Jazz, Verve, Roulette, Riverside, Vee-Jay, Liberty, Sue, Black & Blue, Pablo, Storyville, and Candid among others. Although his playing faded during the 1980s and '90s, Edison could still say more with one note than nearly anyone; he died July 27, 1999, at age 83.
---Scott Yanow, All Music Guide |
