Barney Kessel, Vol. 3: To Swing or Not to Swing
by Barney Kessel
- Type: Album
- Released: 1955
- Label: Contemporary
- Country: United States
- Length: 39:57
- Community rating: 3.58/5 from 3 ratings
Album Notes & Community Reviews
Abandoning the piano entirely in favor of an airy, highly rhythmic instrumentation, the virtuosic guitarist leads a stellar quintet featuring Sweets Edison on trumpet. The session is characterized by an incredibly relaxed, unhurried swing, allowing the leader's highly melodic, impeccably clean improvisations to engage in delightful interplay with the muted brass. The beautifully recorded, flawlessly executed date represents an absolute high-water mark for mid-century West Coast jazz guitar.
Genres
Descriptors: Instrumental, Rhythmic
Tracklist
- Begin The Blues (4:21)
- Louisiana (3:55)
- Happy Feeling (3:55)
- Embraceable You (3:21)
- Wail Street (4:21)
- Indiana (3:08)
- Moten Swing (3:56)
- Midnight Sun (3:05)
- Contemporary Blues (4:05)
- Don't Blame Me (2:54)
- 12th Street Rag (2:56)
Credits
- Barney Kessel - primary artist, guitar, written-by
- Red Mitchell - bass
- William Claxton - cover [photo], design
- Irv Cottler - drums
- Shelly Manne - drums
- John Palladino - engineer
- Ralph J. Gleason - liner notes
- Jimmy Rowles - piano
- Lester Koenig - recording supervisor
- Al Hendrickson - rhythm guitar
- Bill Perkins - tenor saxophone
- Georgie Auld - tenor saxophone
- Harry Edison - trumpet
- Andy Razaf - written-by
- Bob Schafer - written-by
- J.C. Johnson - written-by
- George & Ira Gershwin - written-by
- Ballard MacDonald - written-by
- James F. Hanley - written-by
- Bennie Moten - written-by
- Buster Moten - written-by
- Lionel Hampton - written-by
- Sonny Burke - written-by
- Jimmy McHugh & Dorothy Fields - written-by
- Euday L. Bowman - written-by