Sultan Records

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Sultan Recording Company, headquartered in Detroit, was a short-lived label started c. 1946 by Morton Sultan (1921 - 1983). [1]

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Its gimmick was "Double-header hits," meaning that two different artists shared each 78 rpm. [1]

As far as is known only three jazz artists recorded for Sultan: Red Saunders, Eddie Wiggins and Alphonso "Sonny" Thompson. [2] The only other known Sultan recording is of songs in Hebrew and Yiddish, recorded in Detroit by a synagogue cantor in 1946. [1]

Red Saunders (musician) American musician

Theodore Dudley "Red" Saunders was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He also played vibraphone and timpani.

Yiddish is the historical language of the Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a High German-based vernacular fused with elements taken from Hebrew and Aramaic as well as from Slavic languages and traces of Romance languages. Yiddish is written with a fully vocalized version of the Hebrew alphabet.

Releases

Series 2500

Its three jazz 78s were recorded in Chicago in June 1946:

Gene Russell (1932-1981) was an American pop, jazz, and soul keyboardist who played acoustic and Fender Rhodes.

James Joseph "Buster" Bennett was an American blues saxophonist and blues shouter. His nickname was "Leap Frog". At various times in his career, he played the soprano saxophone, the alto, and the tenor. He was known for his gutbucket style on the saxophone. He also played the piano and the string bass professionally.

Nat Jones American film and comic book artist

Nat Jones is an American artist working primarily in comic books and film. Jones is best known for his work on Frank Frazetta's Death Dealer.

Series 1000

<i>Hazzan</i> Jewish cantor

A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish musician or precentor trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer. In English, this prayer leader is often referred to as cantor, a term also used in Christianity.

"Hatikvah", sung in Hebrew, would, in two years' time, become the national anthem of Israel, while "Ich fur Aheim" was a Yiddish popular song. [2]

Hatikvah Israeli national anthem

"Hatikvah" is a 19th century Jewish poem and the national anthem of Israel. Its lyrics are adapted from a poem by Naftali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet from Złoczów, which was then in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria under Austrian rule. Imber wrote the first version of the poem in 1877, while he was a guest of a Jewish scholar in Iași, Romania. The theme of the romantic composition reflects the Jews' 2,000-year-old hope of returning to the Land of Israel, restoring it, and reclaiming it as a free and sovereign nation.

Critical reviews

The two Sonny Thompson sides were reviewed by Metronome in its September 1946 issue: "This is the pianist who came into the Café Society Uptown two months ago. It's said he's potentially great, but since both these sides are just so much fast flashy boogie woogie, with a meaningless pseudo-classical departure, we'll reserve our raves." [2]

Reviewing Saunders' "Red, the Be Bop Guy", Metronome said, "Saunders' little Chicago band does a vocal novelty that sounds more like typical jump music than be bop. It's a medium-tempo blues with a good beat and some tricky alto by Nat Jones. The same Mr. Jones, who played clarinet for the Duke for a while some three years ago, plays a sweet solo on 'Vi,' but the band and performance are out of kilter and perhaps a trifle off center." [2]

The October 1946 issue of Metronome, referring to the Eddie Wiggins sides: "This little band from Chicago, which opened at New York's Aquarium last month, jumps healthily in 'Onyx,' with good solos by alto and vibes and some spirited riffing. Nothing sensational here, but very good for an unknown band of which you expected nothing. 'Orientale' shifts the alto man to oboe for a performance that sounds alarmingly like its title and is a weird mixture of exotic sound effects and jump piano. It gets better as it goes along and turns out to be a fast blues, then back comes that oboe." [2]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 The Red Saunders Research Foundation Archived 2013-04-03 at the Wayback Machine .
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Pruter, Robert & Campbell, Robert L. "The Sultan Label"
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