Jimmy Jones - The Chronological Classics: 1946-1947 (2003)

Known for having accompanied Sarah Vaughan in various ensembles as early as 1946 and up until 1958, pianist, composer, and bandleader Jimmy Jones finally receives a decent tribute in this Classics chronological compilation. Two HRS dates serve as bookends for a succession of very uncommon recordings originally issued on the Wax label. (Four improvisational duets with bassist John Levy, said to have been recorded for the Session label in Chicago during August of 1944, are not included here, as they seem to have vanished.) The opening four tracks document a wonderful blowing session conducted on January 10, 1946, under the auspices of the Hot Record Society. In addition to trumpeter Joe Thomas and tenor man Ted Nash, there is a strong Ellington contingent present in trombonist Lawrence Brown, alto saxophonist Otto Hardwick, and a heavily featured Harry Carney, who composed "Old Juice on the Loose" and "Departure for Dixie." Anyone enamored of Carney's baritone sax virtuosity should investigate these tasty sides. The Ellington element continues to surface throughout Jones' Wax recordings made at indeterminate intervals throughout the year 1947. Otto Hardwick is billed as the leader on a gorgeous rendition of "Come Sunday" and Hardwick's original composition "I Remember Your Eyes"; trumpeter Bill Coleman sits in on a pair of tunes, including Ellington's "Five O'Clock Drag"; the Jimmy Jones Trio elucidates Ellington's "New World A-Comin'" and "When I Walk With You"; Jones delivers solo renderings of Ellington's "New York City Blues" and "On a Turquoise Cloud" as well as Juan Tizol's "Bakiff." On several occasions, guitarist Al Casey executes wonderful solos in a mature style grounded in but splendidly transcending his formative years with Fats Waller. Jimmy Jones was a superb chamber or lounge jazz pianist, comparable in some ways to Erroll Garner. He delivers a parcel of ballads by Noël Coward; a gorgeous reading of Claude Debussy's "Claire de Lune"; and an interlude (sounding as though it could have been used in a film noir soundtrack) called "Empty Space," with a mysterious contribution by a female vocalist identified only as "Lynn." This remarkable retrospective closes with four titles from the second Jimmy Jones HRS session, this one featuring tenor saxophonist Budd Johnson. By August of 1947 Jones was writing some fairly modern, pleasantly unconventional, and harmonically advanced music. Budd Johnson, no stranger to postwar modern jazz, paddled effortlessly through the unusual changes.