Lou Donaldson At His Best
Encyclopedia
Lou Donaldson At His Best is an album by jazz
saxophonist Lou Donaldson
recorded for the Cadet
label in 1966 and performed by Donaldson with Herman Foster
, Sam Jones, Leo Morris, and Richard Landrum.
The album was awarded 3 stars in an Allmusic review by Jason Ankeny who states "The title At His Best portends some kind of career overview, but in fact it's an all new session heralding the end of Lou Donaldson's tenure with the Cadet label. Moreover, it comes nowhere close to capturing the saxophonist at his most potent, settling for a rigid, disappointingly straightforward soul-jazz approach with few sparks of energy".
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
saxophonist Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson is a jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Badin, North Carolina. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker.His first recordings were...
recorded for the Cadet
Cadet Records
Cadet Records was started as Argo Records in 1955 as the jazz subsidiary of Chess Records. Argo changed its name in 1965 to Cadet to avoid confusion with the similarly named label in the UK...
label in 1966 and performed by Donaldson with Herman Foster
Herman Foster
Herman Foster was an American bebop jazz pianist.He began his musical career early playing the violin, clarinet, saxophone, and piano. He became a self-taught pianist. His family moved to New York City in 1947 where he began to attend jam sessions and then played with Eric Dixon, Dick Carter and...
, Sam Jones, Leo Morris, and Richard Landrum.
The album was awarded 3 stars in an Allmusic review by Jason Ankeny who states "The title At His Best portends some kind of career overview, but in fact it's an all new session heralding the end of Lou Donaldson's tenure with the Cadet label. Moreover, it comes nowhere close to capturing the saxophonist at his most potent, settling for a rigid, disappointingly straightforward soul-jazz approach with few sparks of energy".
Track listing
- All compositions by Lou Donaldson except as indicated
- "Win, Lose or Draw"
- "TangerineTangerine (1941 song)"Tangerine" is a popular song.The music was written by Victor Schertzinger, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The song was published in 1941.It was introduced in the 1942 movie, The Fleet's In, produced by Paramount Pictures, directed by Schertzinger, and starring Dorothy Lamour, William Holden, Eddie...
" (Johnny MercerJohnny MercerJohn Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
, Victor SchertzingerVictor SchertzingerVictor L. Schertzinger was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include Paramount on Parade , Something to Sing About with James Cagney, and the first two "Road" pictures Road to Singapore and Road to Zanzibar...
) - "Blues No. 3"
- "Wig Blues"
- "Day by DayDay by Day (song)"Day by Day" is a popular song with music by Axel Stordahl and Paul Weston and lyrics by Sammy Cahn.-Recorded versions:*Ernestine Anderson*Ray Anthony*Shirley Bassey*Les Brown & His Orchestra *Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Sextet...
" (Sammy CahnSammy CahnSammy Cahn was an American lyricist, songwriter and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area...
, Axel StordahlAxel StordahlAxel Stordahl was an arranger who was active from the late 1930s through the 1950s. He is perhaps best known for his work with Frank Sinatra in the 1940s at Columbia Records...
, Paul WestonPaul WestonPaul Weston was an American pianist, arranger, composer and conductor. Weston was born Paul Wetstein in Springfield, Massachusetts...
) - "Greasy Papa"
- "Be Anything (but Be Mine)Be Anything (but Be Mine)"Be Anything " is a popular song. It was written by Irving Gordon and was published in 1952.The recording by Eddy Howard was released by Mercury Records as catalog number 5815...
" (Irving GordonIrving GordonIrving Gordon was an American songwriter.-Biography:Irving Gordon was born in Brooklyn, New York. As a child, he studied violin, and after attending public schools in New York City, went to work in the Catskill Mountains at some of the resort hotels in the area...
)- Recorded in NYC on August 30, 1966.
Personnel
- Lou DonaldsonLou DonaldsonLou Donaldson is a jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Badin, North Carolina. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker.His first recordings were...
- alto saxophoneAlto saxophoneThe alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions... - Herman FosterHerman FosterHerman Foster was an American bebop jazz pianist.He began his musical career early playing the violin, clarinet, saxophone, and piano. He became a self-taught pianist. His family moved to New York City in 1947 where he began to attend jam sessions and then played with Eric Dixon, Dick Carter and...
- pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal... - Sam Jones - bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
- Leo Morris - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Richard Landrum - congas