QUINCY JONES THE QUINTESSENCE

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Quincy Jones - The Quintessence

Quincy Jones

The Quintessence

ABC/Impulse! 9000 series/A 11

Capitol Studios, NYC, November 29, 1961

Personnel:

Jerry Kail, Joe Newman, Clyde Reasinger, Clark Terry (tp)

Billy Byers, Paul Faulise, Melba Liston (tb)

Julius Watkins (frh)

Phil Woods (as)

Eric Dixon (ts)

Jerome Richardson (bars, fl)

Bobby Scott (p)

Buddy Catlett (b)

Stu Martin (d)

Quincy Jones (arr, cond)

10604 The Twitch

10605 For Lena And Lennie

Capitol Studios, NYC, December 18, 1961

Personnel:

Al DeRisi, Freddie Hubbard, Thad Jones, Snooky Young (tp)

Billy Byers, Paul Faulise, Rod Levitt, Melba Liston (tb)

Julius Watkins (frh)

Frank Wess, Phil Woods (as)

Oliver Nelson (ts)

Eric Dixon (ts, cl)

Jerome Richardson (bars)

Patti Bown (p)

Milt Hinton (b)

Bill English (d)

Quincy Jones (arr, cond)

10665 Hard Sock Dance

10666 Little Karen

10667 Robot Portrait

Capitol Studios, NYC, December 22, 1961

Personnel:

Thad Jones, Joe Newman, Ernie Royal, Snooky Young (tp)

Billy Byers, Paul Faulise, Curtis Fuller, Melba Liston, Tom Mitchell (tb)

Ray Alonge, Jim Buffington, Earl Chapin, Julius Watkins (frh) Harvey Phillips (tu)

Phil Woods (as)

Oliver Nelson (ts)

Jerome Richardson (bars, afl)

Gloria Agostini (harp)

Patti Bown (p)

MiltHinton (b)

Jimmy Johnson (d)

Quincy Jones (arr, cond)

10671 Invitation

10672 Straight, No Chaser

10673 The Quintessence

---------------------------------------------------

Tracks

1. Quintessence [Jones] 4:24

2. Robot Portrait [Byers/Jones] 5:28

3. Little Karen [Golson] 3:47

4. Straight, No Chaser [Monk] 2:28

5. For Lena and Lennie [Jones] 4:20

6. Hard Sock Dance [Jones] 3:23

7. Invitation [Kaper/Webster] 3:37

8. The Twitch [Byers] 3:49

Review by Thom Jurek

The Quintessence is perhaps the most accurate title ever given to a Quincy Jones & His Orchestra recording. Issued in 1961 for Impulse!, this is the sound of the modern, progressive big band at its pinnacle. Recorded in three sessions, the core of the band consists of Melba Liston, Phil Woods, Julius Watkins, and bassist Milt Hinton and pianist Patricia Brown on two sessions, with bassist Buddy Catlett and pianist Bobby Scott on another. The trumpet chairs are held alternately by players like Freddie Hubbard, Clark Terry, Thad Jones, and Snooky Young, to name a few. Oliver Nelson is here, as are Frank Wess and Curtis Fuller. Despite its brevity -- a scant 31 minutes -- The Quintessence is essential to any appreciation of Jones and his artistry. The deep swing and blues in his originals such as the title track, "Robot Portrait," and "For Lena and Lennie" create staggering blends. They are beautifully warm, with edges rounded, but the brass section is still taut and punchy. The reeds cool the heat enough to give the rhythmic dialogue in these tunes its inherent strolling swing. Elsewhere, on Thelonious Monk's "Straight, No Chaser," the time is speeded up to nearly dizzying intensity, and it's played like a big band popping bebop with incredible counterpointed double solos happening between trombone, muted trumpet, and Brown's piano. Though only 2:27 in length, the piece packs an entire harmonic universe into its furious pace. Benny Golson's "Little Karen," is, by contrast, held in character: lithe, limpid, and fluid, it's the ultimate laid-back, midtempo ballad. That said, with the brass charts being notched up just enough, it's got the kind of finger-popping groove that makes it irresistible. The solo spot taken by Nelson is pure knotty bop. What is beautiful about this recording -- and every second of the music -- is that because of its brevity, there isn't a wasted moment. It's all taut, packed with creativity and joy, and without excess or unnecessary decorative arrangement. It doesn't get much better than this.

Review by By Martin Gladu

Recorded in late 1961 as an offshoot of the Free and Easy Broadway show, the band features roughly the same big band personnel Jones had assembled in New York for the show's initial European dates. Following the show's unfortunate demise in Paris, he attempted to coordinate a pan-European tour of this group of "vagabonds," as he amicably refers the disparaging bunch in his autobiography Q (Harlem Moon, 2001), "just gigging on pure ass" and grappling financial assistance from label head and future boss Irving Green, the founder of Mercury Records.

In the end, he was forced to sell his music publishing to pay lenders and band mates, fly them back to the States and come to terms with the Internal Revenue Service. From the original Free and Easy lineup, saxophonists Phil Woods and Jerome Richardson, bassist Buddy Catlett, pianist Patricia Bown, trombonists Melba Liston and Billy Byers, hornist Julius Watkins and trumpeter Clark Terry stayed on board upon the group's return to New York and are featured herein.

On "The Quintessence," a Grammy Award-nominated chart and composition, one is greeted with pads of lush French horns and trombones voicings, which provide silvery accompaniment to Phil Woods' pungent sound as he toys with the ballad melody. "Robot Portrait," an angular theme penned by Byers, closely resembles John Coltrane's "Blue Train," but diverges to a backbeat-driven, shuffle blues during the solos.

Following Jones' Basie-esque arrangement of Benny Golson's "Little Karen," the band launches into a hard-swinging version of "Straight No Chaser," with its gripping, ending shout chorus. It is undoubtedly the most exciting track of the album. Then, he reverts to his Basie roots with his own "Hard Sock Dance" and "The Twitch," a cool and easygoing tune penned by Byers that ends the 31-minute program.

Should there be people out there still accusing Jones of "selling out," this album, as well as others recorded with this same ensemble, will most probably change their opinion, reminding them of this American popular culture icon's deep jazz roots and all he did for the genre artistically and entrepreneurially.

http://www.mediafire.com/?8fwu60u8gwit0k2