Rating:
Genre:
Jazz
Release Date: 03/26/2002
Fresh from his galvanizing tenure with
the Cootie Williams Orchestra,
Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson began making records with his own excellent 14-piece rhythm and
swing band. This compilation presents everything
Vinson recorded for the
Mercury label in New York beginning in December of 1945, continuing through 1946 into the spring of 1947. While
Vinson's piquant voice and solid alto saxophone invariably stimulate and entertain, the
big band itself is magnificent, sounding at times like the exciting ensembles being led during the 1940s by
Count Basie,
Buddy Johnson,
Gerald Wilson,
Earl Hines,
Earl Bostic, or the aforementioned
Cootie Williams. Every player was on his toes and special mention should be made of
Earl Van Riper's masterful piano technique. Mingled with
Vinson's patented
blues vocals are a number of fascinating instrumentals:
"Mr. Cleanhead Steps Out," "It's a Groovy Affair," "Boogie Woogie Holiday," "Br'er Rabbit," and a smoking hot
swing version of
"Three O'Clock in the Morning," this last item an artifact originally published as a
waltz in 1922! But the balance of the tunes on this compilation are exactly what seasoned
Cleanhead Vinson fans would expect -- gutsy
blues with feisty lyrics describing domestic troubles and peculiar personal predicaments. Why
Mercury originally rejected tracks five through nine is anybody's guess. Thank goodness the producers of this excellent
Classics retrospective included them here. The final three selections were recorded in St. Louis on April 29, 1947, with a band that included a 26-year-old
jazz trumpeter by the name of
Clark Terry.
~arwulf arwulf, All Music Guide
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