Bart Jacobs & Les Muffatti - Concertos for Organ and Strings (1958/1975) [Reissue / Vinyl]

The tuba has played a role in jazz from the music’s earliest days. It provided bass lines in early jazz until the string bass took over that function. Indeed, there was a transitional period during which bassists were expected to to play both instruments. Rarely employed during the big band era, the tuba became prominent again in the late Forties as a member of the Miles Davis "Birth of the Cool" ensemble. In the mid-Fifties, young Ray Draper was determined to make the ungainly instrument a solo voice in modern jazz. He did so with the help and guidance of John Coltrane, who graced this, Draper’s second Prestige album, with his enthusiastic participation on tenor saxophone. Three of the six compositions are Draper’s, with one by Sonny Rollins, one by Ray Noble, and the unusual popular song, "Under Paris Skies," by Hubert Giraud.

with Gil Coggins, Spanky De Brest, Larry Ritchie

Ray Draper: tuba;
John Coltrane: tenor sax;
Gil Coggins: piano;
Spanky De Brest: bass;
Larry Ritchie: drums.