Russ Garcia - Wigville (1955) [2014 Bethlehem Album Collection 1000]

Pure genius from Russ Garcia – one of our favorite arrangers of the 50s, and one of the few who could be modern, swinging, and surprisingly soulful at the same time! The set features Garcia's Wigville Band – a mid 50s ensemble that featured the leading lights of the west coast scene, arranged in a style that had plenty of the tight counterpoint of the time, but which also broke out in these amazingly expressive solos.

Charlie Mariano, Bill Holman, and Jimmy Giuffre all get some key moments in on these sides – blowing beautifully in a very small amount of space, but packing some tremendous meaning into their well-crafted solos. Tunes include "Smogville", "The Lonely One", "Rock Road", "Wigville", "Butter Duck", "Then The Lid Blew Off", and "Love Row".


Tracks:

01 - Rocky Road
02 - Floating
03 - Butter Duck
04 - Mellow Bone
05 - Wigville
06 - Smogville
07 - Livin' It Up
08 - Tone Row
09 - Lovely One
10 - Then The Lid Blew Off

Personnel:

Conductor – Russ Garcia
Alto Saxophone – Charlie Mariano
Baritone Saxophone – Jimmy Giuffre
Bass – Max Bennett
Drums – Stan Levey
Soprano Saxophone – Russ Cheever
Tenor Saxophone – Bill Holman
Trumpet – Conte Candoli, Pete Condoli