Tag Archives: Melba Liston

Elvis Jones: And Then Again

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In October 1965, “Atlantic” label released “And Then Again”, the sixth Elvin Jones album. It was recorded February – March 1965, and was produced by Nesuhi Ertegun.

Personnel:

  • Elvin Jones – drums
  • Frank Wess – tenor saxophone, flute
  • Charles Davis – baritone saxophone
  • Thad Jones – cornet
  • J.J. Johnson – trombone 
  • Don Friedman – piano
  • Hank Jones – piano
  • Paul Chambers – bass
  • Art Davis – bass
  • Melba Liston – arranger, conductor
  • Phil Lehle – engineer
  • Tom Dowd – engineer
  • Burt Goldblatt – design
  • Arif Mardin – supervision

Track listing:

  1. Azan – Charles Davis
  2. All Deliberate Speed – Melba Liston
  3. Elvin Elpus – Melba Liston
  4. Soon After – Jodora Marshall
  5. Forever Summer – Thad Jones
  6. Len Sirrah – Melba Liston
  7. And Then Again – Elvin Jones

Shirley Scott: Roll ‘Em: Shirley Scott Plays the Big Bands

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In August 1966, “Impulse!” label released “Roll ‘Em: Shirley Scott Plays the Big Bands”, the 30th Shirley Scott album. It was recorded in April 1966, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and was produced by Bob Thiele.

Personnel:

  • Shirley Scott – organ
  • Oliver Nelson – arrangements, conductor 
  • Jerry Dodgion, Phil Woods – alto saxophone 
  • Bob Ashton, Jerome Richardson – tenor saxophone
  • Danny Bank – baritone saxophone 
  • Thad Jones, Joe Newman, Jimmy Nottingham, Ernie Royal, Clark Terry – trumpet 
  • Quentin Jackson, Melba Liston, Tom McIntosh – trombone 
  • Paul Faulise – bass trombone
  • Attila Zoller – guitar 
  • Richard Davis, George Duvivier – double bass
  • Ed Shaughnessy, Grady Tate – drums
  • Rudy Van Gelder – engineer

Track listing:

  1. Roll ‘Em – Mary Lou Williams
  2. For Dancers Only – Don Raye, Sy Oliver, Vic Schoen
  3. Sophisticated Swing – William Hudson, Mitchell Parish
  4. Sometimes I’m Happy – Irving Caesar, Vincent Youmans
  5. Little Brown Jug – Joseph Winner
  6. Stompin’ at the Savoy – Edgar Sampson
  7. Ain’t Misbehavin’ – Thomas “Fats” Waller, Harry Brooks, Andy Razaf
  8. A-Tisket, A-Tasket – Van Alexander, Ella Fitzgerald
  9. Things Ain’t What They Used to Be – Mercer Ellington
  10. Tippin’ In – Robert Smith, Marty Symes

Randy Weston: Highlife

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In August 1963, “Colpix” label released “Highlife” (full title Music from the New African Nations featuring the Highlife), the 14th Randy Weston album. It was recorded in April 1963, at “Webster Hall” in New York City, and was produced by Jack Lewis.

Personnel:

  • Randy Weston – piano
  • Budd Johnson – soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
  • Booker Ervin – tenor saxophone
  • Ray Copeland – trumpet, flugelhorn
  • Jimmy Cleveland, Quentin Jackson – trombone
  • Julius Watkins – French horn
  • Aaron Bell – tuba
  • Peck Morrison – bass
  • Charlie Persip – drums
  • Frankie Dunlop – drums, percussion
  • Archie Lee – congas, percussion
  • George Young – percussion
  • Melba Liston – arrangements

Track listing

All tracks by Randy Weston, except where noted.

  1. Caban Bamboo Highlife
  2. Niger Mambo – Bobby Benson
  3. Zulu
  4. In Memory Of
  5. Congolese Children
  6. Blues to Africa
  7. Mystery of Love – Guy Warren

Dinnah Washington: Newport 58

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In July 1958, “EmArcy” label released “Newport ’58”, the ninth Dinnah Washington album. It was recorded in July 1958, at the “Newport Jazz Festival”, in Newport, Rhode Island, and was produced by Jack Tracy.

Personnel:

  • Dinah Washington – vocals, vibraphone
  • Harold Ousley – tenor saxophone
  • Sahib Shihab – baritone saxophone
  • Blue Mitchell – trumpet
  • Melba Liston – trombone, arrangements
  • Urbie Green – trombone
  • Terry Gibbs – vibraphone
  • Don Elliott – vibraphone, mellophone
  • Wynton Kelly – piano
  • Paul West – bass
  • Max Roach – drums

Track listing:

  1. Lover, Come Back to Me – Sigmund Romberg, Oscar Hammerstein II
  2. Backwater Blues – Bessie Smith
  3. Crazy Love – Sammy Cahn, Phil Tuminello
  4. All of Me – Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons
  5. Backstage Blues (instrumental) – Don Elliott, Terry Gibbs, Urbie Green
  6. Julie and Jake (instrumental) – Terry Gibbs

Oliver Nelson: Afro/American Sketches

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In February 1962, “Prestige” label released “Afro/American Sketches”, the ninth Oliver Nelson album. It was recorded September – November 1961, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

Personnel:

  • Oliver Nelson – arranger, alto and tenor saxophone, liner notes
  • Eric Dixon – tenor saxophone, flute
  • Bob Ashton – tenor saxophone, flute, clarinet
  • Jerry Dodgion – alto saxophone, flute
  • Joe Newman, Clyde Reasinger, Jerry Kail, Ernie Royal, Joe Wilder – trumpet
  • Billy Byers, Paul Faulise, Urbie Green, Britt Woodman, Melba Liston – trombone
  • Ray Alonge, Jim Buffington, Julius Watkins – French horn
  • Don Butterfield – tuba
  • Peter Makas, Charles McCracken – violoncello
  • Patti Bown – piano
  • Art Davis – bass
  • Ed Shaughnessy – drums
  • Ray Barretto – congas, bongos
  • Rudy Van Gelder – recording, lacquer cut
  • Edmond Edwards – supervision

Track listing:

All tracks by Oliver Nelson.

  1. Message
  2. Jungleaire
  3. Emancipation Blues
  4. There’s a Yearnin’
  5. Going Up North
  6. Disillusioned
  7. Freedom Dance

Quincy Jones: Quintessence

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In February 1962, “Impulse!” label released “The Quintessence”, album by Quincy Jones and his Orchestra album (the eleventh Quincy Jones album overall). It was recorded November – December 1961, at “Capitol Studios” in New York City, and was produced by Bob Thiele.

Personnel:

  • Phil Woods, Oliver Nelson, Eric Dixon, Frank Wess, Jerome Richardson – saxophone
  • Ernie Royal, Snooky Young, Freddie Hubbard, Al Derisi, Snooky Young, Joe Newman, Thad Jones, Jerome Kail, Clyde Reasinger, Clark Terry – trumpet
  • Billy Byers, Curtis Fuller, Thomas Mitchell, Melba Liston, Billy Byers, Paul Faulise, Rodney Levitt – trombone
  • Julius Watkins, James Buffington, Earl Chapin, Ray Alonge – French horn
  • Harvey Phillips – tuba
  • Gloria Agostini – harp
  • Patricia Bown – piano
  • Bobby Scott – piano
  • George Catlett – bass
  • Milt Hinton – bass
  • James Johnson – drums
  • Bill English – drums
  • Stu Martin – drums
  • Frank Abbey – engineer
  • Bob Arnold – engineer
  • Robert Flynn – design
  • Pete Turner – cover photography
  • Jack Bradley – liner photography
  • Lena Horn – liner notes
  • Lennie Hayton – liner notes

Track listing:

  1. The Quintessence – Quincy Jones
  2. Robot Portrait – Billy Byers
  3. Little Karen – Benny Golson
  4. Straight, No Chaser – Thelonious Monk
  5. For Lena and Lennie – Quincy Jones
  6. Hard Sock Dance – Quincy Jones
  7. Invitation – Bronisław Kaper, Paul Francis Webster
  8. The Twitch – Billy Byers

Randy Weston: Uhuru Afrika

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In April 1961, “Roulette” label released “Uhuru Afrika”, the thirteenth Randy Weston album. It was recorded in November 1960, at “Bell Sound Studios” in New York City, and was produced by Teddy Reig. The album features lyrics and liner notes by the poet Langston Hughes and was banned in South Africa in 1964.

Personnel:

  • Randy Weston – piano
  • Clark Terry – trumpet, flugelhorn
  • Benny Bailey, Richard Williams, Freddie Hubbard – trumpet
  • Slide Hampton, Jimmy Cleveland, Quentin Jackson – trombone
  • Julius Watkins – French horn
  • Gigi Gryce – alto saxophone, flute
  • Yusef Lateef – tenor saxophone, flute, oboe
  • Sahib Shihab – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone
  • Budd Johnson – tenor saxophone, clarinet
  • Jerome Richardson – baritone saxophone, piccolo
  • Cecil Payne – baritone saxophone
  • Les Spann – guitar, flute
  • Kenny Burrell – guitar
  • George Duvivier, Ron Carter – bass
  • Max Roach, Charlie Persip – drums, percussion
  • Wilbert Hogan – drums
  • Babatunde Olatunji – percussion
  • Armando Peraza – bongos
  • Candido Camero – congas
  • Martha Flowers, Brock Peters – vocals
  • Tuntemeke Sanga – narrator
  • Melba Liston – arranger

Track listing:

All tracks by Randy Weston, except where noted.

  1. Introduction: Uhuru Kwanza – Langston Hughes
  2. First Movement: Uhuru Kwanza
  3. Second Movement: African Lady – Randy Weston, Langston Hughes
  4. Third Movement: Bantu
  5. Fourth Movement: Kucheza Blues

Blue Mitchell: Heads Up!

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In December 1968, “Blue Note” label released “Heads Up!”, the 14th Blue Mitchell album. It was recorded in November 1967, at “Van Gelder Studio” in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, and was produced by Alfred Lion.

Personnel:

  • Blue Mitchell – trumpet
  • Burt Collins – trumpet
  • Jerry Dodgion – flute, alto saxophone
  • Junior Cook – tenor saxophone
  • Pepper Adams – baritone saxophone
  • Julian Priester – trombone
  • McCoy Tyner – piano
  • Gene Taylor – bass
  • Al Foster – drums
  • Jimmy Heath, Melba Liston, Duke Pearson, Don Pickett – arrangements

Track listing:

  1. Heads Up! Feet Down! – Jimmy Heath
  2. Togetherness – Jimmy Heath
  3. The Folks Who Live on the Hill – Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II
  4. Good Humour Man – Don Pickett
  5. Len Sirrah – Melba Liston
  6. The People in Nassau – Blue Mitchell

Art Blakey: Art Blakey Big Band

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In January 1959, “Bethlehem” label released “Art Blakey Big Band”, the third Art Blakey album. It was recorded in December 1957, in New York City, and was produced by Lee Kraft.

Personnel:

  • Art Blakey – drums
  • Ray Copeland, Bill Hardman, Idrees Sulieman, Donald Byrd – trumpet
  • Frank Rehak, Jimmy Cleveland, Melba Liston – trombone
  • Bill Graham, Sahib Shihab – alto saxophone
  • Al Cohn, John Coltrane – tenor saxophone
  • Bill Slapin – baritone saxophone
  • Walter Bishop, Jr. – piano
  • Wendell Marshall – bass

Track listing:

  1. Midriff – Gerald Valentine
  2. Ain’t Life Grand – Al Cohn
  3. Tippin’ – Donald Byrd
  4. Pristine – John Coltrane
  5. El Toro Valiente – Charles Gambel, Chiefy Salaam
  6. The Kiss of No Return – Charles Gambel, Chiefy Salaam
  7. Late Date – Melba Liston
  8. The Outer World – Al Cohn

Ray Charles: The Genius Of

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In October 1959, “Atlantic” label released “The Genius of Ray Charles”, the seventh Ray Charles album. It was recorded May – June 1959, at “6 West Recording” in New York City, and was produced by Nesuhi Ertegün and Jerry Wexler.

Personnel:

  • Ray Charles – vocals, piano
  • Allen Hanlon – guitar
  • Wendell Marshall – bass guitar
  • Ted Sommer – drums
  • Clark Terry – trumpet
  • Ernie Royal – trumpet
  • Joe Newman – trumpet
  • Snooky Young – trumpet
  • Marcus Belgrave – trumpet
  • John Hunt – trumpet
  • Melba Liston – trombone
  • Quentin Jackson – trombone
  • Thomas Mitchell – trombone
  • Al Grey – trombone
  • Frank Wess – flute
  • Clark Terry – trumpet
  • Ernie Royal – trumpet
  • Joe Newman – trumpet
  • Snooky Young – trumpet
  • Marcus Belgrave – trumpet
  • John Hunt – trumpet
  • Melba Liston – trombone
  • Quentin Jackson – trombone
  • Thomas Mitchell – trombone
  • Al Grey – trombone
  • Bob Brookmeyer – valve trombone
  • Frank Wess – flute, alto and tenor saxophone
  • Marshal Royal – alto saxophone
  • Paul Gonsalves – tenor saxophone
  • Zoot Sims – tenor saxophone
  • Billy Mitchell – tenor saxophone
  • David “Fathead” Newman – tenor saxophone
  • Quincy Jones – arranger, conductor
  • Ernie Wilkins – arrangements
  • Ralph Burns – arrangements
  • Ralph Burns – arrangements
  • Johnny Acea – arrangements
  • Al Cohn – arrangements
  • Harry Lookofsky – concertmaster
  • Bill Schwartau, Tom Dowd – recording
  • Marvin Israel – cover design
  • Lee Friedlander – cover photography
  • Nat Hentoff – sleeve notes

Track listing:

  1. Let the Good Times Roll – Sam Theard, Fleecie Moore
  2. It Had to Be You – Gus Kahn, Isham Jones
  3. Alexander’s Ragtime Band – Irving Berlin
  4. Two Years of Torture – Percy Mayfield, Charles Joseph Morris
  5. When Your Lover Has Gone – Einar Aaron Swan
  6. Deed I Do – Walter Hirsch, Fred Rose
  7. Just for a Thrill – Lil Hardin Armstrong, Don Raye
  8. You Won’t Let Me Go – Bud Allen, Buddy Johnson
  9. Tell Me You’ll Wait for Me – Charles Brown, Oscar Moore
  10. Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Cryin’ – Joe Greene
  11. Am I Blue? – Grant Clarke, Harry Akst
  12. Come Rain or Come Shine – Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen