Retro Reviews

Of the hundreds of concerts we may attend in our lifetimes, the ones we remember best are the ones with stories attached. Usually, the stories are exaggerated over time…unless the concert was recorded. In this month’s Retro Review, Thomas Cunniffe reviews newly issued vintage concerts by Ella Fitzgerald, Dave Brubeck, Charles Mingus, and Oscar Peterson, each attached to a unique story.

Roy Eldridge and Norman Granz first met in 1942. Eldridge was already a star but Granz was still living on limited means. A few years later, Granz bolstered Eldridge’s stature by featuring him in concerts and recordings. In this Retro Review, Thomas Cunniffe examines a seminal collection of 4 collaborations between Eldridge and Oscar Peterson, produced by Granz, from a classic double-LP compilation, “Dale’s Wail”.

This issue’s Retro Review covers three new discoveries, including a pair of highly interactive duo concerts by Roy Hargrove and Mulgrew Miller, three Seattle nightclub sets from the 1960s by Harold Land, and the recording debut of Sheila Jordan. Thomas Cunniffe reviews these instant classics.

The four albums spotlighted in this month’s Retro Review offer new insights into the music of Dave Brubeck, Ella Fitzgerald, Charles Mingus and Sonny Rollins. Each recording adds previously unissued music which help to fill gaps in their legacy. Thomas Cunniffe highlights these important recordings.

It was hot in the summer of 1960, but it wasn’t all due to the weather. Civil Rights was a regular topic on the evening news. With racial inequality still part of our daily lives in 2020, Thomas Cunniffe felt that it was appropriate to re-examine Charles Mingus’ explosive concert at Antibes from July 1960, featuring Ted Curson, Eric Dolphy, Booker Ervin, Dannie Richmond and special guest Bud Powell.

Lennie Tristano and Lee Konitz were constantly grouped together because of their decades-long association: first as teacher and pupil, then as leader and sideman. It may seem surprising that they never made a duet recording together, but soon after their last gig together, both men started an album of duets…with other musicians. In this Retro Review, Thomas Cunniffe discusses the classic “Lee Konitz Duets” and the new Tristano release “Duo Sessions”.

In addition to being one of the world’s greatest popular vocalists, Nat King Cole was also an important jazz pianist in the years between swing and bebop. Many of Cole’s earliest recordings were made for radio transcription companies rather than commercial labels, but that didn’t stop Cole from leaving a group of recordings that showed his development as both an instrumentalist and a vocalist. A new set from Resonance collects 183 tracks recorded between 1936 and 1943, and reviewer Thomas Cunniffe notes that modern listeners will be able to hear stylistic developments and artistic breakthroughs that the original audiences probably missed.

It’s amazing what treasures can be found within a record company vault. In this month’s Retro Review, Thomas Cunniffe discusses two double-CD sets of previously unreleased 1960s recordings by a pair of iconic tenor saxophonists. “Getz at the Gate” is a 1961 live date with Stan Getz at his most aggressive (powered by the phenomenal Roy Haynes), and “Grits, Beans and Greens” presents two contrasting recording sessions led by Tubby Hayes.

This issue’s Retro Review tells of two superb vocalists whose careers took different paths in the late 80s and early 90s. Lisa Rich was a rising singer with a new album ready for release when health problems sidelined her career. Betty Carter was at the zenith of her career, and was celebrated in a career retrospective at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The recordings have received belated releases, and Thomas Cunniffe discusses both in this essay.