“Let those other fellows play sixty-thousand notes.
You just play with three with tone.
That makes the difference.”
Russell “Pops” Smith
with advice to a young Benny Webster
What I like about jazz is how multi-dimensional it can be. From Dixieland, Big Band to a small trio playing in a hotel lounge, jazz can stir a swell of emotions from wooing a lover to putting a spring in your step. It can even make you want to kick back after a long day and relax.
When I listen to this Columbia Jazz Masterpiece, “Ben & Sweets” it sounds like two guys taking the time to reflect and for good reason. By the time Ben Webster and Harry “Sweets” Edison met up in New York in 1962 they had a lot to talk about. Webster had already made his mark on lead saxophone in the Duke Ellington Orchestra and Edison already spent twelve years as the trumpet soloist with Count Basie. In the 30’s and 40’s there were no bigger big bands or preeminent soloist.
But the late 40’s and 50’s were not kind to Big Band Swing. What’s surprising, though, is how constant these two remained when the paradigm shifted from Be-Bop to Hard-Bop to West Coast Cool. The decades did not matter. To Webster and Edison, their music was timeless and they kept busy playing by arranging and leading or backing vocalists. By the time they laid down these tracks, both men were established enough to no longer feel a need to impress. Instead, all they wanted to do was play beautiful music.
Unlike most albums where I like to cherry pick, I love every track. Each man gets a chance at his own extended solo with a Gershwin tune. (Webster with “How Long is this Going on?” and Edison with “Embraceable You.”) And when I listen to my favorite, “Kitty”, I can’t help picture Webster and Edison on a front porch in the cool of the evening, laughing, joshing and most of all reminiscing. “Do you remember the time…?”
Dave
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