Tag Archives: 1955

Hank Mobley: Hank Mobley Quartet

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In October 1955, “Blue Note” label released “Hank Mobley Quartet”, the debut Hank Mobley album. It was recorded in March 1955, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Hackensack, New Jersey, and was produced by Alfred Lion.

Personnel:

  • Hank Mobley – tenor saxophone
  • Horace Silver – piano
  • Doug Watkins – bass
  • Art Blakey – drums
  • Rudy Van Gelder – recording
  • Reid Miles – design
  • Francis Wolff – photography
  • Eugene St. Jean – liner notes

Track listing:

All tracks by Hank Mobley, except where noted.

  1. Hank’s Prank
  2. My Sin
  3. Avila and Tequila
  4. Walkin’ the Fence
  5. Love for Sale – Cole Porter
  6. Just Coolin’

Kenny Dorham: Afro-Cuban

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In October 1955, “Blue Note” label released “Afro-Cuban”, the second Kenny Dorham studio album. It was recorded January – March 1955, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Hackensack, New Jersey, and was produced by Alfred Lion.

Personnel:

  • Kenny Dorham – trumpet
  • J. J. Johnson – trombone
  • Hank Mobley – tenor saxophone
  • Cecil Payne – baritone saxophone
  • Horace Silver – piano
  • Percy Heath – bass 
  • Oscar Pettiford – bass
  • Art Blakey – drums
  • Carlos “Patato” Valdes – conga
  • Richie Goldberg – cowbell 
  • Rudy Van Gelder – recording
  • Reid Miles – design
  • Francis Wolff – photography
  • Leonard Feather – liner notes

All tracks by Kenny Dorham except where noted.

10″ Vinyl

  1. Afrodisia
  2. Lotus Flower
  3. Minor’s Holiday
  4. Basheer’s Dream – Gigi Gryce

Randy Weston: Get Happy with Randy Weston Trio

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In February 1956, “Riverside” label released “Get Happy with the Randy Weston Trio”, the third Randy Weston album. It was recorded in 1955, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Hackensack, New Jersey, and was produced by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer.

Personnel:

  • Randy Weston – piano
  • Sam Gill – bass
  • Wilbert Hogan – drums

Track listing:

All tracks by Randy Weston, except where noted.

  1. Get Happy – Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler
  2. Fire Down There – traditional
  3. Where Are You? – Harold Adamson, Jimmy McHugh
  4. Under Blunder
  5. Dark Eyes – Florian Hermann
  6. Summertime – George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward
  7. Bass Knows
  8. C Jam Blues – Barney Bigard, Duke Ellington
  9. A Ballad – Sam Gill
  10. Twelfth Street Rag – Euday L. Bowman

Louis Armstrong: Concert at the Crescendo Vol. 1

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On January 21, 1955, “Decca” label released “Concert at the Crescendo Vol. 1”,the seventh Louis Armstrong album. It was recorded in 1954, at “Crescendo Club” in Hollywood.

Personnel:      

  • Louis Armstrong – vocals, trumpet
  • Velma Middleton – vocals
  • Barmey Bigard – clarinet
  • Trummy Young – trombone
  • Billy Kyle – piano
  • Arvell Shaw – double bass
  • Barrett Deems – drums
  • Leonard Feather – liner notes

Track listing:

  1. When It’s Sleepy Time Down South – Clarence Muse, Leon Rene, Otis Rene
  2. Jeeper Creepers – Harry Warren
  3. Tin Roof Blues – Paul Mares, Ben Pollack, Mel Stitzel, George Brunies, Leon Roppolo
  4. My Bucket’s Got a Hole in It – Clarence Williams
  5. Rose Room – Art Hickman
  6. Brother Bill – Louis Armstrong, Bill Cosby
  7. Lazy River – Hoagy Carmichael, Sidney Arodin
  8. T’ain’t What You Do – Melvin “Sy” Oliver, James “Trummy” Young
  9. Perdido – Juan Tizol
  10. Blues for Bass
  11. Don’t Fence Me In – Cole Porter
  12. Stompin’ at the Savoy – Edgar Sampson

J. J. Johnson & Kai Winding: Jay & Kai

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In April 1957, “Columbia” label released “Jay and Kai”, album by J. J. Johnson and Kai Winding. It was recorded in November 1955, July – December 17, 1956, and January 1957 in New York City.

Personnel:

  • J. J. Johnson – trombone, trombonium 
  • Kai Winding – trombone, trombonium
  • Wayne Andre, Carl Fontana – trombone
  • Dick Leib – bass trombone 
  • Bobby Jaspar – tenor saxophone
  • Roy Frazee, Hank Jones, Dick Katz – piano
  • Bill Crow, Percy Heath, Milt Hinton, Kenny O’Brien – bass
  • Kenny Clarke, Jack Franklin, Elvin Jones, Shadow Wilson – drums
  • Candido Camero – bongos

Track listing:

  1. You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To – Cole Porter
  2. Caribe – Kai Winding
  3. Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe – Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg
  4. The Song Is You – Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II
  5. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning – David Mann, Bob Hilliard
  6. Yes, You – Dick Leib
  7. Tromboniums in Motion – J. J. Johnson
  8. How High the Moon – Morgan Lewis, Nancy Hamilton
  9. Violets for Your Furs – Matt Dennis, Tom Adair
  10. Too Close for Comfort – Jerry Bock, George David Weiss, Larry Holofcener
  11. ‘S Wonderful – George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin
  12. I Should Care – Axel Stordahl, Paul Weston, Sammy Cahn

Fats Domino: Rock and Rollin with Fats Domino

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In March 1956, “Imperial” label released “Rock and Rollin’ with Fats Domino”, the debut Fats Domino album. It was recorded 1949 – 1955, and was produced by Bunny Robin.

Personnel:

  • Fats Domino – vocals, piano

Track listing:

All tracks by Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew, except where noted.

  1. The Fat Man
  2. Tired of Crying – Fats Domino
  3. Goin’ Home – Fats Domino, Al Young
  4. You Said You Loved Me
  5. Going to the River
  6. Please Don’t Leave Me – Fats Domino
  7. Rose Mary
  8. All by Myself
  9. Ain’t It a Shame
  10. Poor Me
  11. Bo Weevil
  12. Don’t Blame It on Me

Chuck Berry: After School Session

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In May 1957, “Chess” label released “After School Session”, the debut Chuck Berry album. It was recorded May 1955 – January 1957, in Chicago, Illinois, and was produced by Leonard Chess and Philip Chess.

Personnel:

  • Chuck Berry – vocals, guitar, steel guitar
  • Johnnie Johnson – piano
  • Otis Spann – piano
  • Jimmy Rogers – guitar
  • L. C. Davis – tenor saxophone
  • Jerome Green – maracas
  • Willie Dixon – bass
  • Fred Below – drums
  • Jasper Thomas – drums
  • Ebby Hardy – drums
  • Vartan – art direction
  • Don Snowden – liner notes

Track listing:

All tracks by Chuck Berry.

  1. School Days
  2. Deep Feeling
  3. Too Much Monkey Business
  4. Wee Wee Hours
  5. Roly Poly
  6. No Money Down
  7. Brown Eyed Handsome Man
  8. Berry Pickin’
  9. Together (We Will Always Be)
  10. Havana Moon
  11. Downbound Train
  12. Drifting Heart

Little Richard: Here’s Little Richard

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On March 4, 1957, “Specialty” label released “Here’s Little Richard”, the debut Little Richard album. It was recorded September 1955 – October 1956. In 2003, “Rolling Stone” magazine ranked the album at number 50 on its list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”, and ranked the track “Tutti Frutti” at number 43 on its list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time”.

Personnel:

  • Little Richard (Richard Penniman) – vocals, piano
  • Edgar Blanchard – guitar
  • Frank Fields – bass
  • Earl Palmer – drums
  • Lee Allen – tenor saxophone
  • Alvin “Red” Tyler – baritone saxophone
  • Huey Smith – piano
  • Justin Adams – guitar
  • William “Frosty” Pyles – guitar
  • Roy Montrell – guitar
  • Nathaniel Douglas – guitar
  • Lloyd Lambert – bass
  • Olsie Richard Robinson – bass
  • Oscar Moore – drums
  • Charles Connor – drums
  • Renald Richard – trumpet
  • Clarence Ford – tenor and baritone saxophone
  • Wilbert Smith – tenor saxophone
  • Grady Gaines – tenor saxophone
  • Joe Tillman – tenor saxophone
  • Clifford Burks – tenor saxophone
  • Jewell Grant – baritone saxohone

Track listing:

  1. Tutti Frutti – Richard Penniman, Dorothy LaBostrie, Joe Lubin
  2. True, Fine Mama – Richard Penniman
  3. Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave – Leo Price
  4. Ready Teddy – Robert Blackwell, John Marascalco
  5. Baby – Richard Penniman
  6. Slippin’ and Slidin’ – Richard Penniman, Eddie Bocage, Al Collins, James Smith
  7. Long Tall Sally – Enotris Johnson, Robert Blackwell, Richard Penniman
  8. Miss Ann – Richard Penniman, Enotris Johnson
  9. Oh Why? – Winfield Scott
  10. Rip It Up – Robert Blackwell, John Marascalco
  11. Jenny, Jenny – Enotris Johnson, Richard Penniman
  12. She’s Got It – John Marascalco, Richard Penniman

Duke Jordan: Duke Jordan Trio and Quintet

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In December 1955, “Signal” label released “Duke Jordan Trio and Quintet”, the third Duke Jordan album. It was recorded in October – November 1955, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and was produced by Don Schlitten.

Personnel:

  • Duke Jordan – piano
  • Eddie Bert – trombone 
  • Cecil Payne – baritone saxophone
  • Percy Heath – bass
  • Art Blakey – drums

Track listing:

All tracks by Duke Jordan except where noted.

  1. Forecast
  2. Sultry Eve
  3. They Can’t Take That Away from Me – George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin
  4. A Night in Tunisia – Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Paparelli
  5. Summertime – George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward
  6. Flight to Jordan
  7. Two Lovers
  8. Cu-Ba – Cecil Payne
  9. Yesterdays – Otto Harbach, Jerome Kern
  10. Scotch Blues

Leseter Young and Harry Edison: Pres and Sweets

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In December 1955, “Norgran” label released “Pres and Sweets”, an album by Lester Young and Harry Edison, It was recorded in November 1955, at “Radio Recorders” in Hollywood, and was produced by Norman Granz.

Personnel:

  • Lester Young – tenor saxophone
  • Harry Edison – trumpet
  • Oscar Peterson – piano
  • Herb Ellis – guitar
  • Ray Brown – bass
  • Buddy Rich – drums

Track listing:

  1.  Mean to Me – Fred E. Ahlert, Roy Turk
  2. Red Boy Blues – Lester Young
  3. Pennies from Heaven – Arthur Johnston, Johnny Burke
  4. That’s All – Alan Brandt, Bob Haymes
  5. One O’Clock Jump – Count Basie
  6. She’s Funny That Way – Neil Moret, Richard A. Whiting