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Zoot Sims

Zoot Sims image
Parent Issue
Day
6
Month
May
Year
1976
Copyright
Creative Commons (Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-alike)
OCR Text

Although a participant on several albums for Norman Granz's label, this is Zoot Sims' first Pablo date as a leader. For the occasion, Granz has teamed him up with two jazz greats enjoying a popular resurgence: guitarist Joe Pass and pianist Oscar Peterson. The album contains ten songs by George and Ira Gershwin, composers of such jazz standards as “I’ve Got Rhythm" and "Summertime." On paper, it looks like it should be a perfect album - and it almost works.

The album's up-beat opener, "The Man I Love," is a good illustration of the old adage (slightly rephrased), "Too many virtuosos spoil the music," which could be applied to this entire venture. Zoot states the melody, while bassist George Mraz and drummer Grady Tate do a fine job setting the pace. Both Pass and Peterson take good solos but become over-involved, too-busy accompanists, intruding on Sims' playing.

Several of the songs suffer this problem, but the treats on this record out-number the distractions. There is a beautiful Sims/Pass duet on "How Long Has This Been Going On?", which would make a great prelude to a duet album from them before long. Oscar lakes some of his traditional Tatumesque solos on "Summertime," “I’ve Got Rhythm," and "Someone to Watch Over Me." "S'Wonderful" opens slowly and darkly but flows into a lively number with Pass and Peterson soloing and the two weave in and out of the background without clutter on "Embraceable You." Mraz and Tate are superb throughout, with Mraz getting in a bowed solo during the up-tempo version of "Summertime."

And, of course, there's the always inventive Zoot. Listen to his command of tone: from gritty gutbucket on "Man I Love" to a Lester Youngish high, smooth timbre on "Isn't It A Pity?”. His gliding tenor sax is the strength of this record. I would say that two of his recent efforts as a leader, Zoot at Ease on Famous Door and Party on Choice are better LPs, but this is certainly a welcome addition to his catalogue. It's a Zoot that suits.

- Michael Lang