Hot Stamper Pressings of Big Band Recordings Available Now
This is a Century Direct-to-Disc featuring Mel Torme fronting the Buddy Rich Big Band. And it’s a pretty big band with four trumpets, three trombones, five saxes and a tuba! One of the best tracks is “Here’s That Rainy Day”, with guest soloist Phil Woods. The beginning is just Mel and Phil, a duet of sorts, with a lovely sense of melancholy.
However, both men seem tired and the session doesn’t swing much.
Or could it be that they’re playing it safe, afraid to make a mistake and then have to start the live-to-disc session over from the top?
Hard to know, but that’s the problem with direct to disc recordings — avoiding mistakes, even engineering ones, can suck the life right out of the music.
When I Found You
Here’s That Rainy Day
Blues in the Night
Bluesette
You Are the Sunshine of My Life
I Won’t Last a Day Without You
Lady Be Good