The Party Album

chronology
The Party Album
Live album by Alexis Korner
Publication ; (s)	1979
Label (s)	Intercord / Castle Communications / Universal Music
Format (s)	DoLP, CD
Genre (s)	Blues , jazz
Title (number)	11
occupation	Alexis Korner : vocals ([4], [7], [8]) / guitar ([1] - [6], [9] - [11]); Zoot Money : Keyboard ([1] - [6], [8] - [11]) / vocals ([6], [8]); Mel Collins ([1] - [5]): tenor / soprano saxophone ; Dick Heckstall-Smith ([1] - [5], [11]): tenor saxophone ; John Surman ([1] - [5], [9] - [10]): baritone saxophone / soprano saxophone; Dick Morrissey ([1] - [5], [11]): tenor saxophone; Type themes ([1] - [5], [11]): Tenor saxophone; Mike Zwerin ([1] - [5], [11]): Trombone ; Sappho Gillet ([8]): vocals, tambourine ; Chris Farlowe ([9] - [11]): vocals, tambourine; Eric Clapton ([9] - [11]): guitar; Colin Hodgkinson : Bass ; Stu Speer : drums ; Duffy Power ([9] - [11]): harmonica ; Paul Jones ([9] - [11]): Harmonica; Neil Ford ([9] - [11]): Guitar;
production	Alexis Korner
Studio (s)	Pinewood Studios, London

The Party Album is a double album by British blues musician Alexis Korner from 1979, on which many of his old companions participated. In addition to some blues classics and originals from Korner, it also contains classic jazz numbers .

History of origin

The album was recorded live on Alexis Korner's 50th birthday (April 19, 1978) in the Gatsby Room, Pinewood Studios, London. In addition to blues musicians, Korner also invited some wind players from the jazz scene to the concert, some of whom he had already played with at the beginning of the 1960s. The musical arrangements come mainly from Korner. The concert was organized especially for the WDR Rockpalast and recorded and filmed in cooperation with the BBC. A year and a half later it also appeared on record (initially only for the German market).

Impact history

The critic of the Musikexpress only awarded two stars in 1979 and said “Korner and (up to fourteen) musicians play relaxed and unconstrained ... blues and jazz, but the music still doesn't really inspire me, on the contrary, I often find it to be boring. The pieces (standards like Spoonful and also some Korner titles) lack the drive a little, and I often find the six wind instruments annoying. I only really like the last page with Chris Farlowe (voc), Eric Clapton (g), Paul Jones (harm) and a really enormous bass solo by Colin Hodgkinson. "

Track list

Things Ain't What They Used to Be ( Mercer Ellington ) 7:23
Captain's Tiger (A. Korner) 3:30
Skipping (A. Korner) 3:10
Spoonful ( Willie Dixon ) 6:40
Medley: Finkle's Cafe (A. Korner) / Dooji Hooji ( Duke Ellington ) 9:06
Whole Mess of Blues ( Doc Pomus / Mort Shuman ) 5:36
Lining Track ( Huddie Ledbetter ) 3:15
Robert Johnson (A. Korner / John Edwards) 6:15
Hey Pretty Mama (Chris Farlowe) 4:19
Hi-Heel Sneakers ( Robert Higginbotham ) 9:15
Stormy Monday Blues ( Billy Eckstine / Earl Hines ) 5:59

This does not correspond to the setlist of the evening, because the following pieces were also played on the first broadcast at Rockpalast : Lining Track, Got to Get You Off of My Mind, Help Me and Louisiana Blues .

Editions

The concert recordings - both pieces in a big band line-up , then in a quartet line-up and finally in a casual jam session - were initially released on a double LP. Some of the pieces were also published in the GDR. The recording has not yet appeared in the Rockpalast DVD series.

Web links

The Party LP at allmusic.com

Individual evidence

↑ The Party Album at alexis-korner.net ( Memento of the original from May 14, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2
^ Review of the album, Musikexpress 12/1979
↑ The big band pieces came on the first side of the record (1 to 3) and on the second side (4 and 5), the quartet came on the third (# 6 to 8) and the session on the fourth side. See information at Discogs on Intercord output.
↑ Tracks 6 ~ 8 (record side 1) and 9 ~ 11 (page 2) were released in 1982 by Amiga (LP 8 55 873) under the title "And Friends" .

[1] The Party Album at alexis-korner.net ( Memento of the original from May 14, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2

[2] Review of the album, Musikexpress 12/1979

[3] The big band pieces came on the first side of the record (1 to 3) and on the second side (4 and 5), the quartet came on the third (# 6 to 8) and the session on the fourth side. See information at Discogs on Intercord output.

[4] Tracks 6 ~ 8 (record side 1) and 9 ~ 11 (page 2) were released in 1982 by Amiga (LP 8 55 873) under the title "And Friends" .