Work Song (Nat Adderley album)

Last updated
Work Song
Work Song.jpg
Studio album by
Released1960
RecordedJanuary 25 & 27, 1960
Genre Jazz, hard bop
Label Riverside
Nat Adderley chronology
Much Brass
(1959)
Work Song
(1960)
That's Right!
(1960)

Work Song is an album by jazz cornetist Nat Adderley, recorded in January 1960 and released on the Riverside label. It features Adderley with Bobby Timmons, Wes Montgomery, Sam Jones, Percy Heath, Keter Betts and Louis Hayes in various combinations from a trio to a sextet, with the unusual sound of pizzicato cello to the fore on some tracks. [1]

Contents

The title tune was given lyrics and covered the following year by Oscar Brown Jr. on his album Sin And Soul...and then some and has become a standard in both vocal and instrumental forms. It has also been covered in French by Claude Nougaro as "Sing Sing song".

Reception

The album is recognised as one of Adderley's finest. The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4½ stars, calling it a "near-classic" and stating: "Nat Adderley is heard throughout in peak form, playing quite lyrically. Highly recommended". [2] The Penguin Guide to Jazz awarded the album 4 stars, stating: "Work Song is the real classic, of course, laced with a funky blues feel but marked by some unexpectedly lyrical playing." [3] Colin Larkin awarded the album 4 stars (excellent) in The Virgin Encyclopedia of 60s Music, stating: "…a brilliant amalgam of the soul jazz…". [4]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [3]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [5]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of 60s MusicStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Track listing

All compositions by Nat Adderley except where noted.

  1. "Work Song" (Nat Adderley, Oscar Brown Jr) – 4:15
  2. "Pretty Memory" (Bobby Timmons) – 3:54
  3. "I've Got a Crush on You" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) – 2:55
  4. "Mean to Me" (Fred E. Ahlert, Roy Turk) – 5:01
  5. "Fallout" – 4:54
  6. "Sack of Woe" (Julian Adderley) – 4:28
  7. "My Heart Stood Still" (Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers) – 6:25
  8. "Violets for Your Furs" (Tom Adair, Matt Dennis) – 3:50
  9. "Scrambled Eggs" (Sam Jones) – 3:20
  • Recorded at Reeves Sound Studios in New York City on January 25, 1960 (tracks 2, 4, 5 & 7) and January 27, 1960 (tracks 1, 3, 6, 8 & 9)

Personnel

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Work Song (Adderley song)</span> Jazz standard by Nat Adderley

"Work Song" is a work song and jazz standard by American trumpeter Nat Adderley and writer Oscar Brown Jr. It was first featured in Adderley's 1960 studio album of the same name, which was met with high praise and acclaim. "Work Song" is one of Adderley's best known compositions.

References

  1. Riverside Records discography accessed February 17, 2010
  2. 1 2 Yanow, S. Allmusic Review accessed February 17, 2010.
  3. 1 2 Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2006) [1992]. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings . The Penguin Guide to Jazz (8th ed.). London: Penguin. pp.  11. ISBN   978-0-141-02327-4.
  4. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of 60s Music (3rd ed.). Virgin Books Ltd. p. 9. ISBN   1 85227 933 8.
  5. Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 5. ISBN   0-394-72643-X.