Manny Albam

WEST SIDE STORY & STEVE'S SONGS (2 LP ON 1 CD)

 

Personnel:

Ernie Royal, Joe Newman, Art Farmer (tp), Jimmy Cleveland (tb), Bob Brookmeyer, Bob Enevoldsen (vtb), Gene Quill (cl, as), Frank Socolow, Al Cohn (ts), Hank Jones, Dick Katz (p), Milt Hinton (b), Osie Johnson (d)

 

Reference: FSRCD 545

 

In the late 40s Emmanuel (Manny) Albam put away his baritone saxophone because it was getting in the way of his pen. From then on, he established himself firmly as one of the most skilled, perhaps the busiest, of all the freelance arrangers on the New York scene. Although he worked with great success in the pop field, he was usually associated with jazz. His originals for Basie, Herman, Gibbs, Ferguson, and other big bands are as familiar as the many remarkable LPs listed under his own name.

 

With "West Side Story", Albam achieved one of his greatest works. Most of the material is emotionally charged and moody, but the precise execution of Albams inspired arrangements, along with superbly apt solos, injected considerably more jazz life into Bernsteins provocative score. "Steves Songs", the second album on this CD, illustrates how unpretentiously Mannys arrangements married swing to function. Tasty.

 

 

Tracklisting:

01. Prologue And Jet Song

(Bernstein-Sondheim) (4:57)

02. Somethings Coming

(Bernstein-Sondheim) (3:34)

03. Cool (Bernstein-Sondheim) (4:38)

04. Maria (Bernstein-Sondheim) (3:19)

05. Tonight (Bernstein-Sondheim) (5:48)

06. I Feel Pretty (Bernstein-Sondheim) (3:30)

07. Somewhere (Bernstein-Sondheim) (2:27)

08. Finale Medley, Part 1

(Bernstein-Sondheim) (2:19)

-America

-Cool

-Jet Song

-Somethings Coming

09. Finale Medley, Part 2

(Bernstein-Sondheim) (2:39)

-One Hand, One Heart

-Somewhere

-Cool

-I Feel Pretty

10. Mister Moon (Steve Allen) (2:38)

11. South Dakota (Steve Allen) (2:47)

12. An Old Piano Plays The Blues

(Steve Allen) (3:12)

13. Spring Is Where You Are (Steve Allen) (3:06)

14. Indubitably (Steve Allen) (2:56)

15. There She Goes (Steve Allen) (2:22)

16. Youre The One For Me (Steve Allen) (3:00)

17. Spring In Maine (Steve Allen) (2:40)

18. I Guess I Never Had A Chance

(Steve Allen) (3:20)

19. Baby (Steve Allen) (3:28)

20. Thats What They Always Say

(Steve Allen) (3:03)

21. Monday (Steve Allen) (3:07)

 

Total time: 69:23 min.

 

Sources:

Tracks #1-9, from the 12" album

"Manny Albam And His Jazz Greats Play Music

from the Broadway Musical West Side Story"

(Coral CRL 57207)

 

Tracks #10-21, from the 12" album

"Steve's Songs" (DOT DLP 29008)

 

Personnel on "West Side Story":

Bernie Glow, Ernie Royal, Joe Newman, Al DeRisi, Nick Travis (tp), Jim Dahl, Tom Mitchell, Jimmy Cleveland, Jim Dahl, Chauncey Welsh, (tb), Bob Enevoldsen (vtb), Gene Quill (cl, as), Frank Socolow, Eddie Wasserman, Al Cohn (ts), Sol Schlinger (bars), Eddie Costa (vb), Hank Jones (p), Milt Hinton, Wendell Marshall (b) and Osie Johnson (d). Manny Albam (arr).

 

Recorded in New York City, on October 10, 1957

 

 

Personnel on "Steve's Songs":

Bernie Glow, Ernie Royal, Nick Travis, Art Farmer (tp), Jim Dahl, Tom Mitchell, Dick Hixson (tb), Bob Brookmeyer (vtb), Gene Quill (as), Al Cohn, Frank Socolow (ts), Gene Allen (bs), Dick Katz (p), Eddie Costa (vb), Milt Hinton, Joe Benjamin (b) and Osie Johnson (d). Manny Albam (arr).

 

Recorded in New York City, on July 29, 1958

 

Produced for CD release by Jordi Pujol