John Graas - The Jazz Studio Complete Sessions (2014)
Artist: John Graas
Title: The Jazz Studio Complete Sessions
Year Of Release: 2014
Label: Plenty Jazz Records
Genre: Jazz
Quality: 320 kbps | FLAC (tracks)
Total Time: 03:39:30
Total Size: 519 mb | 761 mb
WebSite: Album Preview
Tracklist:Title: The Jazz Studio Complete Sessions
Year Of Release: 2014
Label: Plenty Jazz Records
Genre: Jazz
Quality: 320 kbps | FLAC (tracks)
Total Time: 03:39:30
Total Size: 519 mb | 761 mb
WebSite: Album Preview
CD1
01 - John Graas - Tenderly (feat. Joe Newman & Hank Jones)
02 - John Graas - Let's Split (feat. Joe Newman & Hank Jones)
CD2
01 - John Graas - Laura (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
02 - John Graas - Here Come the Lions (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
03 - John Graas - Paycheck (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
04 - John Graas - Graas Point (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
05 - John Graas - Darn That Dream (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
06 - John Graas - Do It Again (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Marty Paich)
CD3
01 - John Graas - Mulliganesque (feat. Gerry Mulligan & Marty Paich)
02 - John Graas - My Buddy (feat. Gerry Mulligan)
03 - John Graas - 6-4 & Even (feat. Gerry Mulligan & Marty Paich)
04 - John Graas - Charleston (feat. Zoot Sims, Jimmy Giuffre & Andre Previn)
05 - John Graas - Rogeresque (feat. Marty Paich)
06 - John Graas - Jazz Sections from Symphony No 1 in F Minor- Sonata Allegro (feat. Zoot Sims, Jimmy Giuffre & Andre Previn)
07 - John Graas - Jazz Sections from Symphony No 1 in F Minor- Scherzo (feat. Zoot Sims, Jimmy Giuffre & Andre Previn)
08 - John Graas - Twelfth Street Rag (feat. Marty Paich)
CD4
01 - John Graas - Groove Juice (feat. Herb Geller, Jimmy Giuffre & Shelly Manne)
02 - John Graas - Pink Lady (feat. Buddy Collette, Red Norvo & Shelly Manne)
03 - John Graas - Too Much (feat. Jack Montrose)
04 - John Graas - Ballade for Jeanie (feat. Maynard Ferguson, Jack Montrose & Chico Hamilton)
05 - John Graas - Turk (feat. Shorty Rogers & Chico Hamilton)
06 - John Graas - When You're Near (feat. Ralph Pena & Jack Millman)
07 - John Graas - Tom & Jerry (feat. Ralph Pena, Gerald Wiggins & Jack Millman)
08 - John Graas - So Goes My Love (feat. Ralph Pena, Bill Holman & Jack Millman)
09 - John Graas - Bolero de Mendez (feat. Buddy Collette, Jimmy Giuffre, Herb Geller & Pete Rugolo)
10 - John Graas - Just a Pretty Tune (feat. Buddy Collette, Jimmy Giuffre, Red Norvo & Shelly Manne)
11 - John Graas - Cathy Goes South (feat. Buddy Collette, Jack Montrose, Chico Hamilton & Maynard Ferguson)
12 - John Graas - Bambi (feat. Buddy Collette, Jack Montrose & Chico Hamilton)
CD5
01 - John Graas - Cool Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
02 - John Graas - What Am I Here For (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
03 - John Graas - Jazz Club U.S.A. (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
04 - John Graas - I'll Be Around (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
05 - John Graas - Royal Garden Blues (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
06 - John Graas - Nocturne (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
07 - John Graas - South Gonzales Street Parade (feat. Joe Newman, Herbie Mann & Ralph Burns)
CD6
01 - John Graas - Best Thing for You (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
02 - John Graas - Darn That Dream (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
03 - John Graas - Someday Morning Will Come (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
04 - John Graas - I Let a Song Go out of My Heart (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
05 - John Graas - City Talk (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
06 - John Graas - Lobo Nocho (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
07 - John Graas - Shenandoah (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
08 - John Graas - I Love You (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
09 - John Graas - Somewhere Along the Way (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
10 - John Graas - Phipps Quipps (feat. The Amram-Barrow Quartet)
Why isn't John Graas more well-known as a jazz musician? Partly because he spent his time on the West Coast in and out of studio bands, recording infrequently with jazz bands or leading his own sessions. It could also be that his chosen instrument, the French horn, is the awkward kid standing off to the side at the dance as far as jazz instruments go. Or maybe it's because he died at the age of thirty-seven, before he could really put his mark on the scene.
Whatever the reason, Lone Hill Jazz is determined to keep this excellent musician from obscurity. Over the course of six CDs, John Grass's entire output as a leader is once again available, a boon for West Coast jazz fans who may only know of him from a few Shorty Rogers albums.
The first half of the album does not feature Graas at all, but is part of the "Jazz Studio sessions which Graas later became a part of. Therefore, it is included for sake of continuity, and it's a stunner. Recorded in 1953, it features a group a musicians who aren't the most well-known on their instruments, but are capable of turning in a solid performance when surrounded by comparable talent.
Most will snap up this CD for the presence of Johnny Smith, whose recorded output is in short supply beyond The Complete Roost Johnny Smith Small Group Sessions (Mosaic Records, 2003) box set. The first half of the original release features what must surely be one of the longest versions of "Tenderly ever recorded; everyone gets a run through at ballad tempo before kicking up the pace for the second half. "Let's Split is a typical burner that brings out the fire in all the performers. One look at the personnel should be enough to tell you that this one is worth hearing, and it doesn't disappoint; this is small group swing at its finest. A real find.
Sadly, the John Graas session doesn't quite live up to the first. As Tom Mack points out in the liner notes, the West Coast is known for organization, an approach which sometimes leaves the music sounding overly studied and clinical. With Marty Paich, Graas, and even Jimmy Giuffre on board for this 1954 outing, it was perhaps inevitable that the tracks sound overly fussy. Everyone solos well and the ensemble playing takes the best of the big band approach and hones it to a point. It's just that it would be nice for the guys to break a sweat once in a while. The guy who really came to play is Herb Geller, whose passionate, blistering solos are easily the highlight of the record, and among the finest work he's done.
Whatever the reason, Lone Hill Jazz is determined to keep this excellent musician from obscurity. Over the course of six CDs, John Grass's entire output as a leader is once again available, a boon for West Coast jazz fans who may only know of him from a few Shorty Rogers albums.
The first half of the album does not feature Graas at all, but is part of the "Jazz Studio sessions which Graas later became a part of. Therefore, it is included for sake of continuity, and it's a stunner. Recorded in 1953, it features a group a musicians who aren't the most well-known on their instruments, but are capable of turning in a solid performance when surrounded by comparable talent.
Most will snap up this CD for the presence of Johnny Smith, whose recorded output is in short supply beyond The Complete Roost Johnny Smith Small Group Sessions (Mosaic Records, 2003) box set. The first half of the original release features what must surely be one of the longest versions of "Tenderly ever recorded; everyone gets a run through at ballad tempo before kicking up the pace for the second half. "Let's Split is a typical burner that brings out the fire in all the performers. One look at the personnel should be enough to tell you that this one is worth hearing, and it doesn't disappoint; this is small group swing at its finest. A real find.
Sadly, the John Graas session doesn't quite live up to the first. As Tom Mack points out in the liner notes, the West Coast is known for organization, an approach which sometimes leaves the music sounding overly studied and clinical. With Marty Paich, Graas, and even Jimmy Giuffre on board for this 1954 outing, it was perhaps inevitable that the tracks sound overly fussy. Everyone solos well and the ensemble playing takes the best of the big band approach and hones it to a point. It's just that it would be nice for the guys to break a sweat once in a while. The guy who really came to play is Herb Geller, whose passionate, blistering solos are easily the highlight of the record, and among the finest work he's done.