Marchel Ivery Meets Joey De Francesco''Marchel Ivery Meets Joey De Francesco''
( Leaning House Records, 1997 )
Catalog # 5
Tracklisting:
1. Blues Walk
2. Another Minor Thing
3. Violets for Your Furs
4. Scrapple from the Apple
5. Bags' Groove
6. Alone Together
7. Lester Leaps In
8. Makin' Whoopee
9. Hip Sippie Blues
10. Lover Man
Personnel, Credits & Notes:
Marchel Ivery, tenor saxophone
Joey DeFrancesco, organ
Clint Strong, guitar
Andrew Griffith, drums
Producer: Mark Elliott
Executive Producer: Keith Foerster
Engineered by Mark Elliott and
Bill Foshee
Recorded at Sumet Studios,
Studio A, Dallas
Mixed by Mark Elliott at
Crystal Clear Sound, Dallas
Art direction and cover photographs: Frank Goodenough
Off-Center Graphics, Dallas
Studio photographs: John Maxwell
Joey Defrancesco appears courtesy of Big Mo Records
Recorded live to 24-track analog with Dolby SR.
In an attempt to deliver a more natural sound, the Acoustic Sheetrock™ technique was employed.
Liner Notes:
This recording happened unexpectedly. Spontaneity is certainly not unprecedented for a jazz record, but a spontaneous recording session is a little more rare and accordingly, the outcome is even less predictable. Joey DeFrancesco, already a recognized organist at 25, was passing through Dallas, and when he heard Marchel Ivery was in the studio, he offered to stop by. The result of that meeting is a lively, natural, and emotional recording--one that could only be rendered by putting great musicians together in a room and asking them to play whatever comes to mind.
Of course, another important element that made this session work is the admiration that Ivery and DeFrancesco have for one another. Even though the two had played together on a few occasions, this recording represents the first time they had played together at any length and it is the first time Ivery had played with DeFrancesco on organ. It also marks the reunion of Ivery with guitarist Clint Strong, whom Herb Ellis rated "excellent" in a recent JazzTimes interview. Clint, still in his teens, played next to Ivery and pianist Red Garland at the 6051 Club in the late seventies. Like the Recovery Room, the 6051 Club was a jazz hangout that has long since closed, but has never been replaced. The drummer on this date, Andrew Griffith, like Strong, hails from the well-known jazz program at the University of North Texas, but has probably received his most formative education sharing the bandstand with Ivery on many occasions.
The ever-present element which also plays a part in this record is that of time. The selection of tunes reflects this, consisting of a repertoire of songs that most of the musicians were familiar with, and a few that were worked out on the spot. Honestly, we had very little time to get enough material on tape to produce an entire album, and although the meeting was somewhat casual, everyone knew there was work to be done--fewer breaks were taken and when there were pauses, they were brief. In spite of this, the music never waned. Perhaps the players were simply rising to the challenge like the professionals they are. On the other hand, maybe they discovered how much they enjoyed playing together.
At the end of the day, Ivery kicked off "Star Eyes", which does not appear here because I realized too late that we had run out of tape. There was no point in stopping them to try to find another reel. They were having too much fun.
By Mark Elliott
By Andy
1. Blues Walk
2. Another Minor Thing
3. Violets for Your Furs
4. Scrapple from the Apple
5. Bags' Groove
6. Alone Together
7. Lester Leaps In
8. Makin' Whoopee
9. Hip Sippie Blues
10. Lover Man
Personnel, Credits & Notes:
Marchel Ivery, tenor saxophone
Joey DeFrancesco, organ
Clint Strong, guitar
Andrew Griffith, drums
Producer: Mark Elliott
Executive Producer: Keith Foerster
Engineered by Mark Elliott and
Bill Foshee
Recorded at Sumet Studios,
Studio A, Dallas
Mixed by Mark Elliott at
Crystal Clear Sound, Dallas
Art direction and cover photographs: Frank Goodenough
Off-Center Graphics, Dallas
Studio photographs: John Maxwell
Joey Defrancesco appears courtesy of Big Mo Records
Recorded live to 24-track analog with Dolby SR.
In an attempt to deliver a more natural sound, the Acoustic Sheetrock™ technique was employed.
Liner Notes:
This recording happened unexpectedly. Spontaneity is certainly not unprecedented for a jazz record, but a spontaneous recording session is a little more rare and accordingly, the outcome is even less predictable. Joey DeFrancesco, already a recognized organist at 25, was passing through Dallas, and when he heard Marchel Ivery was in the studio, he offered to stop by. The result of that meeting is a lively, natural, and emotional recording--one that could only be rendered by putting great musicians together in a room and asking them to play whatever comes to mind.
Of course, another important element that made this session work is the admiration that Ivery and DeFrancesco have for one another. Even though the two had played together on a few occasions, this recording represents the first time they had played together at any length and it is the first time Ivery had played with DeFrancesco on organ. It also marks the reunion of Ivery with guitarist Clint Strong, whom Herb Ellis rated "excellent" in a recent JazzTimes interview. Clint, still in his teens, played next to Ivery and pianist Red Garland at the 6051 Club in the late seventies. Like the Recovery Room, the 6051 Club was a jazz hangout that has long since closed, but has never been replaced. The drummer on this date, Andrew Griffith, like Strong, hails from the well-known jazz program at the University of North Texas, but has probably received his most formative education sharing the bandstand with Ivery on many occasions.
The ever-present element which also plays a part in this record is that of time. The selection of tunes reflects this, consisting of a repertoire of songs that most of the musicians were familiar with, and a few that were worked out on the spot. Honestly, we had very little time to get enough material on tape to produce an entire album, and although the meeting was somewhat casual, everyone knew there was work to be done--fewer breaks were taken and when there were pauses, they were brief. In spite of this, the music never waned. Perhaps the players were simply rising to the challenge like the professionals they are. On the other hand, maybe they discovered how much they enjoyed playing together.
At the end of the day, Ivery kicked off "Star Eyes", which does not appear here because I realized too late that we had run out of tape. There was no point in stopping them to try to find another reel. They were having too much fun.
By Mark Elliott
By Andy
3 comments:
What a nice surprise. A Joey DeFrancesco record new to me, and one where he is handling the bass lines himself.
This is a great record. The sax is virtuous, and so is the guitar (I was surprised by the great technical accuracy at high speed by Strong).
My favourite part of the record is Joey DeFrancesco's solo in 'Bag's Groove'. Very well developed solo. He also borrows a few bars from Jimmy Smith's 1958 version of 'The Sermon'.
Thanks for sharing!
/Jazz Organ Fan
NO PW REQUIRED
Thanks for the feedback J.O.F,I was pleasantly surprised to find this in the sale bin.It's a good album and I enjoyed it all the way home!
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