Genre: Jazz
Pianist Ramsey Lewis is among the elite few jazz musicians to have landed pophits
with songs like „The In Crowd“, „Hang On Sloopy“, and „Wade In The Water“.
Born in Chicago in 1930, he learned to play the piano at the age of four and
began his professional career as a fifteen-year-old in the band „The Cleffs“. His
career is reminiscent of that of his five year older colleague, Ahmad Jamal, who
had begun to make a name for himself in Chicago since 1950 and led his own
trio early on, instead of playing piano in many different bands. That is why there
are so few recordings featuring them as sidemen.
His trio with Issac „Redd“ on drums and Eldee Young on bass, the former core
of “The Cleffs”, remained active until 1966. Following their debut „Ramsey Lewis
and his Gentle-men of Swing“, they mastered their success formula, which
consisted of a more grounded approach with strong blues and soul elements
as opposed to the more intellectual Ahmad Jamal. Occasionally the trio was
supported by strings and winds, to make the continuous production of the trio
more varied. But also the few Sideman recordings of Lewis show that he was
a great talent at the piano, no matter in which context. With the vibraphonist
Lem Winchester there was an interesting sound comparison to the modern
jazz quartet in the same cast. Also the very rare recording in the project of the
Ellington bassist Jimmy Woode is a real jewel. That the singer Lorez Alexandria
never made the big breakthrough remains an eternal puzzle, because their
production with Ramsey Lewis can be heard today with great joy. As a versed
hard-bop pianist, Lewis shines in the high-caliber band of drummer giant Max
Roach.
Although Lewis later made his music more commercial, he still enjoys a great
popularity, also as a radio presenter.
Feat. Ramsey Lewis, Max Roach, Hank Mobley, Kenny Dorham, Lorez Alexandria,
Paul Gonsalves, Lem Winchester, Eldee Young, Issac „Redd“ Holt, Frank Foster,
Frank Wess, Oliver Nelson.
Tracklist:
CD1
RAMSEY LEWIS AND HIS GENTLE - MEN OF SWING
1. Carmen (Georges Bizet) 4.30
2. I‘ll Remember April (Gene de Paul, Patricia Johnston, Don Raye) 4.13
3. The Wind (Russ Freeman) 4.05
4. Bei Mir Bist Du Schön (Jacob Jacobs, Sholom Secunda,
Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin) 3.15
5. My Funny Valentine (Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers) 3.29
6. Fantasia for Drums (Ramsey Lewis) 5.46
7. Dee‘s New Blues (Eldee Young) 2.59
8. Tres (Ramsey Lewis) 4.44
9. Limelight (Gerry Mulligan) 2.25
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Recorded in Chicago, 1956
RAMSEY LEWIS AND HIS GENTLE - MEN OF JAZZ
10. Delilah (Victor Young) 5.23
11. I Get a Kick out of You (Cole Porter) 3.02
12. Please Send Me Someone to Love (Percy Mayfield) 4.04
13. Brother John (Traditional) 3.52
14. Black Is the Color of My True Love‘s Hair (Traditional) 4.50
15. It Ain‘t Necessarily So (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 2.48
16. Seven Valleys (Fred Katz) 5.26
17. On the Street Where You Live (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe) 3.39
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Recorded on Febuary 9, 1958
Total Time 68.30
CD2
LEM WINCHESTER AND THE RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO
- A TRIBUTE TO CLIFFORD BROWN
1. Joy Spring (Clifford Brown) 3.26
2. Where It Is (Lem Winchester) 4.31
3. Sandu (Clifford Brown) 6.15
4. Once in a While (Michael Edwards, Bud Green) 5.34
5. Jordu (Duke Jordan) 3.26
6. It Could Happen to You (Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke) 3.41
7. Easy to Love (Cole Porter) 3.37
8. A Message from Boysie (Robert Lowery) 5.10
Lem Winchester (vibes) Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b)
Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) Recorded on October 8th, 1958
Total Time 35.41
CD3
THE RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - DOWN TO EARTH (MUSIC FROM THE SOIL)
1. Dark Eyes (Traditional) 2.31
2. Come Back to Sorrento (Traditional) 3.11
3. Soul Mist (Ramsey Lewis) 3.00
4. John Henry (Traditional) 2.26
5. Greensleeves (Traditional) 4.28
6. We Blue It (Eldee Young, Ramsey Lewis, Redd Holt) 4.59
7. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child (Traditional) 2.07
8. Suzanne (Traditional) 3.19
9. Billy Boy (Traditional) 2.41
10. Decisions (Eldee Young) 2.03
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Recorded at Ter-Mar Recording Studios Chicago,
November 6, and December 4, 1958
THE RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - MORE MUSIC FROM THE SOIL
11. Around the World in 80 Days (Victor Young) 3.35
12. Since I Fell for You (Buddy Johnson) 3.57
13. Hello Cello! (Eldee Young, Ramsey Lewis, Redd Holt) 3.19
14. I‘ll Wait for Your Love (Elizabeth Davis, Robert Head) 4.27
15. Volga Boatmen (Traditional) 3.23
16. Blues for the Night Owl (Sonny Thompson) 8.05
17. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (Otto Harbach, Jerome Kern) 2.47
18. Autumn in New York (Vernon Duke) 4.20
19. Gonna Set Your Soul on Fire 2.01
(Eldee Young, Ramsey Lewis, Redd Holt)
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) Recorded at
Ter-Mar Recording Studios Chicago on February 16 & 17, 1961
Total Time 35.41
CD4
AN HOUR WITH THE RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO
1. Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise (Oscar Hammerstein II, Sigmund Romberg) 7.30
2. C.C. Rider (Traditional) 2.28
3. Love for Sale (Cole Porter) 4.08
4. I Had the Craziest Dream / I Know Why 6.28
(Mack Gordon, Harry Warren, Buddy Bregman, Morgan, Davis)
5. It Ain‘t Necessarily So (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 4.34
6. I Love Paris (Porter) 2.02
7. The Way You Look Tonight (Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern) 8.04
8. Song of India (Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov) 2.44
9. Consider the Source (Ramsey Lewis, Eldee Young) 3.53
10. The Ruby and the Pearl (Ray Evans, Jay Livingston) 5.44
11. Walls of Jericho (Traditional) 3.18
12. Angel Eyes (Earl Brent, Matt Dennis) 4.53
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Recorded at Ter-Mar Studios, Chicago on April 22, 1959
Total Time 55.49
CD5
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - IN CHICAGO
1. Old Devil Moon (Yip Harburg, Burton Lane) 4.04
2. What‘s New? (Johnny Burke, Bob Haggart) 4.46
3. Carmen (Georges Bizet) 3.07
4. Bei Mir Bist Du Schön (Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin, Jacob Jacobs,
Sholom Secunda) 3.57
5. I‘ll Remember April (Gene de Paul, Patricia Johnston, Don Raye) 3.26
6. Delilah (Horatio Nicholls) 4.38
7. Folk Ballad (Traditional) 6.33
8. But Not for Me (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 5.16
9. C.C. Rider (Traditional) 3.09
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) Recorded during performance
at the Blue Note, Chicago, on April 30, 1960
Total Time 38.58
CD6
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - NEVER ON SUNDAY
1. The Ripper (Ramsey Lewis) 1.59
2. I Got Plenty of Nothing‘ (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin,
DuBose Heyward) 3.39
3. Water Boy (Traditional) 3.02
4. Thanks for the Memory (Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin) 3.33
5. Cielito Lindo (Traditional) 2.38
6. You Just Don‘t Care (Eldee Young) 3.08
7. Never on Sunday (Manos Hadjidakis) 2.11
8. You‘ve Changed (Bill Carey, Carl Fischer) 4.14
9. The Breeze and I (Ernesto Lecuona, Al Stillman) 2.40
10. Exactly Like You (Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh) 2.35
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Recorded at Universal Recording Studios
Chicago on August 10 and 11, 1961
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - COUNTRY MEETS THE BLUES
11. Your Cheatin‘ Heart (Hank Williams) 2.55
12. St. Louis Blues (W. C. Handy) 3.03
13. Blueberry Hill (Al Lewis, Vincent Rose, Larry Stock) 2.37
14. Country Meets the Blues (Ramsey Lewis) 2.22
15. Memphis in June (Hoagy Carmichael, Paul Francis Webster) 2.56
16. High Noon (Dimitri Tiomkin, Ned Washington) 4.39
17. I Need You So (Ivory Joe Hunter) 3.15
18. I Just Want to Make Love to You (Willie Dixon) 2.38
19. Tangleweed ‚Round My Heart (Roy Kelley, Forrest Wyatt) 3.17
20. My Bucket‘s Got a Hole in It (Clarence Williams) 1.47
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) string section
arranged by Lew Douglas and big band arrangements by Oliver Nelson
Recorded at Bell Sound Studio New York City on August 2 & 3, 1962
Total Time 59.16
CD7
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - SOUNDS OF SPRING
1. Sound of Spring (Ramsey Lewis) 2.29
2. Spring Can Really Hang You up the Most
(Fran Landesman, Tommy Wolf ) 4.23
3. Blue Spring (Ramsey Lewis) 2.58
4. Spring Is Here (Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers) 4.20
5. Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year (Frank Loesser) 2.42
6. Spring Fever (Ramsey Lewis) 2.36
7. It Might as Well Be Spring (Oscar Hammerstein II, Rogers) 3.53
8. Soft Winds (Benny Goodman, Fletcher Henderson) 3.12
9. There‘ll Be Another Spring (Peggy Lee, Hubie Wheeler) 2.30
10. Truly, Truly Spring (Eldee Young) 3.33
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) string section
arranged and conducted by Riley Hampton Recorded at United Recordings Studio
Hollywood, California on February 14 and 15, 1962
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - SOUNDS OF CHRISTMAS
11. Merry Christmas Baby (Lou Baxter, Johnny Moore) 4.02
12. Winter Wonderland (Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith) 2.09
13. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town (J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie) 2.20
14. Christmas Blues (Skitch Henderson, Ramsey Lewis) 2.47
15. Here Comes Santa Claus (Gene Autry, Oakley Haldeman) 2.39
16. The Sound of Christmas (Riley Hampton, Lewis) 2.20
17. The Christmas Song (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) 3.16
18. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (Traditional) 3.17
19. Sleigh Ride (Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish) 2.56
20. What Are You Doing New Year‘s Eve? (Frank Loesser) 3.28
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) string section
arranged and conducted by Riley Hampton Recorded at Ter Mar Recording Studios
Chicago in October, 1961
Total Time 61.56
CD8
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - BOSSA NOVA
1. Samba de Orpheus (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Luiz Bonfá) 3.31
2. Maha de Carnaval (The Morning of the Carnaval) (Jobim, Bonfá) 4.42
3. A Criancinhas (The Children) (Eldee Young) 2.38
4. A Noite Do Meu Bem (The Night of My Love) (Dolores Duran) 4.17
5. O Pato (The Duck) (Jayme Silva, Neuza Teixeira) 2.36
6. Generique (Happiness) (Traditional) 4.51
7. Roda Moinho (Whirlpool) (Vince Guaraldi) 3.20
8. Cara de Palhaco (The Face of the Clown) (Traditional) 2.23
9. Canacao para Geralda (A Song for Geraldine) (Ramsey Lewis) 6.15
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr)
Josef Paulo (git, pandeiro, vocals) Carmen Costa (cabaça, vocals)
LOREZ ALEXANDRIA WITH THE RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO
- EARLY IN THE MORNING
10. Early in the Morning (Bartley, Hickman, Jordan) 2.57
11. Don‘t Explain (A. Herzog, B. Holiday) 3.12
12. So Long (Ramsey Lewis) 3.27
13. Good Morning, Heartache (Fisher, Drake, Higginbotham) 3.18
14. Trouble Is a Man (A. Wilder) 2.44
15. I Ain‘t Got Nothing But the Blues (George, Ellington) 2.21
16. Baby Don‘t You Cry (Buddy Johnson) 2.14
17. Rocks in My Bed (Duke Ellington) 2.40
18. I‘m Just a Lucky So & So (Ellington, David) 3.01
19. I Almost Lost My Mind (Joe Hunter) 3.02
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) Lorez Alexandria
(vocals) Joe Newman (tp) Al Grey (tb) Frank Foster, Frank Wess (ts, fl)
Johnny Gray (git) Freddie Green (rhythm-git) Recorded March 15, 16,
and 17, 1960
Total Time 63.32
CD9
RAMSEY LEWIS TRIO - STRETCHING OUT
1. Li‘l Liza Jane (Traditional) 3.11
2. This Is My Night to Dream (Johnny Burke, James V. Monaco) 2.33
3. Scarlet Ribbons (Evelyn Danzig, Jack Segal) 3.30
4. Here ‚Tis (Ramsey Lewis) 2.49
5. My Ship (Ira Gershwin, Kurt Weill) 4.12
6. Put Your Little Foot Right Out (Traditional) 2.54
7. Solo Para Ti (Ramsey Lewis) 2.55
8. These Foolish Things (Harry Link, Eric Maschwitz, Jack Strachey) 3.36
9. When the Spirit Moves You (Ramsey Lewis) 3.42
10. A Portrait of Jennie (J. Russel Robinson) 2.28
Ramsey Lewis (p) Eldee Young (b) Isaac „Redd“ Holt (dr) Recorded at
Ter-Mar Recording Studios, Chicago February 23 and 24, 1960
Total Time 31.52
CD10
THE COLORFUL STRINGS OF JIMMY WOODE
1. Falmouth Recollections (Jimmy Woode) 3.03
2. The Way You Look Tonight (Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern) 4.39
3. Foofy for President (Jimmy Woode) 6.37
4. The Man from Potter‘s Crossing (Jimmy Woode) 4.19
5. Dance of the Reluctant Drag (Jimmy Woode) 4.20
6. Empathy, for Ruth (Jimmy Woode) 3.22
Jimmy Woode (bass, vocals) Clark Terry (tp) Britt Woodman (tb)
Mike Simpson (fl) Porter Kilbert (as) Paul Gonsalves (ts) Ramsey Lewis (p) Sam
Woodyard (dr) Recorded on September 2, 1957
MAX ROACH QUINTET - MAX
7. Crackle Hut (Owen Marshall) 5.48
8. Speculate (Kenny Dorham) 4.59
9. That Ole Devil Love (Doris Fisher, Allan Roberts) 6.28
10. Audio Blues (Max Roach) 6.30
11. C.M. (Hank Mobley) 5.02
12. Four-X (Max Roach) 3.56
Max Roach (dr) Kenny Dorham (tp) Hank Mobley (ts) Ramsey Lewis (p) George Morrow
(b) Recorded in Chicago on January 14, 1958
Total Time 59.04