KENNY DORHAM

BLUE BOSSA IN THE BRONX LIVE FROM THE BLUE MOROCCO

Resonance Records

Kenny Dorham was born August 30, 1924 and passed away on December 5, 1972.  This recording was made in 1967 with an all-star cast of characters.  Sonny Red was on alto saxophone, Cedar Walton on piano, Paul Chambers was the bass player with Denis Charles on the drums.  This ‘live’ performance was recorded in the Bronx borough of New York City by a young African American engineer, Bernard “Bernie” Drayton.  He was a renaissance man himself, because there were very few engineers of color back in 1967. Zev Feldman makes mention of this in the liner notes that accompany this album. Zev met Bernie around 2007. They were introduced by the former creative director of Burrell Communications in Chicago. Julie, (at that company), pointed him in the direction of Bernie Drayton in NYC, who was running a major jingle studio. At that time, he was turning out advertising music like “Be All You Can Be in the Army.”  Most of us have heard that one.  Over the years, Bernie kept an impressive archive of the great jazz artists he had recorded.  He and Zev partnered up to bring us this production.

Dorham opens with the ever popular “Blue Bossa.”  Everyone sounds great and enthusiastic to me, except the drummer.  For me, the drummer is all over the place and never lays down a steady groove.  The next tune is “Confirmation” and Dorham steps into the spotlight with an energetic solo.  He is followed by Sonny Red on alto saxophone, who also offers a compelling solo statement. The brilliant Paul Chambers walks his bass throughout, with all the grandness and amazing talent he is famous for, talent he brought to every performance.  Pianist, Cedar Walton would have been 33-years old and just blossoming into his own unique artistry. Around that same time, Walton would record his own debut recording, simply titled “Cedar.”  Chambers pulled out his bass bow to offer a solo concert that shut the drums down. Now, we could enjoy the beauty, the groove, and the incredibly imaginative solo of this great bassist. His solo was absolutely awesome!

In the impressive booklet that accompanies this release, they remind us that Chambers was the most acclaimed member of the quintet at that time.  He would die two years after this recording. Remember, Chambers spent seven years as the bassist with Miles Davis and he worked with Wynton Kelly and Jimmy Cobb in support of Wes Montgomery.  He was quite legendary in Detroit, although he was born in Pittsburgh and later relocated to the Motor City.  Back in the late sixties, Paul Chambers was praised as being one of the most recorded jazz musicians on the planet.

Perhaps one of the reasons I wasn’t crazy about drummer, Denis Charles, is that he identified more with exploratory jazz than just laying down a solid bebop groove.  Charles enjoyed artists like Cecil Taylor, Steve Lacy and Archie Shepp.   Playing straight-ahead jazz was not really his ‘go-to’ performance patch.

Kenny Dorham plays his heart out during this session.  On “Bag’s Groove” (another favorite of mine) the blues brings the band together in a cohesive lovely way.  Charles still does his own thing on the drums, but Paul Chambers holds the groove in place like an arm sling cradles a broken limb. Sonny Red soars, as does Kenny Dorham during his trumpet solo.  Dorham is also king while playing his original tune called “Blue Friday.”  They close with Miles Davis’s tune, “The Theme.”

This is a piece of history any collector will want to slide into their collection, and it’s an entertaining album of great jazz for the world to enjoy.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil