Candid Recording(s):

Swinging For The Count(CCD 79724)

Biography:

The many editions of the Count Basie Orchestra over a 46-year period were built on the firmest of rhythmic foundations with two ever-present components: Basie himself and guitarist Freddie Green. Drummer Jo Jones and bassist Walter page set the roles and rhythms for all their successors. It was Green’s light strumming on the beat which defined a Basie rhythm section and gave all the Basie ensembles and soloists their forward momentum. Jones was an equally punctiloiuos timekeepr while Page introduced the walking style of playing with unwavering swing and a sound that underpinned everything. Flanked by such reliable and unselfish craftsmen, Baise was able to provide a spare keyboard commentary rather than fulsome stride accompaniment for the soloist.

It is a decade since Jo Jones, the last survivor of that subtle power-house, died but the spirit and feeling, the unity and strength of those four musical minds live on. Count and his background boys taught a generation how to swing and the message was passed on down. But it takes special qualities, including an absence of ego, to achieve even an approximation of the original blend.

The Basie Alumni’s rhythmn section on ‘Swinging For The Count’ (Candid CCD 79724) gets that mystical mix in perfect balance, ensuring that the good times roll throughout these stirring performances which confirm that the world of Bill Baise goes spinning along as if the great man had never left us. Count’s good humour infused the band’s music.

The strong messages transmitted via this happy session lie in the huge pleasure taken by the participants in playing and their close camaraderie which were so much a part of the spirit that drove Count Basie’s bands’ through his long and productive reign as a leader. These musicians remember him with personal affection and remind us of the Count’s irresistible grooves with grace and good feeling.  This recording on Candid presents Harry ‘Sweet’s Edison on Trumpet, Mark Morganelli on trumpet, Clark Terry on Trumpet and Flügelhorn, Seldon Powell on tenor saxophone, Bucky Pizzarelli on guitar, ‘Sir’ Roland Hanna on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, Bobby Durham on drums.