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Joan Records

EARL ‘FATHA’ HINES ‘Portrait’ Sabam CRESCENDO Blue Classic Line – 7263

 

1	Love Me Tonight	13	My Melancholy Baby
2	Down Among the Sheltering Palms	14	The Earl
3	Rhythm Sundae	15	Chicago High Life
4	Pianology	16	Stowaway
5	Rosetta	17	Panther Rag
6	Piano Man	18	Just Too Soon
7	Body and Soul	19	Caution Blues
8	Tantalizing A Cuban	20	A Monday Date
9	Blues In Thirds	21	I Ain’t Got Nobody
10	G.T. Stomp	22	Fifty-Seven Varieties
11	On the Sunny Side of the Street	23	Glad Rag Doll
12	Blue Keys

This collection of recordings by Earl ‘Fatha’ Hines covers the period 1928-1946 and features him both as a solo player and accompanist. It has often been claimed that he was the first ‘modern jazz’ pianist. His approach was certainly unique at the time and it was often referred to as ‘trumpet style;’ his frequent use of single note phrases and arpeggios was associated with the ‘style of jazz brass players.’ He was also noted for his emphatic and extended chords.

Included in this collection are several of his first recorded piano solos made in 1928 at a time when he was working with Jimmy Noone’s Apex Club Orchestra. The first band he led was also formed in 1928, only four years after he had launched his professional career. Immediately he acquired a residency at the Grand Terrace Ballroom in Chicago that lasted for twelve years. In the 1950s he played with Armstrong’s All Stars for a short period. He then seems to have gone into obscurity until 1964 when, after a series of New York concerts, his career was revitalized. He continued to make regular performances until his death in 1983.

The accompanying notes show that thirteen of the titles on this CD were composed by Hines and overall it provides an interesting cross-section of his work as a recognized pioneer of jazz.

Jack Ashby

 

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