Boss Tenors in Orbit!

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Boss Tenors in Orbit!
Bossorb.jpeg
Studio album by Sonny Stitt and Gene Ammons
Released 1962
Recorded February 18, 1962
Genre Jazz
Length57:14
Label Verve
Sonny Stitt chronology
Stitt Meets Brother Jack
(1962)
Boss Tenors in Orbit!
(1962)
Soul Summit
(1962)
Gene Ammons chronology
Brother Jack Meets the Boss
(1962)
Boss Tenors in Orbit!
(1962)
Soul Summit
(1962)

Boss Tenors in Orbit! is a 1962 studio album by American jazz tenor saxophonists Sonny Stitt and Gene Ammons. [1]

Sonny Stitt American jazz saxophonist

Edward Hammond Boatner Jr., known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his generation, recording more than 100 albums. He was nicknamed the "Lone Wolf" by jazz critic Dan Morgenstern because of his relentless touring and devotion to jazz. Stitt was sometimes viewed as a Charlie Parker mimic, especially earlier in his career, but gradually came to develop his own sound and style, particularly when performing on tenor sax.

Gene Ammons American jazz tenor saxophonist

Eugene "Jug" Ammons, also known as "The Boss", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. The son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons is remembered for his accessible music, steeped in soul and R&B.

Contents

Reception

The Allmusic review by Michael G. Nastos awarded the album four and a half stars and wrote: "The soulful Ammons and the bop-oriented Stitt meshed well whether playing standards, jamming on familiar melodies, or in ballad form. While not an out-and-out knock-down, drag-out event like their other recordings, this is still one of too few magical efforts with Ammons and Stitt together. Those who crave the live cutting sessions that made jazz very exciting in the early '60s might also consider this tamer studio effort." [1]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]

Track listing

  1. "Long Ago (and Far Away)" (Ira Gershwin, Jerome Kern) - 6:17
  2. "Walkin'" (Jimmy Mundy) - 5:21
  3. "Why Was I Born?" (Oscar Hammerstein II, Kern) - 8:20
  4. "John Brown's Body" (Traditional) - 7:22
  5. "Bye Bye Blackbird" (Mort Dixon, Ray Henderson) - 9:58

Personnel

Tenor saxophone type of saxophone

The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while the Alto is pitched in the key of E), and written as a transposing instrument in the treble clef, sounding an octave and a major second lower than the written pitch. Modern tenor saxophones which have a high F key have a range from A2 to E5 (concert) and are therefore pitched one octave below the soprano saxophone. People who play the tenor saxophone are known as "tenor saxophonists", "tenor sax players", or "saxophonists".

Don Patterson was an American jazz organist.

Hammond organ electric organ

The Hammond organ is an electric organ, invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Various models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to specify a variety of sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated sound by creating an electric current from rotating a metal tonewheel near an electromagnetic pickup, and then strengthening the signal with an amplifier so it can drive a speaker cabinet. Around two million Hammond organs have been manufactured. The organ is commonly used with, and associated with, the Leslie speaker.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Boss Tenors in Orbit!". Allmusic . Retrieved June 26, 2011.