A True Gem Tuesday, June 08, 2010My husband is a musican (saxophonist) and provided his input for this gift I gave him. Incredible music (both audio and video) especially for its age. The techs really knew what they were doing and captured the very essence of the perfomances. Lots of ego in the small group scene. Dizzy was the leader but the other musicans were the real stars. Somewhat disappointing and somewhat distracting to see Dizzy talking during Stitt's wonderful solos but demanding complete attention when he was soloing. Did he actually bump into Stitt at the beginning of Blues Walk? Nevertheless very enjoyable. Some of the best Stitt I've ever heard. Great backing from Loe Levy and Ray Brown. Good work from Gus Johnson when he wasn't being distracted. Recommended.
Great stuff - Missing the Liner Notes/Booklet Sunday, December 06, 2009Great stuff. Shows classic old-school Dizzy in a quintet setting (great Sonny Stitt work on alto and tenor sax as well).
The package was MISSING the 16 page liner notes with (supposed special pictures and information). This was disappointing.
Jazz Icons: Dizzy Gillespie Live in '58 and '70 Saturday, October 24, 2009Wow! who coundn't suggest this one enough. It goes without saying that this concert is a treasure. Diz and company at their best. Of particular note: In the big band section, Art Farmer sits and plays parts and does not even take one solo. There are plenty of good closeups too.
Calms the raging three-year-old inside you Monday, June 01, 2009There's something so mesmerizing about these two performances, that even my three-year-old son is transfixed by them. The first features a quintet of Diz, Sonny Stitt, Lou Levy (piano), Ray Brown (bass) and Gus Johnson (drums) that plays it safe -- Dizzy's standard feature "On the Sunny Side of the Street" and Stitt's standard feature "Lover Man" are both included in the 30-minute set -- but whoever filmed it must have been a real jazz fan. There are long takes of Diz and Sonny's fingering, even views of Diz clearing his valve -- in short, all the physical realities of a jazz performance and all the stuff that is usually cut out of TV performances of jazz artists. It renders what could have been a pedestrian soft-bop set into something special. But in the second half of this disc, things really take off. It's an hour of Dizzy fronting the Clarke-Boland Big Band in 1970, and they are TIGHT. Big brassy, rollicking charts, including Gillespie standbys like "Manteca". And that band: not only is Art Farmer in the trumpet section (looking rather glum since he doesn't get any solos!) but so are Idrees Sulieman and Benny Bailey. And, look over there, it's Sahib Shihab on baritone sax. No wonder this band is often referred to as legendary. Grab this disc, settle in, and relax.....
Great live footage, wonderful music Saturday, March 21, 2009It is fantastic to spend the evening enjoying this. Dizzy at
his best in live footage.
