Stan Kenton Big Sounds From The Small Screen CD

This is the most complete compilation of audio soundtracks taken from 22 TV appearances - all tracks are previously unreleased. It offers Stan's first televised encounter at the Hollywood Bowl in 1948 to his last European on-air concert in 1976. Most of

Personnel: June Christy (vocals); Ralph Blaze (guitar); Ray Reed (flute); Charlie Mariano (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone); John Park, Gabe Baltazar, Art Pepper (alto saxophone); Mike Altschul, Vido Musso, Bill Perkins, Bill Trujillo, Bob Cooper (tenor saxophone); Allan Beutler (baritone saxophone); Bill Mathieu, Marvin Stamm, Maynard Ferguson, Sam Noto, Mike Price, Ed Leddy, Nick Travis, Jay DaVersa, Buddy Childers (trumpet); Milt Bernhart, Dick Shearer, Archie LeCoque (trombone); Irv Kluger (drums); Mike Pacheco (percussion).
Liner Note Author: Archie LeCoque.
Recording information: Balboa, CA (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Concord, CA (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Copenhagen, Denmark (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Hague, The Netherlands (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Hollywood Bowl, CA (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Hollywood, CA (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); New York, NY (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Philadelphia, PA (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); The Dorchester Hotel, London, England (02/??/1947-09/17/1976); Toronto, ON, CN (02/??/1947-09/17/1976).
Arrangers: Dee Barton; Alan Yankee; Gene Roland; Bill Mathieu; Johnny Richards ; Ken Hanna; Lennie Niehaus; Pete Rugolo; Shorty Rogers; Stan Kenton; Bill Holman.
This collection of rarely heard Stan Kenton arrangements from over three decades includes a transcription recording of "Artistry in Percussion," as well as an impeccably performed small group version of "What Are You Doing for the Rest of Your Life?" and an intriguing narration on jazz history by the bandleader himself.
From the Dynaflow label -- the one and the same that has brought us two glorious volumes of the Kenton for Collectors series -- comes this little ace compilation of Stan Kenton's TV soundtracks, Big Sounds from the Small Screen. Not meant to be exhaustive in any sense, this volume compiles TV rarities from 1947-1973 with the '50s and '60s being represented best. Of course one will find here the usual slew of arrangers from Pete Rugolo, Shorty Rogers, Lennie Niehaus, Bill Holman, Gene Roland and others, but that's not the most important element here. It's the performers in some of these bands, who include Art Pepper, Charlie Mariano, Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Childers, Bill Perkins, and more. June Christy is present here, of course, on cuts such as "My Kind of Love," and "Ain't No Misery in Me." But the real wealth of the material is in the unusual charts and performances of tracks like "Love for Sale," done Afro-Cuban style, the modal arrangement of "Lush Life," the out of control mania of "I Feel Pretty," with the brass just driving the tune home and bongos double timing an already in-the-red tempo. As is the norm for Dynaflow, there is variable sound quality on all of these cuts, but that shouldn't make a difference to those who are true Kenton collectors. This is one of those items one just has to have. ~ Thom Jurek