Stuff Smith Quartet – Swingin Stuff (1965/2005)
Stuff Smith Quartet – Swingin Stuff (1965/2005)
01. Caravan 02. Take the A Train 03. Old Stinkin' Blues 04. Only Time Will Tell 05. Mack the Knife 06. One O'Clock Jump 07. Blues for Timme 08. My Blue Heaven 09. Bugle Blues 10. C Jam Blues 11. Perdido 12. S'Posin 13. How High the Moon Bass – Niels Peterson Drums – Alex Riel Piano – Kenny Drew Violin – Stuff Smith
Recorded five days after a similar performance at the Montmartre in Copenhagen by the same personnel (violinist Stuff Smith, pianist Kenny Drew, bassist Niels Pedersen and drummer Alex Riel), Stuff and his quartet are once again heard in top form. Four of the nine songs are repeated from the earlier date, but unfortunately, the music on this LP is currently out of print. On such tunes as "Bugle Blues," "Mack the Knife," "One O'Clock Jump" and "Take the 'A' Train," Stuff Smith shows that he was as hard-swinging an improviser as any horn player and that at the age of 55 he had not run out of gas yet. ---Scott Yanow, AllMusic Review
Not only was Stuff Smith one of the first prominent jazz violinists, his gritty sound was very distinctive. These live sessions, recorded in 1965 (two years prior to his death), will be of great interest to fans of his work, with the addition of four previously unissued songs. Smith is accompanied by a superb rhythm section consisting of pianist Kenny Drew, bassist Niels-Henning. ---Ken Dryden, allaboutjazz.com
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