On the heels of the long-awaited reissue of recently-departed jazz pianist Andrew Hill's 1966 "Compulsion" by Blue Note comes a batch of Connoisseur Series reissues that includes the session Hill recorded for Blue Note right after. "Change," was recorded in March 1966 and extended the free form Hill tinkered with on "Compulsion."
You may recall that Milwaukee jazz guitarist Jack Grassel suggested that Joe Chambers' straightforward drumming was what seemed to hold "Compulsion" back a little. For this session, Hill chose Archie Shepp/Don Cherry sideman J.C. Moses (in what would be the drummer's only Blue Note appearance), pushing this session into much more avant garde territory. With Sam Rivers on tenor and bassist Walter Booker, it's a mystery why this session languished for a decade before Blue Note issued it under Rivers' name. The label had assigned a catalog number for the record at the time of the session and seemed poised to issue it even though a cover was never designed for it back then. Luckily, it's back now!
Also in the batch are a reissue of 1969's "Introducing Kenny Cox and the Contemporary Jazz Quartet" with the group's 1970 "Multidirection" as the bonus material. The Detroit group, led by pianist Cox, had cut its teeth backing visiting stars and these rare discs have been much sought-after by collectors.
Jimmy Smith's "Straight Life" is the last of the great organist's trio sessions to be released by Blue Note. It features guitarist Quentin Warren and drummer Donald Bailey and was recorded in 1961, just a couple years before Smith left to record full-time for Verve. Here, Smith and company riff through "Star Dust," Gershwin's "Swanee" and a clutch of similar numbers, along with a couple originals and Coleman Hawkins' fine "Stuffy."
"A Bluish Bag" is the first of two CDs collecting the unissued 1967 sessions of tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine. Seven of these 12 tracks were issued in the mid-to-late '70s but are reunited here for the first time. They featured Turrentine with Blue Note stalwart Donald Byr, Pepper Adams, Ron Carter and other notables in a 10-piece setting. There are also five tracks from a previously unissued '67 session; again with a 10-piece group, but featuring an almost entirely different cast (only Adams and drummer Mickey Roker appeared at both sessions). The material is a mix of bossa novas, Henry Mancini tunes and a single Turrentine original.
It's nice to have saxman Frank Foster's 1969 "Manhattan Fever" back in print and this edition adds all but one tune from the unreleased follow-up making it even more interesting, especially since that second disc included such interesting choices as a reading of Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Fly By Night."
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
