Listening Room – “Sugar”

Sugar

Stanley Turrentine – “Sugar”

Stanley Turrentine – “Impressions”

Stanley Turrentine – “Sugar (Live)”

From “Sugar” : 1970 : CTI 6005

“Sugar” was Stanley Turrentine’s debut recording for CTI, a label for whom he would go on to record a string of fantastic albums.  The original album only contained three tracks, while the out-of-print 1991 CD reissue added on a bonus live track of the title track (included here) which is a killer take on the album version that adds Johnny Hammond, Hubert Laws and Billy Cobham to the band [recorded at the Southgate Palace in Los Angeles in 1971].  The whole album is a showcase for Turrentine’s smoldering soul jazz saxophone sound, while Freddie Hubbard (who would record a few masterpieces for CTI) and George Benson are also in top form.  The band’s take on Coltrane’s Impressions closed out the original LP in fine fashion with the players firing on all cylinders.

Players:
Stanley Turrentine – Tenor Sax
Freddie Hubbard – Trumpet
Hubert Laws – Flute (Live track only)
Lonnie Liston Smith – Electric Piano
Johnny Hammond – Electric Piano (Live track only)
George Benson – Guitar
Butch Cornell – Organ
Ron Carter – Bass
Richard “Pablo” Landrum – Congas
Billy Kaye – Drums
Billy Cobham – Drums (Live track only)

From “Sunday Night”, 1989.  Stanley Turrentine – Sax, Hiram Bullock – Guitar, Philippe Saisse – Keys, Don Alias – Percussion, Tom Barney – Bass, J.T. Lewis, Drums.

Listening Room – “Brother Jack McDuff Live!”

mcdufflive1

Brother Jack McDuff – “Rock Candy”

Brother Jack McDuff – Dink’s Blues”

From “Brother Jack McDuff Live!” : 1963 : Prestige PRLP 7274

A compilation of 2 classic McDuff albums from the early 1960′s, this is Hammond B-3 jazz at it’s best.  The album features a very young George Benson on guitar (this was one of his first appearances on record) and a young Harold Vick who would go on to make some great soul-jazz records of his own.

Players:
Jack McDuff – Organ
Red Holloway – Tenor Sax, Flute
Harold Vick – Tenor Sax
George Benson – Guitar
Joe Dukes – Drums

Listening Room – “Alligator Boogaloo”

Lou Donaldson – “Alligator Boogaloo”

Lou Donaldson – “Aw Shucks!”

From “Alligator Boogaloo” : 1967 : Blue Note Records

A soul-jazz monster from 1967, Lou Donaldson continued his string of popular records for Blue Note with this release. Alligator Boogaloo brought together a trio of very young players who would go on to have great careers: George Benson on Guitar, Lonnie Smith (still going strong today as Dr. Lonnie Smith) and a fella known at the time as Leo Morris who would later become the soul-jazz master drummer Idris Muhammad.

Players:
Lou Donaldson – Alto Sax
Melvin Lastin, Sr. – Trumpet
George Benson – Guitar
Lonnie Smith – B3 Organ
Leo Morris (Idris Muhammad) – Drums