1. Begin the Beguine
2. Stranger on the Shore
3. Dizzy Spells
4. St. James Infirmary
5. You Are My Sunshine
6. Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen
7. Wire Brush Stomp
8. Where or When
9. China Boy
10. Mood Indigo
11. Oh, Lady Be Good!
12. Nightmare
Dave Bennett - Clarinet
Tad Weed - Piano
Paul Keller - Bass
Peter Siers - Drums
Comparisons are odious and, on this new CD, Dave Bennett invites comparisons by playing tunes associated with particular clarinettists. Dave's intention is clear from his subtitling the album "Songs of Great Clarinettists", but perhaps he didn't realise that those of us who know the originals of these performances will inevitably match them with Dave's interpretations.
Bennett's two previous albums for Arbors Jazz were devised along similar lines, but all paying tribute to Benny Goodman. So it is rather strange that the sleeve-note says of Dave: "He is working towards developing his own style and sound". It seems doubtful if this can be achieved by recording tunes that other people have made famous.
In fact the CD's subtitle is a misnomer, as not all the tunes are associated with other clarinettists. For example, St James Infirmary is perhaps best remembered from the version by Louis Armstrong, and Wire Brush Stomp was recorded by Gene Krupa's band in 1938. In fact the latter is one of the more successful items on the album = played as a duet between clarinet and drums, although Bennett confesses that he used some riffs from Benny Goodman's Tattle Tail.
Some of the least beneficial comparisons occur in the first three tracks. Dave Bennett's interpretation of Begin the Beguine has little of the magic which made Artie Shaw's recording so popular. Stranger on the Shore was a memorable hit for Acker Bilk, whose uniquely warm tone was more seductive than Bennett's. And Dizzy Spells seems fairly tame compared with Benny Goodman's classic version, which (at the famous Carnegie Hall concert) had the benefit of Lionel Hampton's vibes and a more daring, faster tempo driven along by Gene Krupa. China Boy also lacks some of the fire that Benny Goodman brought to it. The first two tracks contain occasional hints of dubious intonation from the clarinet.
Nevertheless, the album has its moments, many provided by pianist Tad Weed, who accompanies helpfully and provides some worthwhile solos, especially on the New Orleansish You Are My Sunshine which, like Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen, is "played in the style of Pete Fountain". Mood Indigo works well as a clarinet-and-bass duet. And Artie Shaw's theme tune Nightmare is given a nightmarish - even ghoulish - quality inspired by Dave watching a horror film. However, an album consisting mainly of other people's hits arouses the same question as many such "tribute" albums: "Why?"
Tony Augarde
CD Reviews
Arbors Jazz ARCD 19409
