| Label: Summit Records
Catalog: SMT-630
Format: CD Most, SamOne of the most beloved figures in jazz, Sam Most's very last recording...this recording which features all new compositions from the multi-talented Carl Saunders and a dynamic LA based group of musicians, was recorded and finished just a month prior to Sam Most's passing June 13, 2013...it's full of spirit indeed...with catchy toe tapping originals that includes Sam scatting from the 'scat master' perfectly - really great!
One of the most beloved figures in jazz, Sam Most had more than his share of musical talent. He will perhaps always be best known for being a pioneering jazz flute soloist, creating a stir with his 1953 recording of "Undercurrent Blues." Sam was not the first jazz flutist (Alberto Socarras in the 1920s beat him by 25 years) but he was, along with Frank Wess, among the earliest to master bop, and he was the first to hum through his flute, an innovation later taken up by Rahsaan Roland Kirk.
But, as the music on this CD shows, there was more to Sam Most than just his flute playing. In 1955 he recorded an album called Sam Most Plays Bird, Monk & Miles that featured him in a sextet and a big band exclusively playing clarinet. His next album was accurately titled The Amazing Mr. Sam Most but a later record titled But Beautiful described his personality best.
Sam played his instruments just as he conducted his life, with a gentle and kind nature, a sly wit, and seemingly effortless virtuosity and creativity. He was a true original. A rare opportunity to hear this legendary master of music play!It is difficult to believe, while listening to this music, that this was Sam Most's final recording. He was still very much in his musical prime despite his declining health. There are no moments of hesitancy, no false steps or times when he sounds weak. Instead, his music is full of joy, with Sam pushing himself throughout. With the energy that he displays during
these last performances, he could easily pass for a 30-year old.Typically, he seems to find happiness with each chorus that he creates.
TRACK LISTING:
1. Bouncing Off the Blues;
2. Scatasplangalang;
3. Not a Sonata in Eb;
4. Dear Laffayette;
5. Samba De Nise;
6. Is That Asking Too Much;
7. Waking Up is Hard to Do;
8. Blues Mix;
9. I Knew all Along;
10. Plight of the Pleebes;
11. Twinkling Eye
 Price: $26.98 |
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