Roy Ayers - West Coast Vibes (1963) [2011 Jazz名盤 999 Best & More] CD-Rip

A holy grail of jazz – Roy Ayers' first album as a leader, and a near-lost session that's simply sublime! The record was cut at the same time that Roy was working in LA with pianist Jack Wilson – and it's got an approach that's a bit similar to some of the Wilson/Ayers sessions for Atlantic, Blue Note, and Vault – but with a marked difference here in the presence of Curtis Amy, who plays some incredible tenor and soprano sax on the session – arcing out over the modal lines set up by the vibes and piano, and shading in the record with a much deeper sense of soul! Amy plays on about half the album's tracks – all of which are standout modal tunes that preface the MPS/Saba sound by a number of years, and which we'd easily rank as some of the greatest jazz recorded anywhere in the 60s.

And even the tracks without Amy are great too – and have Roy echoing out with a wonderfully round tone on the vibes – no tricks, no gimmicks, no attempt to cross over to commercial jazz – just a brilliant tone and fresh vision on his instrument for the time. Wilson's great too (but when is he not?) – and rhythm is by either Bill Plummer or Victor Gaskin on bass, and either Tony Bazley or Kenny Dennis on drums. Titles include "Sound & Sense", "Ricardo's Dilemma", "Out Of Sight", "Young & Foolish", "Reggie Of Chester", and "Days Of Wine & Roses".

Tracks:

01 - Sound And Sense
02 - Days Of Wine And Roses
03 - Reggie Of Chester
04 - It Could Happen To You
05 - Donna Lee
06 - Ricardo's Dilemma
07 - Romeo
08 - Out Of Sight
09 - Young And Foolish
10 - Well You Needn't

Personnel:

Roy Ayers: vibes
Curtis Amy: tenor sax, soprano sax
Jack Wilson: piano
Bill Plummer: bass
Victor Gaskin: bass
Tony Bazley: drums
Kenny Dennis: drums