October 2008

Lou Donaldson
Here ’Tis
Blue Note Records
Art Farmer
Brass Sessions: Brass Shout/The Aztec Suite
Blue Note Records

By Scott Yanow

Most of the vintage Blue Note catalog has now been reissued, although one hopes that Mosaic will eventually compile a box by the Three Sounds. Two former rarities that have returned recently are altoist Lou Donaldson’s Here ’Tis, a highly enjoyable quartet date with guitarist Grant Green, organist Baby Face Willette and drummer Dave Bailey, and Art Farmer’s Brass Sessions: Brass Shout/The Aztec Suite. The latter collects two complete albums from 1959 by the trumpeter. On Brass Shout Farmer is joined by an all-star big band arranged by Benny Golson, while Aztec Suite showcases Farmer with a large Afro-Cuban ensemble that performs charts by Chico O’Farrill. The generous reissue is consistently rewarding.