Jumpin’ At The Woodside + I Needs To Be Bee’d With
Count Basie and Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis
Two very different but equally rewarding performances by the 1965 Count Basie Orchestra
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The Count Basie Orchestra was close to 30 years old and at the peak of its powers when it appeared on Great Britain’s Show Of The Week on Sept. 18, 1965.
“Jumpin’ At The Woodside” is given a hard-driving treatment with the great tenor-saxophonist Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis taking a ferocious solo at a raging tempo.
Every note that Lockjaw plays is intense and passionate and, when the band (driven by drummer Rufus “Speedy” Jones) starts riffing behind him, Davis is unrelenting.
The second number, a blues called “I Needs To Be B’eed With,” features some wonderful playing from pianist Count Basie (who displays his sly wit and perfect placement of notes) along with trombonist Al Grey who shows plenty of personality while utilizing the plunger mute.
– Scott Yanow
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