B-6507

Quebec/Hamilton/Hardee/Morton - Swing Hi Swing Lo

Released - 1969

Recording and Session Information

WOR Studios, NYC, July 18, 1944
Ike Quebec, tenor sax; Roger Ramirez, piano; Tiny Grimes, guitar; Milton Hinton, bass; J.C. Heard, drums.

BN985-2 Tiny's Exercise (alternate take)
BN987-0 Indiana (alternate take)
BN988-1 Blue Harlem

WOR Studios, NYC, September 25, 1944
Jonah Jones, trumpet; Tyree Glenn, trombone; Ike Quebec, tenor sax; Roger Ramirez, piano; Tiny Grimes, guitar; Oscar Pettiford, bass; J.C. Heard, drums.

BN990-1 If I Had You
BN991-0 Mad About You

WOR Studios, NYC, January 31, 1945
Benny Morton, trombone; Barney Bigard, clarinet; Ben Webster, tenor sax; Sammy Benskin, piano; Israel Crosby, bass; Eddie Dougherty, drums.

BN222-0 Limehouse Blues

WOR Studios, NYC, July 17, 1945
Buck Clayton, trumpet; "Keg" Johnson, trombone; Ike Quebec, tenor sax; Roger Ramirez, piano; Tiny Grimes, guitar; Grachan Moncur, bass; J.C. Heard, drums.

BN246-1 I've Found A New Baby

WOR Studios, NYC, November 21, 1945
Ray Nance, trumpet; Henderson Chambers, trombone; Jimmy Hamilton, clarinet; Otto Hardwick, alto sax, clarinet; Harry Carney, baritone sax, clarinet; Jimmy Jones, piano; Oscar Pettiford, bass; Sidney Catlett, drums.

BN270-0 Slapstick
BN271-1 Blues In My Music Room

WOR Studios, NYC, May 31, 1946
John Hardee, tenor sax; Bill Bivens, vibes; Sammy Benskin, piano; Jimmy Shirley, guitar; Eugene Ramey, bass; Sidney Catlett, drums.

BN286-5 River Edge Rock (alternate take)

Session Photos

Ike Quebec - July 17 1945

Photos: Francis Wolff/Mosaic Images / 
https://www.mosaicrecordsimages.com/

Track Listing

Side One
Artist	Title	Recording Date
Ike Quebec Quintet	Tiny's Exercise	July 18 1944
Ike Quebec Quintet	Blue Harlem	July 18 1944
Ike Quebec Quintet	Indiana	July 18 1944
Jimmy Hamilton And The Duke's Men	Blues In My Music Room	November 21 1945
Jimmy Hamilton And The Duke's Men	Slapstick	November 21 1945
Side Two
Ike Quebec Swing Seven	I've Found A New Baby	July 17 1945
Ike Quebec Swingtet	If I Had You	September 25 1944
John Hardee Sextet	River Edge Rock	May 31 1946
Ike Quebec Swingtet	Mad About You	September 25 1944
Benny Morton's All Stars	Limehouse Blues	January 31 1945

Liner Notes

The time-span covered by these recordings — summer 1944 to spring 1946 — was a crucial period in the story of jazz. It was a time for upheaval for the music, and yet the sounds you'll hear on this interesting album are very much together, without any traces of internal conflict.

Jazz is still a young music, and its historians have often had problems with perspective. The generally accepted view of the music's history as neatly contained stylistic periods following upon each other in progressive succession has long been due for fundamental revision, and this album offers a case in point.

Seen "historically," the music here would be labeled main-stream jazz or small-band swing. It was created at a time when a new movement called bebop was in the process of becoming the dominant jazz style. The jazz journalists, and the fans influenced by them, were getting deeper and deeper into disputes about the significance of what was happening in jazz, which in retrospect seem more appropriate to theology than music. Bitterness, name-calling, and labeling eventually brought about that extreme polarization of the jazz audience from which it never fully recovered.

This polarization was between so-called traditionalists and modernists (also known respectively as figs" and "damn boppers.") Disputes had existed in the world of jazz before; adherents of New Orleans and Dixieland-Chicago styles fought a running battle with confirmed swing and big-band fanciers from the late '30s on. But acrid as this conflict often became, it rarely involved charges of heresy.

Now, however, spokesmen for the extreme right and left thought nothing of accusing their opposite numbers of sins and errors that left no common ground, Traditional jazz was tagged primitive, infantile music of no possible relevance to new times, which were said to have produced a music more profound, sophisticated and artistic than anything that had come before. On the other hand, this new music was called non-jazz or anti-jazz, and was accused of not being merely revolutionary, but inherently anarchistic.

What suffered most from this childish battle of words was the music. While much of the bitterness among fans rubbed off on the musicians, for reasons more often economic than ideological, the true relevance of the whole crusade is perhaps best illuminated by an incident that occurred in 1949. Dizzy Gillespie, the public standard-bearer of bop, showed up at a Los Angeles benefit for ailing New Orleans veteran Bud Scott and sat in with a tradition band. To the musicians, as always, it was all music.

Meanwhile, new things were happening in jazz, and their chief incubator was New York's still-swinging 52nd Street. If bebop was born in Harlem, it came of age on Swing Street, it was always, without exception, an established jazz veteran who would give the first important jobs to young experimenters. The street's chief language was mainstream, a jazz dialect capable of absorbing a multitude of accents, old and new.

It is this language, spoken by musicians who worked the Street beat, that you will hear on this LP. And it was, unfortunately, this very brand of jazz — so far from stagnant in the mid-'40's that it is still practiced significantly more than two decades later — which was most adversely affected by the war of words. At the head of this perhaps most mature and viable style yet produced in jazz were such great masters as Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Roy Eldridge, Art Tatum, Benny Carter and Johnny Hodges, and in its ranks their gifted disciples and near-peers of whom many can be heard on this record.

Neither "traditionalist" or "revivalist," nor "progressive," they were simply making music without labels or professed ideology, and a large percentage of it was simply the best jazz of its own or any other day.

The focus of the album is on tenor saxophonists, and with good reason. This instrument was beginning to replace the trumpet as the dominant jazz horn and would retain that position for years to come.

The outstanding tenorist here is Ike Quebec, whose untimely death at 44 in 1963 snuffed out one of the warmest sounds in jazz, Born in Newark, N.J., Ike had been a pianist and entertainer before taking up tenor in 1940. He progressed rapidly and among his early affiliations were the bands of three outstanding swing trumpters, Roy Eldridge, Hot Lips Page, and Frank Newton. At the time of the first of his recordings for Blue Note (his debut as leader), he was featured with Cab Calloway's band. (In later years, he was to play a considerable role behind the scenes at Blue Note, working as talent scout, organizer, and assistant a&r man.) His career, ironically, concluded on its highest note, with a series of beautiful albums for this label.

Influenced chiefly by Coleman Hawkins, also by Ben Webster, Quebec's lovely ballad style can be heard on If I Had You, his favorite showpiece, while his caloric up-tempo playing is richly displayed on Indiana. Best of all here, perhaps, is his mature blues playing on Blue Harlem, his most successful single, and one of the most affecting slow blues ever committed to wax. It sounds as fresh and "relevant" today as 25 years ago.

Ike is ably assisted on his outings here, in the main by collegues from the Calloway band. Outstanding is the work of guitarist Tiny Grimes, among Charlie Christian's most gifted disciples. Two great bassists, Oscar Pettiford and Milt Hinton, and the then at his best J. C. Heard on drums contribute mightily, and the contrasting trumpet styles of Jonah Jones (great on If I Had You) and the mellow Buck Clayton are instructive. Trombonist Keg Johnson gets one of his rare solo opportunities, but more is heard from his section mate, Tyree Glenn. Pianist Ram Ramirez, an individualist who never got enough recognition, is fortunately well represented.

The tenors of Ben Webster, Ike's senior, and John Hardee, a contemporary, have one at-bat apiece and come off well. Ben is the star musically, of Limehouse Blues, otherwise featuring Barney Bigard in rather showy displays of expertise and spotting Benny Morton's somber trombone.

Hardee, from Texas, returned to his home state years ago and is still active, mainly as a teacher, in Houston. His time in the spotlight was brief, but tenor fanciers know and remember him as a fine hot player chiefly influenced by Chu Berry, but with his own Texas something. River Edge Rock, in a previously unissued version, is the steamiest track on the LP, swinging from start to finish.

We also hear two samples from Blue Note's only excursion into Ellingtonia proper, a Jimmy Hamilton date with ringers Henderson Chambers, Jimmy Jones, and the great Sid Catlett (also present on River Edge). This is typical Ellington small-band music, which means the best of the genre. Standouts are Ray Nance and Harry Carney, but there are also fine, musicianly solos from the leader and Jones, plus a good, rare plunger by Chambers.

This album, then, is an instructive and enjoyable glimpse of mid-'40's jazz at its best. If the emphasis should be on enjoyable, it is because this was music made for its own sake. And that's how it should be heard.

—Dan Morgenstern
Editor, Down Beat

1998 Blue Note Swingtets CD Notes

The music heard on this disc reflects the brief flirtation Blue Note (which is to say, the label's founder, Alfred Lion) and swing (which is to say, the style subsequently labeled "mainstream jazz"). Though the first stage of Blue Note did include some swing-oriented players (trumpeter Frankie Newton and trombonist J.C. Higginbotham, for instance), the main focus was on blues and traditional jazz, and from 1947 on, Blue Note became synonymous with modern jazz trends, though Lion continued to record one of his old-time favorites, the great Sidney Bechet. But from the spring of 1944 to the fall of 1946, swing ruled the Blue Note roost.

This was primarily due to the influence of tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec (1916-63), who not only recorded a number of sessions for Blue Note as a leader but also became a confidant and advisor to Lion and his partner, Frank Wolff. (Quebec's influence extended well beyond the period under survey here; he was to introduce Blue Note to the music of Tadd Dameron, Thelonious Monk and many others, and he himself recorded marvelous music for the label during his final years.)

At the time of these swing sessions, Quebec had recently joined Cab Calloway's band and had become its star soloist. (On the band's studio and air check performances, there's hardly a number without at least a brief Quebec solo spot.) Calloway had a fine band, and Quebec brought many of his colleagues to the studio with him, notably trumpeters Jonah Jones and Shad Collins, trombonists Tyree Glenn and Keg Johnson, bassist Milt Hinton, and Drummer J.C Heard. But Quebec and Lion also drew from the wonderful talent pool of 52nd Street, Harlem and Newark—the latter Quebec's home town.

It was Ike's buddy, guitarist Tiny Grimes, who brought tenorman John Hardee (1918-84) to Blue Note's attention. The Texas-born musician made his mark on the New York scene while stationed near the Big Apple with an Army Airforce band, and then decided to stay, joining Grime's group, which can be heard on our first selections, with ex-Jimmie Lunceford trombone star Trummy Young sitting in. Pianist Marlowe Morris was a protégé of Art Tatum and had appeared in the 'famous film short Jammin' the Blues, and bassist-entertainer Jimmy Butts remained active until his death in 1998. This is good-time "jump" music, more Harlem than 52nd Street, and pointing toward the flavored jazz to come.

Grimes is on hand for Hardee's own date, graced with the presence of master drummer Sid Catlett and his running buddy, bassist John Simmons. Teenaged Sammy Benskin rounds out the cast. Hardee's Party brings the leader's soulful, Chu Berry-inspired tenor to the fore. "Idaho," a Jesse Stone tune then very popular in jazz circles, offers fine, swinging tenor work. "River Edge Rock," from a different Hardee session, retains Big Sid and Benskin, but the guitar work is by Jimmy Shirley, a distinctive stylist often used by Lion. Hardee's in top form on this fast blues, superbly backed by Catlett.

Quebec's debut date provided Blue Note with one of its rare hits—by independent jazz label standards. This was "Blue Harlem," a slow, groovy blues—a classic of its kind. Grimes is in hand again, as is Ike's piano favorite in those days, Roger "Ram" Ramirez Both these gentlemen solo in "Tiny's Exercise" (from the guitarist's Tatum Trio days), a catchy riff number properly propelled by the Messrs. Hinton and Heard. These two remain on board for "Sweethearts On Parade," joined by the legendary guitarist Napoleon "Snags" Allen and Calloway pianist Dave Rivera. A daring choice for a tenorman — Chu Berry had nailed this tune on a Lionel Hampton date in 1939 — but Ike comes through with some stomping stuff of his own.

Calloway hornmen Jones and Glenn and the great bassist Oscar Pettiford are the new faces on "If I Had You," with ballad work by all three horns (Jonah offers one of his patented "glisses"). It's Buck Clayton and Keg Johnson on "l Surrender Dear" and "Topsy" in the horn department, with yet another great bassist, Grachan Moncur of Savoy Sultans fame. Fine soloing all around: hear Ramirez on the ballad, Grimes on the Eddie Durham-Basie classic, and all three horns on both, with Quebec's "Surrender" cadenza a knockout. Two unrelated Collinses, trumpeter Shad (of Teddie Hill and Basie fame) and guitarist John (later with Nat King Cole), are the new men here, and Milt Hinton's back and featured on his own "Basically Blue" (from the Calloway repertory), from a day when bass solo showcases were still a relative rarity. This also spots Keg (Budd Johnson's brother, and a very underrated man) and the leader (who could sound a lot like Don Byas at times). "Zig Billion," a Quebec blues line, spots both the Collinses, both in good form, some Basie stuff from the rhythm team, and then another helping of that straightforward, warm and sincere Quebec tenor.

Ellingtonians are to the fore on our next two sessions. Two of them grace trombonist Benny Morton's team: clarinetist Barney Bigard and tenor king Ben Webster. Pianist Benskin's again on hand, there's yet another boss bass, Israel Crosby, and the drum chair is occupied by the worthy Eddie Dougherty, a Café Society regular. "The Sheik," even then a vintage number, opens with Morton's smooth and always-in-tune trombone. This big band veteran (Fletcher Henderson, Basie, Benny Carter) could always be counted on to deliver Benskin's been hearing bop, Bigard is his flowing self, and Ben cops honors, gruff and swinging. The horn fours are kicks. "Conversing in Blue" is one of those Blue Note special excursions on slow blues in a 1 2-inch 78 format, allowing the players more elbow room and relaxation. Morton's heard twice, first open, then muted with Bigard, whose beautiful tone is much in evidence. But once again, Ben who takes the prize — he was peerless is the blues, and always had a story to tell, straight from that big heart.

Jimmy Hamilton was Bigard's permanent replacement in the Ellington band. Joining in 1942, he stuck around for 25 years, doubling tenor and supplying plenty of arrangements to the book, many of them uncredited. His clarinet style was inspired by Benny Goodman (he had the technique to bring it off) and his tenor was contrastingly gutty and blues-based. This was his first date as a leader, and he brought with him some distinguished Ducal colleagues: Harry Carney and Otto Hardwick from the reed section, Ray Nance from the brasses, and Oscar Pettiford from the rhythm, the latter joined up-and-coming Jimmy Jones on piano and nonpareil Mr. Catlett, a Blue Note regular. The ringer among the horns is Henderson Chambers, a fine, unsung trombonist who was then in Edmond Hall's Café Society band.

More writing here than customary at Blue Note, but these cats could cut a chart with the best of them, and Hamilton's quite sophisticated scores come off well. "Blues For Clarinets" shows off Carney's and section-leader Hardwick's prowess on the "licorice stick," and both brassman have soulful statements. Carney takes his solo spot on baritone; to this day, no one has come close to matching the majestic sound! "Slapstick" is definitely vintage 1945; Hamilton is clearly no stranger to the harmonic experiments then au courant in jazz. This fast blues with altered changes has some tricky ensemble passages, always underpinned by Pettiford and especially Catlett, who's in there at all times. "Blues In My Music Room" is Dukish in hues, with fine Carney, Hamilton, Nance and Chambers solos, A notable debut for the elegant Mr. Hamilton, and yet another chapter in Blue Note's love affair with the blues — in all its guises.

—Dan Morgenstern