Along with Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell was one of bebop's two great pianists. Unlike Monk, whose brilliant primitivism transcended bebop and transformed jazz composition, Powell took the lessons of his jazz piano forebears--most notably Art Tatum--and applied them to the emerging small group style. Powell's own resulting style combined a rapid and fluid right hand with a moody, almost dissonant approach to chord work, and the combination proved thoroughly modern.
The first of two similarly-titled albums, The Amazing Bud Powell is culled from a quintet and two trio dates recorded in 1949 and '51. Volume 1 is anchored by three versions of Powell's "Un Poco Loco," featuring bassist Curly Russell and drummer Max Roach, that demonstrate the composition's evolution. Among the album's other outstanding tracks are quintet versions of "Wail" and "Bouncing with Bud" featuring tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins and the great but rarely recorded trumpeter Fats Navarro. A whimsical trio version of Powell's "Parisian Thoroughfare"--best known as a vehicle for the Max Roach-Clifford Brown quintet--rounds out this superb collection. --Fred Goodman
The Amazing Bud Powell - Vol. 1.,Bud Powell,Blue Note Records,Bop,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop
Jazz Music:
- The Bass in the Background: A Great Selection 1962-1992
- The Complete Bethlehem Collection
- The Fourth Dimension in Sound
- The Other Bridge (Oakland 1999)
- Time Again: Brubeck Revisited, Vol. 1
- Totem Blues
- Trillium
- Watch What Happens [Import]
- 1924-1930
- 1928-1935 [Box set]
Jazz Music
Canned Heat/Boogie With Canned Heat [Original recording remastered]
Authentic Russian Sacred Music
American's Most Wanted [Enhanced] [Import]
Adopted by Aliens [Explicit Lyrics]
Angels of the Universe [Soundtrack]
Alive in Hallowed Halls [Import] [Live]
Art Farmer, Lee Konitz With Joe Carter Quartet & Trio