Brubeck Time

Last updated
Brubeck Time
Brubeck Time.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 14, 1955 [1]
RecordedOctober 12–14 and November 10, 1954
Studio Columbia 30th Street (New York City)
Genre Jazz
Length40:00
Label Columbia
CL 622
CK 47032
Harmony
HS 11253
Producer George Avakian
The Dave Brubeck Quartet chronology
Jazz Goes to College
(1954)
Brubeck Time
(1955)
Jazz: Red Hot and Cool
(1955)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [3]

Brubeck Time is a jazz album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet, a rare studio recording from that period of the band, when it was recording mostly live albums. [4] It was recorded in the fall of 1954, and originally released in 1955 under the Columbia label as CL 622. In 1968, Columbia re-channeled the album for stereo [5] and re-released it as Instant Brubeck under the Harmony label as HS 11253. [6] It was later re-released again on CD in 1991 under the title Interchanges '54 as CK 47032, with the addition of four tracks from Jazz: Red Hot and Cool . [7]

Contents

The album features one of the earlier Quartet lineups, with Bob Bates on bass and Joe Dodge on drums. Although now not as famous as some of the band's other albums, in retrospect it has a lot of depth, and those interested in jazz will find it "certainly worth acquiring". [8]

According to a 1955 letter written by Avakian to Brubeck, the cover was "designed around the Boris Artzybasheff painting which was on Time magazine's cover of November 8th [1954]".

The pieces

Most of the pieces in the album are old standards revisited by the quartet. Notable among them is a sparkling and very lively rendition of "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now". There are two original compositions: "Audrey" and "Stompin' for Mili".

Audrey

This piece was meant to contrast the excitement of "Stompin' For Mili". Brubeck recalls the recording of the piece in a 1955 letter:" 'I would like,' said Gjon [Mili], closing his eyes and raising his hand expressively, 'I would like to see Audrey Hepburn come walking through the woods.' 'Gee,' said Paul wistfully, 'So would I.' 'One,' I said, noticing the glazed expression about Paul's eyes 'two, three, four'. And we played it. Hence, the title."

The piece is a 12-bar blues in the key of B-flat minor; however, the melody of "Balcony Rock", an improvised blues in B-flat Major, recorded on Jazz Goes to College , is used to conclude "Audrey".

There is an "alternate take", released as "Makin' Time", that is rarely heard. It was released on a Columbia compilation LP called I Like Jazz! around 1955. [9]

"Stompin' for Mili"

This song was recorded for photographer Gjon Mili. Mili had agreed very reluctantly to film the Quartet at work, and the band felt "on pretty shaky ground" at the session. Their first attempt to record was, as a result, very tentative, and Mili's dismissive pronouncement after this "take" made Brubeck's "blood [begin] to boil". The resulting second "take", heard on the album, was an "expression of rage and frustration". [10]

The piece was a development from the classic live recording of Give a Little Whistle/ Oh Lady Be Good in the 1953 Fantasy album Jazz at Storyville, the newer version alternating from major to minor tone during Brubeck’s solo. The version of Give a Little Whistle included on the album Jazz at the College of the Pacific vol.2, also recorded in 1953, but issued only in 2002, clearly shows the progression of the original version of Give a Little Whistle/ Oh Lady Be Good into Stomping for Mili, alternating from major to minor tone during the improvised solos by Brubeck and Desmond.


Track listing

  1. "Audrey" (Brubeck, Desmond) – 3:35
  2. "Jeepers Creepers" (Johnny Mercer, Harry Warren) – 4:57
  3. "Pennies From Heaven" (Johnny Burke, Arthur Johnston) – 6:28
  4. "Why Do I Love You?" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) – 5:42
  5. "Stompin' for Mili" (Brubeck, Desmond) – 5:27
  6. "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now" (Andy Razaf, Fats Waller) – 5:06
  7. "A Fine Romance" (Jerome Kern, Dorothy Fields) – 3:48
  8. "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" (Edgar Yipsel Harburg, Jay Gorney) – 5:17

Tracks 1, 2, 7 recorded on October 12, 1954; tracks 5, 8 recorded on October 13; tracks 3, 4 recorded on October 14; track 6 recorded on November 10, 1954.

Personnel

Technical personnel

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Take Five</span> Jazz standard recorded by the Dave Brubeck Quartet

"Take Five" is a jazz standard composed by Paul Desmond. It was first recorded in 1959 and is the third track on Time Out by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Frequently covered by a variety of artists, the track is the biggest-selling jazz song of all time and a Grammy Hall of Fame inductee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Avakian</span> American record producer of Armenian descent

George Mesrop Avakian was an American record producer, artist manager, writer, educator and executive. Best known for his work from 1939 to the early 1960s at Decca Records, Columbia Records, World Pacific Records, Warner Bros. Records, and RCA Records, he was a major force in the expansion and development of the U.S. recording industry. Avakian functioned as an independent producer and manager from the 1960s to the early 2000s and worked with artists such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Dave Brubeck, Eddie Condon, Keith Jarrett, Erroll Garner, Buck Clayton, Sonny Rollins, Paul Desmond, Edith Piaf, Bob Newhart, Johnny Mathis, John Cage, Alan Hovhaness, Ravi Shankar, and many other notable jazz musicians and composers.

<i>Jazz Impressions of New York</i> 1965 studio album by Dave Brubeck

Jazz Impressions of New York is a jazz album released by Dave Brubeck. The compositions were for the television show Mr. Broadway.

<i>Jazz Goes to College</i> 1954 live album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Jazz Goes to College is a 1954 album documenting the North American college tour of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. It was Dave Brubeck's first album for Columbia Records. He was joined by alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, double bassist Bob Bates, and drummer Joe Dodge. The album was re-released on CD and cassette in the Columbia Jazz Masterpieces series in 1989 and on CD by Sony International in 2000.

<i>Time Further Out</i> 1961 studio album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Time Further Out is a jazz studio album by the Dave Brubeck Quartet released by Columbia Records in November 1961. It features the "classic" lineup of the quartet: pianist and leader Dave Brubeck, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, bassist Eugene Wright, and drummer Joe Morello. The album was recorded by engineer Fred Plaut and produced by Teo Macero.

<i>Paper Moon</i> (album) 1982 studio album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Paper Moon was recorded by the Dave Brubeck Quartet at Coast Recorders in San Francisco, California. The record was released in September 1981 by Concord Jazz, a subsidiary of Concord Records. It was produced by Russell Gloyd and engineered by Ron Davis and Phil Edwards. On this recording, pianist Dave Brubeck is accompanied by his son Chris Brubeck on the bass and bass trombone, with Jerry Bergonzi on tenor sax and Randy Jones on the drums. Paper Moon is Brubeck's third of three Concord recordings featuring this permutation of the Dave Brubeck Quartet; jazz commentator Scott Yanow referred to the album as the "most rewarding of the trio".

<i>Jazz Impressions of Japan</i> 1964 studio album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Jazz Impressions of Japan is a 1964 album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet. It was recorded on June 16–17, 1964 at the CBS 30th Street Studio, except for "Zen Is When" which was recorded on January 30, 1960. It was released on August 10, 1964. The album, as the back cover of the remastered CD confirms, had been long out-of-print until it was reissued on CD in 2001, then re-released in 2008 and 2009.

<i>Dave Brubeck Quartet</i> (album) 1952 studio album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

The Dave Brubeck Quartet is a jazz album released by The Dave Brubeck Quartet in several iterations between 1952 and 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In Your Own Sweet Way</span> 1956 instrumental by Dave Brubeck

"In Your Own Sweet Way" is a 1955 jazz standard, and one of the most famous compositions by Dave Brubeck. It was written around 1952, but its copyright notice was dated 1955. Brubeck's wife Iola, for whom the song was written, later wrote a lyric for the song, which led to singers such as Carmen McRae recording it. "In Your Own Sweet Way" was first released on Brubeck's 1956 studio album Brubeck Plays Brubeck; an earlier live recording is known.

<i>Dave Digs Disney</i> 1957 studio album by Dave Brubeck Quartet

Dave Digs Disney is a 1957 studio album by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. It features jazz renditions of songs from the animated Disney films Alice in Wonderland, Pinocchio and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It is one of Brubeck's most popular albums. The album was reissued in 2011, with remastered recordings and two bonus tracks: "Very Good Advice" and "So This Is Love".

<i>Countdown—Time in Outer Space</i> 1962 studio album by Dave Brubeck Quartet

Countdown—Time in Outer Space is a studio album released by the Dave Brubeck Quartet in 1962 on Columbia LP record CS 8575 (stereo) and CL 1775 (mono). The front cover features the 1959 painting Orange and Black Wall by Franz Kline. In Australia the album appeared on the Coronet label. It was re-released, for the first time in digital format, in 2004 as part of a compact disc collection titled Dave Brubeck: For All Time. It was again released as part of the box set The Dave Brubeck Quartet: the Columbia Studio Albums Collection 1955-1966. Both CD re-releases feature a bonus track titled "Fatha".

<i>Bossa Nova U.S.A.</i> 1963 studio album by Dave Brubeck Quartet

Bossa Nova U.S.A. is a studio album released by the Dave Brubeck Quartet in 1963 by Columbia originally in the United States as LP record CS 8798 (stereo) and CL 1998 (mono) and in England as SBPG 62127. It was also released by CBS in Australia, as catalog SPB 233.038.

<i>The Last Set at Newport</i> 1972 live album by Dave Brubeck

The Last Set at Newport is a 1971 live album by Dave Brubeck and his quartet recorded at the 1971 Newport Jazz Festival, shortly before a riot ensued. The album peaked at 16 on the Billboard Top Jazz Charts.

<i>Live at the Berlin Philharmonie</i> 1972 live album by Dave Brubeck Trio and Gerry Mulligan

Live at the Berlin Philharmonie is a 1970 live album by Dave Brubeck and his trio with Gerry Mulligan recorded at the Berlin Philharmonie. It was reissued in 1995 with several bonus tracks. The album peaked at 21 on the Billboard Top Jazz Charts.

<i>Brubeck in Amsterdam</i> 1969 live album by Dave Brubeck

Brubeck in Amsterdam is a 1962 live album by Dave Brubeck and his quartet recorded on 3 December at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, though unreleased until 1969. Six of the tracks are from Brubeck's musical The Real Ambassadors.

<i>Tonight Only!</i> 1961 studio album by Dave Brubeck and Carmen McRae

Tonight Only! is a 1961 album by the Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring the singer Carmen McRae.

<i>Buried Treasures</i> (Dave Brubeck album) 1998 live album by Dave Brubeck

Buried Treasures is a 1967 live album by Dave Brubeck and his quartet, recorded during their tour of Mexico. It was released in 1998. A second live album recorded on their tour, Bravo! Brubeck!, was released in July 1967.

<i>The Last Time We Saw Paris</i> 1968 live album by Dave Brubeck

The Last Time We Saw Paris is a 1968 live album by Dave Brubeck and his quartet, recorded in Paris during their final tour.

<i>Jazz: Red Hot and Cool</i> 1955 live album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Jazz: Red Hot and Cool is a jazz live album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet. It was recorded during one 1954 and two 1955 performances at the Basin Street East club in New York City. Released originally in 1955, this album was remastered and reissued in 2001, while adding two tracks that were not included in the original album.

<i>Jazz Impressions of Eurasia</i> 1958 live album by Dave Brubeck

Jazz Impressions of Eurasia is a studio album by pianist Dave Brubeck and his quartet recorded after, and inspired by, their 1958 world tour sponsored by the American state department during which they played 80 concerts in 14 countries, including Turkey, Iran, Iraq, India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, over three months. In the liner notes to the album, Brubeck notes that "These sketches of Eurasia have been developed from random musical phrases I jotted down in my notebook as we chugged across the fields of Europe, or skimmed across the deserts of Asia, or walked in the alleyways of an ancient bazaar. ... I tried to create an impression of a particular locale by using some of the elements of their folk music within the jazz idiom." The album was recorded in July and August 1958 at the Columbia 30th St. Studios in New York.

References

  1. 2009 CD liner notes
  2. Allmusic review
  3. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 167. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
  4. Scott Yanow, AllMusic.Com review, Brubeck Time - Dave Brubeck
  5. HS 11253 LP, album cover
  6. "Dave Brubeck - Instant Brubeck". Discogs. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
  7. Ira Gitler, liner notes to Interchanges '54.
  8. Scott Yanow, AllMusic.Com review, Brubeck Time - Dave Brubeck
  9. "Dave Brubeck & Paul Desmond - Makin' Time". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2012-01-10.
  10. Brubeck, liner notes to Brubeck Time.