Cleo Laine & The Johnny Dankworth Seven - Get Happy (1951)

Great early work from John Dankworth – a name you might recognize from later soundtracks and large group recordings of the 60s – but who works here with energy that's a lot more bop-influenced overall! The group's a septet, with the great Jimmy Deuchar on trumpet, alongside Dankworth's alto – and other players include Eddie Harvey on trombone, Don Rendell on tenor, Bill LeSage on piano, and Tony Crombie on drums. Vocalist Cleo Laine joins the group on a few tracks – making for some very early appearances with Dankworth, in a relationship that would continue for decades – both in and away from the studio. Titles include "Leon Bismark", "Mr & Mississippi", "Lush Life", "Marching Through Georgia", "Sin", "Strictly Confidential", "Seven Not Out", "The Wedding Of The Painted Doll", and "Lament & Wild Dance.

Tracks:

01. LEON BISMARCK (Dankworth) (3:26)
02. MR AND MISSISSIPI (Gordon) (3:34)
03. GET HAPPY (from The Nine-Fifteen Revue, 1930) (Arlen and Koehler) (3:34)
04. SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME (from Oh, Kay, 1926) (G & I Gershwin) (3:15)
05. MARCHING THROUGH GEORGIA (arranged by Dankworth) (2:56)
06. LUSH LIFE (Strayhorn) (2:56)
07. THE WEDDING OF THE PAINTED DOLL (from The Broadway Melody) (Brown and Freed) (2:40)
08. LAMENT and WILD DANCE (from The Conway Suite) (Dankworth) (3:00)
09. CHEROKEE (from Jam Session) (Noble) (2:36)
10. THE VERY THOUGHT OF YOU (from Young man with a horn) (Noble) (3:28)
11. SEVEN NOT OUT (Dankworth) (2:52)
12. THE HAUNTED BALLROOM (theme) (Toye) (3:17)
13. STOMPIN’ AT THE SAVOY (Sampson, Goodman and Webb) (3:09)
14. SIN (Shull and Hoven) (2:50)
15. STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL (Powell and Fuller) (3:07)
16. THE BELLE OF THE BALL (Anderson) (3:36)