Chico Hamilton - El Exigente

CHICO HAMILTON
El Exigente
1970
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Flying Dutchman FDS-135


We complete our Give The Drummer Some! series on Chico Hamilton with this avant garde excursion into the fusion sound from 1970. At this point, Chico's abandoned his Quintet in favour of smaller, more transient combos. As if to offset the extremely commercial appeal inherent in his work creating jingles and theme songs, Hamilton spent this period exploring the avant garde, often in a very electrified fusion format. In the ensuing decade, he also returned to his experimentation with Eastern influences and even let loose with some funk once in while. He laid off recording and soundtrack work for quite a while in the 80s and just before the start of the last decade of that dead century he popped back on the scene and has been firing hard on all cylinders since.

Chico Hamilton - Drums
Arnie Lawrence - Sax (Alto)
Bob Mann - Guitar
Steve Swallow - Bass


1 As I Open My Eyes
2 Take Me There
3 I Came And Saw The Beauty Of Your Love
4 How 'Bout Bobby
5 Stomp, Stomp, Stomp
6 Swingin' On A Sitar
7 Up Front What Counts/On The Trail/Seat Belt/Volvo's/Gonna Get Some Right Now


I don't know who was timing the tracks on this LP but they must have been high on something 'cause the running times don't even kinda match most of the actual tracks. The second side is presented as a suite, which I've kept intact.

A fairly in-demand piece, if you can find a copy the rock bottom price is usually $30 but you'll probably have to shell out $50 or more. Soundological is not so demanding and offers it for considerably less HERE and HERE.


Discography as bandleader:

1955 Chico Hamilton Trio (10" LP)
1955 Spectacular! c/o My Jazz World
1955 Chico Hamilton Quintet ft. Buddy Collette at JAZZY BLUES (FLAC)
1960 Original Chico Hamilton Quintet
1956 Chico Hamilton Quintet In Hi-Fi
1956 Chico Hamilton Trio (12" LP)
1957 Chico Hamilton Quintet
1957 Zen: The Music Of Fred Katz
1957 Sweet Smell Of Success OST
1958 South Pacific In Hi-Fi at mohaoffbeat
1958 Chico Hamilton Trio intro. Freddy Gambrell at mohaoffbeat
1958 The Original Ellington Suite ft Eric Dolphy at mohaoffbeat
1959 Ellington Suite ft Bud Collette at mohaoffbeat
1959 With Strings Attached
1959 Gongs East!
1959 The Three Faces Of Chico
1959 That Hamilton Man at mohaoffbeat
1960 Bye Bye Birdie/Irma La Douce at mohaoffbeat
1960 Chico Hamilton Special
1962 Drumfusion at Music-a-k-o /My Jazz World (mp3) + JAZZY BLUES (FLAC)
1962 Litho
1962 Transfusion at Soundological (via slsk)
1962 Passin' Thru at mohaoffbeat
1963 Man From Two Worlds at mohaoffbeat (ape) + Blue Eyed Knight's Place (mp3)
1963 A Different Journey at Musica Desde Las Anitpodas
1965 Easy Livin' at Soundological
1965 Chic Chic Chico at Soundological (via slsk) + Guitar and the Wind (mp3)
1966 El Chico c/o My Jazz World
1966 The Further Adventures Of El Chico at Soundological (via slsk)
1966 The Dealer at Radiodada / Last Train To Cool (mp3) + Into The Rhythm (mp3/FLAC)
1967 The Best of Chico Hamilton at Soundological
1968 The Gamut c/o My Jazz World
1969 The Head Hunters
1970 El Exigente/The Demanding One at Soundological
1973 The Master c/o MyJazzWorld + at notas agudas
1974 Live At Montreux (w/Albert King & Little Milton)
1975 Peregrinations at ?
1976 And The Players c/o My Jazz World
1977 Catwalk
1979 Reaching For The Top
1980 Nomad
1988 Euphoria
1991 Reunion
1992 Arroyo
1993 Trio!
1994 My Panamanian Friend (The Music Of Eric Dolphy)
1994 Dancing To A Different Drummer
1998 Complete Pacific Jazz Recordings of the Chico Hamilton Quintet
1999 Timely
2001 Foreststorn
2002 Thoughts Of...
2006 Juniflip
2006 Believe
2006 6th Avenue Romp
2006 Heritage
2007 Hamiltonia
2008 It's About Time EP
2008 Alternative Dimensions of El Chico EP
2009 Twelve Tones of Love


The discography was cobbled together from Wikipedia, Chico's site and AMG. Each of them were missing items on at least one other list, so it may not be complete. As always, if you happen to have any additions (either info on recordings to be added or links to blogs/forums with any of the releases in question), please leave them in the comments.

Links checked and updated Aug 26, 2009
MyJazzWorld links replaced with Smooth's oiginal RS links Feb 6. 2010

Chico Hamilton - The Best of (Impulse!)

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Boomp3.com

CHICO HAMILTON
The Best of Chico Hamilton
1967

82 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Impulse! AS-9174

“I don't play music for people. I play music for music's sake.”
- Chico Hamilton, All About Jazz interview

Continuing with the Chico Hamilton edition of Give The Drummer Some!, we have another "best of" package from Impulse! that follows through quite nicely by pulling material from the early 60s phase of the Quintet. It seems one of my favourite tracks on here, "Conquistadores," is finally starting to get the love it deserves and has popped up on a couple comps the last few years. The collection is also notable for the final track which was Larry Coryell's biggest contribution to The Dealer, his debut recording in the jazz world.

In fact, if nothing else, Chico will be fondly remembered as the man who either gave some of the world's jazz giants their first big break in the biz or allowed young players (like Paul Horn and Eric Dolphy) the unrestricted freedom to develop their own unique voice. For instance, Gabor Szabo had this to say about his stint with Hamilton in the September 26, 1964, issue of Melody Maker:

"When I was studying at Berklee," he added in discussing his own role, "I got the feeling I couldn't play the instrument at all, because I could not use my own things as they didn't fit any set pattern. When I joined Chico, he helped me immensely to develop my own style. He never forced me in any set way. At all times, he encouraged me to be myself on the instrument."

Unlike yesterday's post, I'm going to list each player's appearances since Doug Payne made it so dang easy with his comprehensive research on Szabo, who provides guitar for all but one track on this collection. One other peculiarity of this compilation is that it seems to have gone out of its way to avoid inclusion of brass in many tracks. For instance, El Chico is noted for being the only recording to document the time Sado Watanabe spent with the Quintet, yet the two tracks included are the only ones on which he did not play. It might be due to the same type of contractual issues presently preventing Impulse! from reissuing a huge chunk of their back catalogue - although it could also be because they are far and away the best two tracks on the album :-)


Chico Hamilton - Drums
Charles Lloyd - Tenor Sax (1), Flute (3)
Jimmy Woods - Tenor Sax (3)
Arnie Lawrence - Alto Sax (7)
Larry Coryell - Guitar (7)
Gabor Szabo - Guitar (1,2,3,4,5,6)
Albert Stinson - Bass (1,2,3,4)
Ron Carter - Bass (5,6)
Richard Davis - Bass (7)
Willie Bobo - Percussion (2,3,4,5,6)
Victor Pantoja - Percussion (2,4,5,6)
Ernie Hayes - Organ (7)


1 Forest Flower - Sunrise / Forest Flower - Sunset [Man From Two Worlds 1963]
2 People [El Chico 1965]
3 Chic Chic Chico [Chic Chic Chico 1965]
4 Conquistadores (The Conquerors) [El Chico 1965]
5 Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me) [The Further Adventures of El Chico 1966]
6 Evil Eye [The Further Adventures of El Chico 1966]
7 Larry Of Arabia [The Dealer 1966]


It was also during this period that Hamilton branched out into TV and film work to a greater degree. In 1957 he had scored The Sweet Smell of Success (a superb film noir revolving around the seedier aspects of the music and entertainment industry) as well as making a cameo appearance with the Quintet, featuring Paul Horn and John Pisano. The year after he appeared at the Newport Jazz Fest and the recording of their legendary performance documented in Jazz On A Summer's Day was the first time Eric Dolphy entered the consciousness of the mainstream world, sandwiched between Chuck Berry and Louis Armstrong no less! Other than that, it was pretty quiet on the A/V front for a few years.

Chico Hamilton Quintet in
The Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

Chico Hamilton Quintet performs "Blue Sands"

at Newport Jazz Fest (1958)

However, it was being asked to score Roman Polanski's classic Repulsion in '64 while in the UK backing Lena Horne that really started the ball rolling for Chico's career in commercial composition. Based on an assortment of interviews, Chico's not much of a romantic where music is concerned and he sure ain't big on nostalgia, but Repulsion obviously holds a special place in his heart. The actual soundtrack is extremely rare, with only a small run put out by Italy's CAM records. If you see it on vinyl, pounce on it as it is worth m-e-g-a-b-u-c-k-s. From there on, he was in high demand for theme and incidental music and he churned it out for films and TV on the side over the next 20 years, never forsaking his own recordings and gigs for too long even while teaching jazz at NYC's New School University.

When asked why he ultimately got off the TV gravy train in a recent All About Jazz Q&A, he had this to say:

"Well I found that it became boring. Very boring. Plus I found out that it bleeds you. I found out I was just doing things, just for the money. TV will ruin you; it uses up your talent."

Can I get a "amen!" brothers and sisters?


This collection has been OOP for over three decades and, like most of Chico's work on the label, it has never seen CD reissue. Since you're unable to make an Impulse! purchase of this collection, Soundological offers it to you at the deepest discount available HERE or HERE.

Chico Hamilton - Easy Livin'

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CHICO HAMILTON
Easy Livin'
1965

82.2 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Sunset SUS-5215


Alright skins heads, we told you the Give The Drummer Some! series would be irregularly reoccurring on Soundological and we meant it. We're already dipping into our second percussionist feature in less than a month's time. Why the rush? Well, today's a special occasion - it's Chico Hamilton's 87th birthday!

As usual, we'll be dropping back-to-back-to-back posts of the featured artist and throw in some extra goodies along the way. Unfortunately since I only just learned his DOB a few days ago, this GTDS will be brief compared to the man's immense output in over 50 years of active recording - and he's still gigging! In fact, if you're anywhere near Ithaca, NY **TONIGHT** you can catch a free concert he's giving for his b-day! Chico is the man, make no mistake about it!

For the full 411 on his long career, check out the pages dedicated to him on his management company's website, which has a huge amount of biographical info and Chico-related links all over the place. For a teaser on the man, here's Chico's rundown on AMG by Scott Yarrow:

Chico Hamilton, a subtle and creative drummer, will probably always be better known for the series of quintets that he led during 1955-1965 and for his ability as a talent scout than for his fine drumming. Hamilton first played drums while in high school with the many fine young players (including Dexter Gordon, Illinois Jacquet, and Charles Mingus) who were in Los Angeles at the time. He made his recording debut with Slim Gaillard, was house drummer at Billy Berg's, toured with Lionel Hampton, and served in the military (1942-1946). In 1946, Hamilton worked briefly with Jimmy Mundy, Count Basie, and Lester Young (recording with Young). He toured as Lena Horne's drummer (on and off during 1948-1955), and gained recognition for his work with the original Gerry Mulligan piano-less quartet (1952-1953).

In 1955, Hamilton put together his first quintet, a chamber jazz group with the reeds of Buddy Collette, guitarist Jim Hall, bassist Carson Smith, and cellist Fred Katz. One of the last important West Coast jazz bands, the Chico Hamilton Quintet was immediately popular and appeared in a memorable sequence in 1958's Jazz on a Summmer's Day and the Hollywood film The Sweet Smell of Success. The personnel changed over the next few years (with Paul Horn and Eric Dolphy heard on reeds, cellist Nate Gersham, guitarists John Pisano and Dennis Budimir, and several bassists passing through the group) but it retained its unusual sound. By 1961, Charles Lloyd was on tenor and flute, Gabor Szabo was the new guitarist, and soon the cello was dropped in favor of trombone (Garnett Brown and later George Bohanon), giving the group an advanced-hard bop style.

In 1966, Chico Hamilton started composing for commercials and the studios and he broke up his quintet. However, he continued leading various groups, playing music that ranged from the avant-garde to erratic fusion and advanced hard bop. Such up-and-coming musicians as Larry Coryell (1966), Steve Potts (1967), Arthur Blythe, Steve Turre (on bass, surprisingly), and Eric Person (who played in Hamilton's '90s group Euphoria) were among the younger players he helped discover. In 1989, Chico Hamilton had a recorded reunion with the original members of his 1955 quintet (with Pisano in Hall's place), and in the 1990s he made a number of records for Soul Note.

Breakin' it down on NBC's "Talking Jazz" in '97

Although released in 1965, this collection is drawn from the late 50s period on Pacific as the West Coast Cool sound was being defined. Time is tight, so we're foregoing the research to determine the exact personnel for each track (the liner notes are paltry by any standard, even for a budget subsidiary like Sunset) but the line up listed below includes all players appearing on this compilation.


Chico Hamilton - Drums
Jim Hall - Guitar
Howard Roberts - Guitar
John Pisano - Guitar
Paul Horn - Sax
Buddy Collette - Sax
Bill Perkins - Sax
Eric Dolphy - Sax
Percy Heath - Bass
George Duvivier - Bass
Ben Tucker - Bass
Carson Smith - Bass
Freddy Gambrell - Piano


1 Lullabye Of The Leaves [Introducing the Piano of Freddy Gambrell JP-1242]
2 These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You) [Introducing the Piano of Freddy Gambrell JP-1242]
3 Taking A Chance On Love
4 Easy Living [Bill Perkins Quintet - 2 Degrees East, 3 Degrees West JP-1217]
5 Sleep
6 Caravan
7 Porch Light [Chico Hamilton Trio JP-1220]
8 Autumn Landscape [Chico Hamilton Trio JP-1220]
9 Satin Doll
10 Reflections

Most of the recordings here have been made available by Mosaic recently on The Complete Pacific Jazz Recordings of The Chico Hamilton Quintet except for those noted above. Besides the track by the Bill Perkins Quintet (which was basically the Chico Quint with Bill as leader) the others are by the Chico Hamilton Trio. The eponymous Chico Hamilton Trio from 1957 has also been reissued this year by Lone Hill but the material with Freddy Gambrell has not and is only available on the original albums or this compilation.

Poor Freddy Gambrell. Not only was he completely snubbed from the notes, he was just all-out snubbed by the looks of it. In Ted Gioia & William Claxton's book West Coast: Modern Jazz in California, 1945-1960 he only rates one throwaway line in regard to his contribution to Chico's team and jazz in general: "Pianist Freddy Gambrell was simply not strong enough a soloist to sustain the new band." Ouch. Well, gotta say after listening to his tinkling of the ivories on "Lullabye of the Leaves" I can't really argue with history.

More Chico on the way in the next couple days but for now Soundological makes Easy Livin' even easier HERE or HERE.

Louie Bellson Big Band - Dynamite!

Boomp3.com

92 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Concord Jazz CJ-105


Here's the last installment in our initial "Give The Drummer Some!" triple-play feature on Soundological. It had been a while since I'd heard this LP but the mayor of Grooveville posted an hommage to him last month so I pulled it out again for a listen. Another smokin' big band session, this time in a live environment, with more of the usual high energy and technical prowess from Louie and his gang. There are a couple of ballads thrown in for contrast, with one dedicated specifically to Louie's pal Blue Mitchell who had passed away just weeks prior to this gig. For any serious drum solo fanatics out there, the last track has a five-minute solo by LB, something you won't hear often in his studio recordings.


AMG Review by Scott Yanow

Recordings by Louie Bellson's various big bands tend to be a slight disappointment, full of fire and explosive moments but sometimes lacking in subtlety and surprises. This effort finds the classic drummer at the head of a 14-horn, 19-piece orchestra that is certainly full of power. Bellson, his tenor star Don Menza and altoist Matt Catingub wrote all of the six songs, and among the key soloists are Menza, Catingub, trumpeter Bobby Shew, altoist Dick Spencer and guitarist John Chiodini (featured on "Where Did You Go"). Nothing all that unusual occurs (although Don Menza's Sambandrea Swing" is exciting), but modern big-band fans will enjoy the effort.


Louis Bellson - Drums
Nelson Hatt - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Walt Johnson - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Ron King - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Bobby Shew - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
John Thomas - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Nick DiMaio - Trombone
Dana Hughes - Trombone
Alan Kaplan - Trombone
Bob Payne - Trombone
Dick Spencer - Clarinet, Flute, Piccolo, Saxophone
Matt Catingub - Clarinet, Flute, Sax (Alto)
Andrew MacKintosh - Sax (Baritone)
Gordon Goodwin - Sax (Tenor)
Don Menza - Sax (Tenor)
John Chiodini - Guitar
Frank Collett - Piano
John Williams Jr. - Bass
Jack Arnold - Percussion, Vibraphone


1 Sambandrea Swing
2 Deliverence
3 Concord Blues for Blue
4 Cinderella's Waltz
5 Where Did You Go?
6 Explosion


Louie's discography as bandleader on blogopolis:

1970 Soul on Top with James Brown at Always Come Correct

1975 The Louis Bellson Explosion

1978 Louie Bellson Jam

1978 Ecué Ritmos Cubanos with Walfredo de Los Reyes at never enough rhodes

1979 Dynamite!


Although the man has recorded over 60 albums as leader since 1954, I could only find a total of five floating around out there, three of which come courtesy of yours truly. If anyone out there has additions, then give the drummer some and leave them in the comments so I can update the post accordingly. I had a copy of Sunshine Rock as well but it has gone missing . Should it pop up, it'll find its way onto the blog but for now you can pick up your stick of TNT HERE or HERE.

Louie Bellson - Louie Bellson Jam

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Boomp3.com

87.5 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Pablo 2310-838


Continuing with our "Give The Drummer Some!" feature on Louie Bellson, today we present a small combo setting featuring Blue Mitchell again as well as Pete Christlieb who (along with Don Menza) stood out with his reed work on the previous post, The Louis Bellson Explosion. Ironically, this LP has more of a big band feel in its arrangement even though there's not much in the way of straight-up swing. Louie always managed to procure the cream of the crop for his sessions and there are a couple of surprises in personnel here, namely microtone maven Emil Richards and old school guitar hero Bob Bain, the man responsible for the mean licks on Mancini's Peter Gunn. He's yet another of those characters whose work is indelibly imprinted on the popular psyche of Western Civilisation but remains almost completely unknown to the public at large.


Louis Bellson - Drums
Blue Mitchell - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Bob Bain - Guitar
Pete Christlieb - Sax
Gary Pratt - Bass
Emil Richards - Percussion, Conga, Gong, Bells, Vibraphone
Ross Tompkins - Piano, Fender Rhodes


1 Melody for Thelma
2 Stein on Vine
3 Shave Tail
4 Gonga Din
5 I Wonder Why
6 Ballad Medley: All the Way Home/Time to Ride a Moonbeam/Bye Bye to All
7 Blue Invasion
8 A Gush of Periwinkles


AMG Review by Scott Yanow

This CD reissue brings back one of Louie Bellson's better small-group dates for Pablo. In addition to the drummer/leader, his septet includes trumpeter Blue Mitchell (still in good form on one of his last recordings), the underrated but great tenor Pete Christlieb, pianist Ross Tompkins, guitarist Bob Bain, bassist Gary Pratt and percussionist Emil Richards. Most intriguing about the date (which mostly sticks to group originals) is that there is a three-song ballad medley comprised not of standards but of Bellson tunes. "Shave Tail" (an older song co-composed by Bellson and Charlie Shavers) is a highlight.

Even the CD reissues from '94 and '95 are OOP but you can jam some more with Louie HERE or HERE.