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AL CASEY
A Tribute to "Fats"
Al Casey guitar
Red Richards piano
Jan Jankeje bass
Imre Köszegi drums
It Don<t Mean A Thing
Squeeze Me
Holey Moley
Jit it
Like it Ji<ts
Cute
After You've Gone
Just the Blues
Honeysuckle Rose
How Long Is This Been Going On
Cheek to Cheek
Total time: 4934
AL CASEY, world-famous for his long association with "Fats"
Waller's small recording group as well as with the major touring bands,
is releasing, at 78 years his Tribute to "Fats".
Al has also worked with Teddy Wilson, Billy Kyle and Louis Armstrong. He
has recorded with Billie Holiday, as well as with the King Curtis All
Stars. Within one year he topped the critics' and fans' jazz polls of
various US jazz fan magazines and kept up there until the audience's
taste switched to bebop. This fast rise from "rhythm serf" to guitar
soloist was facilitated by the invention of the electric guitar.
As a style-forming musician in the classical swing era, "Al" Casey - with the "single-note technique" he
introduced - ranks with Lonnie Johnson, Eddie Lang, Teddy Bunn, Django
Reinhardt, Irving Ashby, Tiny Grimes, Allen Reuss and Charlie Christian.
Also well-versed in his technique, and as swinging as always, is bassplayer Jan Jankeje,
a composer and successful producer of - amongst others - a variety of
albums featuring Jaco Pastorius. One of whose achievements is the
discovery of Bireli Lagrene. Jan Jankeje is excellently supported by
drummer Imre Köszegi.
A "Tribute to..." quite often strives to come as close as possible to
the idol the tribute is intended for. Practically a cover version
without a chance of attaining the original. jazzpoint records did not
even try to do that. We picked musicians who want to pay their respects
to "Fats" Waller without abandoning their very own styles.
One of them, Albert Aloysius "Al" Casey, guitar, born in Louisville,
Kentucky on September 15, 1915, started off with violin lessons,
switched to the ukulele, and finally to the guitar in N.Y. Although a
graduate from Martin Music School he was content to play rhythm guitar
to Thomas "Fats" Waller practically almost whenever he played with this
exceptional musician and entertainer.
Al Casey played on nearly all of the many hundreds of "Fats" records,
both the million- selling hits and the big band recordings that received
less attention. Not until after the death of "Fats" Waller did he "shed
his chrysalis" to become that spectacular butterfly that is the soloist
Al Casey.
Within one year he topped the critics' and fan's Jazz polls of various
US Jazz fan magazines and kept up there until the audience's tast
switched to bebop. This fast rise from "rhythm serf" to guitar soloist
was facilitated by the invention of the electric guitar. As a
style-forming musician in the classical swing era, "Al" Casey - with the
"single-note technique" he introduced - ranks with Lonnie Johnson,
Eddie Lang, Teddy Bunn, Django Reinhardt, Irving Ashby, Tiny Grimes,
Allen Reuss and Charlie Christian. The numerous Jazz concerts after
1944, published after the recording ban of the US trade union, show this
single technique (more than) clearly. In this tribute to "Fats" Al
Casey demonstrates the rhythm guitarist and the soloist in a
well-balanced ratio.
The stride pianist Red Richards always felt drawn to "Fats" Waller. His
solo recordings in the early fifties as accompanist to the Buck Clayton,
Mezz Mezzrow All Stars in Paris provided him with ample opportunity to
document this predilection on records. jazzpoint records has featured
this world class pianist on several CD's as an accompanist "Benny Waters
Plays Songs of Love - CD jp 1039", as a bandleader "Swingtime - CD jp
1041" as a soloist "My Romance - CD jp 1042" and "Groove Move - CD jp
1045 with George Kelly, Doc Cheatham etc."
Jan Jankeje has been jazzpoint's house bassist since the LP days. As
Bireli Lagrene's bassist in his youth he was the backbone, the mainstay
of the most varied groups, ranging from Dixieland bands and swing
orchestras to modern and experimental Jazz. Although the latter styles
do more justice to his enormous technique, the bass giant enriches the
swing music presented here with some solos of real virtuosity.
Drummer Imre Köszegi from Budapest keeps his birthdate a secret, but as
he graduated from Bela Bartok Conservatory as early as 1963 he can't be a
youngster anymore. His many teaching obligations as well as the number
of musicians he rattled his sticks and - preferably - swept his brushes
for, would fill even the most voluminous booklet. These illustrious
names include Benny Bailey, Wolfgang Dauner, Carmel Jones, Albert
Mangelsdorf and Jimmy Woode as well as Attila Zoller and Frank Zappa.
His recording sessions, not less than 16, include famous groups such as
the Aladar Pege Trio. With a modern touch troughout, here he shows his
qualities as a swinger.
Our price: 13,45 EUR
incl. 19.0% MWSt. / VAT
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