Coming in Handy

What did the guy to the left of the photographer just say? We'll never know, but showing utter consternation are, from left, Dave Lambert, bassist John Simmons, Daz McVoutorooney, George Handy (the subject of this offering) and a zonked Chubby Jackson. Bill Gottlieb photo

How often do you get to live near greatness? And not know it? Not too often, I suspect. In my case, out here in the far-flung Catskills, it happens more often than you might think. Pianist Hal Galper lives in the county. Kenny Werner, too. Guitarist and composer James Emery also lives nearby. Bill Mays plays his piano just across the Delaware in Pennsylvania. Hugh Brodie used to call me regularly from his home in the county seat, Monticello. My good friend, drummer Thurman Barker, lives in the town right next door to mine. There are many other refugees from the New York jazz scene in these rural hills, and at one time or another I've had the privilege to get to know most them.

But one I missed. His name was George Handy, and he was a noted composer and arranger in the 1940s and '50s. He's probably best known for his work with the progressive Boyd Raeburn Orchestra and then for his singular contribution to producer Norman Granz's landmark recording, "The Jazz Scene" (also offered here on Gems). He had a tempestuous relationship with the music biz and made only a few recordings while he was still active in New York and Los Angeles. One of those is featured with this posting.

George bailed on the industry for good in the late 1950s, settling eventually in upstate New York. He chose the Catskills because there was, at the time, a vibrant hotel scene with thousands of tourists and plenty of work for musicians who had tired of the New York City rat race. Handy worked in near anonymity in world class resorts like Grossinger's, Brown's and Kutsher's. He played piano in pit bands, doing arrangements as needed for whatever acts were appearing. 

I was told about George Handy by other musicians I met not long after moving here myself. "You should talk to George," they all urged. But somehow, even after I started doing my jazz radio show, I never got around to it. And then, in 1997, I heard George had died. An opportunity missed, for sure.

But why did Handy opt out of the big music world just 120 miles to the south? I asked a friend, a reed player who worked in the hotel bands with George, and he said it was the usual story, one often told about musicians from Handy's era. Apparently George had picked up a habit, as so many did, and it made him unreliable. He likely moved to the sticks to regain his health.

Dave Schildkraut, looking quite natty.

But in the summer of 1954, when this record was made, Handy was in top form. The dozen tunes on this album, all originals, were all recorded in one long night, as you'll read in the liner notes, and all they were entirely new to the players. The band just played the charts cold and soloed like the hardened pros they were. Handy is on piano, and he gets in a few good licks. The players were some of the best in the city at the time, and the obscure Dave Schildkraut makes a rare appearance. Allen Eager, about to become a ski instructor, is also onboard.

This record was a thrift shop find and looked funky. But, as you'll hear, the sound is quite good – very little cleaning was required. Recorded, as always, from the original "X" label vinyl, crew. Enjoy!

Handyland USA
George Handy
RCA "X" LXA-1004

Handy, p, comp, arr; Ernie Royal, tp; Kai Winding, tbn; Dave Schildkraut, as; Allen Eager, ts; Danny banks, bar; Vinnie Burke, b; Art Mardigan, d.
Webster Hall, New York, NY; August 16, 1954

1. Recoil
2. A Tight Hat
3. Noshin'
4. Sprong
5. Rainbow
6. Pegasus
7. Lean To
8. Blinuet
9. Case-Ace
10. Crazy Lady
11. Zonkin'
12. Footnotes

Find it here: http://www.mediafire.com/download/8d2uvobcsfdcn24/handyland.rar

Fats and Fat Value

Fat Girl and his co-leader Tadd Dameron waxing a session for Blue Note in 1947. They're joined by reedmen Charlie Rouse and Ernie Henry. William Gottlieb photo

What is this music that we love worth? On a personal level, of course, it's priceless. Who can set a value on those recordings that opened our ears, expanded our minds, that thrilled us and touched our hearts? It's easy to get maudlin about it, but those highly individual experiences are the moments that inform the arc of a lifetime. To talk of monetary worth is to miss the point.

But now that that's out of the way, let's get down to brass tacks (whatever that means). The reason we post jazz recordings here on Gems is because much of that material is rare and (for that reason) desirable. Hence it has value. Just a few clicks away from this page is a gargantuan auction site where just about any recording in any format is available at any time night and day – for a price. Sometimes that price is modest, but many times the selling figure for a particular album is, well, astonishing. I can't help but wonder, how are these values determined?

A couple of gems – as far as collectors are
concerned. Musically, I'm not so sure.

Case in point: When I lived in Boston back in the '70s, I haunted used recorded shops eight days a week. Every now and then a deep-groove Blue Note would turn up, or a first-issue Riverside, or maybe even a 10-inch gem on Prestige would (rarely) appear. I'd buy those if I could afford them, but I'd also buy just about anything that looked interesting. I was particularly into the avant garde and I picked up loads of self-produced free-jazz LPs by unknown players. A couple of records of that sort that I came across had homemade covers and were by two gents named Michael Cosmic and Phill Musra. I'd never heard of them, but the records were 99 cents each, so I snapped them up. I don't even think I ever listened to them.

Forty years later I discovered a website that lists the selling price of records auctioned on that big site on the Internet. Maybe you know it? It's called CollectorsFrenzy. They had a listing for both of the Cosmic/Musra albums I bought those many years ago, and it blew my mind. Together these two records sold recently for a whopping $2,220.75! 

So what is this music worth? 

Clearly, in the case of Cosmic and Musra, nowhere near that much. At least, in terms of the music itself. Their sort of stuff these days is termed "spiritual jazz" and is deemed highly collectible. But musically speaking? Nah, no great shakes. 

Which leads me to offer some music that I know is of real value. Maybe not in terms of its "collectibility," but in terms of its artistry. It's also a self-produced effort, another of Boris Rose's offerings. But there's no question about the quality of the music – it's first rate.

These tunes were recorded during several successive broadcasts from the Royal Roost in 1948. They feature the Tadd Dameron/Fats Navarro sextet with special guest Anita O'Day, and the performances are without exception superb. You probably know the airchecks by this band that were released on Riverside back in the '60s. This recording only repeats one of those tunes (or maybe "The Squirrel" is a different take). 

Eager in solo flight, captured by Bill Gottlieb.

Fats is in tip-top shape, rivaling Dizzy for pyrotechnics. Rudy Williams, a former swingtime member of the Savoy Sultans, is a bit out of his element but manages to get over. Tadd comps along competently, but it's Allen Eager who is the stand-out. His tenor navigates the solo terrain deftly and repeatedly impresses. And to think this guy quit jazz to become a ski-instructor!

Anita O'Day sounds relaxed and in command. You can hear how carefully she's structured her act by the repeated "spontaneity" of the "I ain't mad at you" interjection in "How High the Moon." The pianist is listed as Dameron but the guy takes solos that are beyond Tadd's ability, at least to my ears. So maybe someone else is at the keyboard when Ms. O'Day steps up to the mic.

There's a full 60 minutes of music in this download, so give it some time to fully load. The tunes are clipped at the end in classic Boris Rose fashion, so don't blame me for that. But – at least in musical terms – you'll get some real value for your efforts.

As always, these files were dubbed from the original vinyl. The sound isn't perfect (it wasn't when the record was new), but I've cleaned it a bit and I think you'll approve. 

Fats’ Gang!
Fats Navarro/Tadd Dameron/Anita O’Day 
Talcrip TDFN 10230

Fats Navarro, tp; Rudy Williams, as; 
Allen Eager, ts; Tadd Dameron, p; Curley Russell, b; Kenny Clarke, d.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 2, 1948
1. Good Bait

Anita O’Day, v; Tadd Dameron, p; Curley Russell, b; Kenny Clarke, d.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 2, 1948
2. What Is This Thing Called Love?
3. How High the Moon

Personnel as 1.
Aircheck, New York, NY; October 9, 1948
4. The Squirrel
5. The Tadd Walk

Personnel as 2.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 9, 1948
6. September in the Rain
7. How High the Moon

Personnel as 1.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 9, 1948
8. Dameronia
9. Good Bait

Personnel as 1; add Kai Winding.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 23, 1948
10. Eb-pob
11. The Squirrel

Personnel as 10; omit Navarro, Williams.
Royal Roost, New York, NY; October 30, 1948
12. The Chase
13. Wahoo
14. Lady be Good

Find it here: http://www.mediafire.com/download/vv29kng7bgmkymx/Fats_Navarro.rar