Tour De Force – 1987
Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars
A remarkable trumpet section
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Imagine Dizzy Gillespie leading a group that includes Freddie Hubbard, Jon Faddis, Wynton Marsalis, Jimmy Owens, and Vaughn Nark on trumpets.
It happened during Gillespie’s special 70th birthday celebration concert in 1987.
With pianist Walter Davis Jr, bassist Eddie Gomez, and drummer Ignacio Berroa, the six trumpeters all take their turns on Dizzy’s “Tour De Force,” an original that utilized the chord changes of “Jeepers Creepers.”
Hubbard sounds fine, Marsalis shows off his virtuosity, Owens holds his own and makes Gillespie smile, Nark (on flugelhorn) plays speedy ideas, Dizzy is in good form for this late in his career, and Faddis takes a restrained solo punctuated by some of his stratospheric high notes.
Davis and Gomez also have solos before the trumpeters engage in a brief but fun tradeoff.
-Scott Yanow
Ella Fitzgerald