Robbins' Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase

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Robbins' Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase
Live album by Sir Charles Thompson

Publication
(s)

2000

Label (s) Delmark Records

Format (s)

CD

Genre (s)

Modern jazz , bebop

Title (number)

12

running time

70:05

occupation
  • Piano : Sir Charles Thompson
chronology
Stardust
(1994) 		Robbins' Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase What's New
(2001)

Robbins' Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase is a jazz album by pianist Sir Charles Thompson . The recordings made on August 3 and 4, 2000 were released on November 14, 2000 on the Delmark Records label .

background

The album was recorded live at the Chicago club The Jazz Showcase in August 2000 ; the club's owner, Joe Segal, selected musicians from Chicago to accompany Sir Charles Thompson. The pianist played in trio format with Eddie de Haas (bass) and Charles Braugham (drums) the tracks "Robbins 'Nest", "' S Wonderful", "Tunis In (Tune Us In)", " You Don't Know What Love Is ”,“ Body and Soul ”,“ A Boogie-Woogie ”and“ Goodbye ”. In “Stuffy”, “ Easy Living ”, “The King”, “Blue and Sentimental” and “I Never Knew” the trumpeter Art Hoyle and the woodwind player Eric Schneider were added.

Track list

  • Sir Charles Thompson: Robbins' Nest (Delmark Records - Delmark DE-526)
  1. Robbins' Nest (Illinois Jacquet, Sir Charles Thompson) 4:07
  2. 's Wonderful ( George Gershwin , Ira Gershwin ) 5:43
  3. Tunis In (Tune Us In) (Thompson) 7:22
  4. You Don't Know What Love Is ( Gene DePaul , Don Raye ) 5:11
  5. Body and Soul (Frank Eyton, Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour) 5:28
  6. A Boogie Woogie (trad) 3:58
  7. Stuffy (David Garfield, Michael H. Goldsen, Coleman Hawkins) 6:53
  8. Easy Living ( Ralph Rainger , Leo Robin ) 6:01
  9. The King (Count Basie) 5:13
  10. Blue and Sentimental (Count Basie, Mack David , Jerry Livingston ) 4:56
  11. I Never Knew ( Gus Kahn , Ted Fiorito ) 5:06
  12. Goodbye ( Gordon Jenkins ) 4:05

reception

Derek Taylor praised in All About Jazz , "In the first bars of the title track you can see that Sir Charles' skills have hardly deteriorated over the years and that no time is wasted on extensive solo play." The next five tracks focused on the rhythm trio and contained very convincing statements from all three musicians, according to the author. Starting with "Easy Living", the combo is expanded to include Schneider in quartet format. Hoyle joins the group on "Blue and Sentimental," continuing his experience of working on Delmark projects on a single number [on an album] ( Harold Ousley's "Grit-Gittin Feelin" is another good example). The entire set is quite straightforward, but Thompson's agile and gentle tone prevents the pianist from ever sounding maudlin. Melodies like “You Don't Know What Love Is” combined, in Taylor's opinion, “simple transmission with an undeniable emotionality that is both refreshing and beguiling. Thompson is part of a shrinking group of musicians, survivors of the bebop age, who are still at work and sounding as lively as ever. "

Illinois Jacquet, circa May 1947.
Photograph by William P. Gottlieb .

Owen Cordle wrote in JazzTimes that the trio tracks offer clear melody statements, bop and / or swing-based improvisation (both linear and chordal) and some piano and drums. On the title track, Thompson gets into an Erroll-Garner groove with his left hand . Woodwind Schneider introduced changes in the style of Illinois Jacquet in the Coleman-Hawkins number "Stuffy" with the tenor saxophone . Basie's uptempo number “The King” is even better; she would offer a great tailor solo. An “I Never Knew” similar to Ben Webster would also be a pleasure, according to the author. According to Cordle, it is good to hear Thompson's well-structured style “again and in such good company”.

Marc Myers (Jazzwax) wrote: “In 2000, when Sir Charles Thompson was 82 years old, he recorded perhaps the best album under his own name for piano. And that says something. Thompson had an illustrious career similar to Eubie Blake in terms of longevity and lived to be 98 years old. Compared to his earlier albums from the 1950s and 60s, which were quite good, the author described the present album as 'exceptional'. "

Alex Henderson gave the album three (out of 5) stars in Allmusic, saying that Sir Charles Thompson recorded his most important work in the 1940s, but the Count Basie- influenced pianist was still capable of excellence in the 21st century. The 82-year-old Thompson continues to play with a lot of warmth and enthusiasm. However, there are very few surprises; From the opener “Robbins 'Nest” (Thompson's most famous composition) to Coleman Hawkins ' “Stuffy” and somewhat exaggerated standards such as “Easy Living”, “S Wonderful” and “Body and Soul”, the improviser plays it safe in his own Material selection and offering the kind of bop / swing set he could have done 50 or 55 years ago. But Thompson was still a pleasure to listen to, and his technical skills had apparently held up well over the years. Robbin's' Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase is not necessarily a must, "but an enjoyable CD that Thompson's die-hard fans appreciate."

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Sir Charles Thompson: Robbins' Nest at Discogs
  2. ^ Derek Taylor: Robbin's Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase. All About Jazz, December 1, 2000, accessed September 7, 2019 .
  3. ^ Owen Cordle: Robbin's Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase. JazzTimes , March 1, 2018, accessed September 7, 2019 .
  4. ↑ Marc Myers: Sir Charles Thompson in 2000. Jazzwax, September 4, 2018, accessed on September 7, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Listing of the album Robbin's Nest: Live at the Jazz Showcase on Allmusic (English). Retrieved September 10, 2019.