Woody Herman - La Fiesta (Live (Remastered)) '2022

Tracks list

Tracklist:

01. La Fiesta (Live (Remastered))
02. At The Woodchooper's Ball (Live (Remastered))
03. Sugar Loaf Mountain (Live (Remastered))
04. Pavane, Op 50 (Live (Remastered))
05. Reunion At Newport (Live (Remastered))
06. I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) (Live (Remastered))
07. Fanfare For The Common Man (Live (Remastered))
08. Giant Steps (Live (Remastered))
09. Caldonia (Live (Remastered))
10. Blue Flame (Live (Remastered))


 moreWoody Herman began performing as a child, singing in vaudeville. He
started playing saxophone when he was 11, and four years later he was a
professional musician. He picked up early experience playing with the big bands
of Tom Gerun, Harry Sosnik, and Gus Arnheim, and then in 1934, he joined the
Isham Jones orchestra. He recorded often with Jones, and when the veteran
bandleader decided to break up his orchestra in 1936, Herman formed one of his
own out of the remaining nucleus. The great majority of the early Herman
recordings feature the bandleader as a ballad vocalist, but it was the
instrumentals that caught on, leading to his group being known as "the Band That
Plays the Blues." Woody Herman's theme "At the Woodchopper's Ball" became his
first hit (1939). Herman's early group played with a Dixieland feel to many of
the looser pieces, with vocals contributed by Mary Ann McCall, in addition to
Herman. They recorded very frequently for Decca, and for a period had
trumpeter/singer Billie Rogers as one of their main attractions.

By 1943, the Woody Herman Orchestra was beginning to take its first steps into
becoming the Herd (later renamed the First Herd). Herman had recorded an
advanced Dizzy Gillespie arrangement ("Down Under") the year before, and during
1943, Herman's band became influenced by Duke Ellington; in fact, Johnny Hodges
and Ben Webster made guest appearances on some recordings. It was a gradual
process, but by the end of 1944, Woody Herman had what was essentially a brand
new orchestra. It was a wild, good-time band with screaming ensembles (propelled
by first trumpeter Pete Candoli), major soloists in trombonist Bill Harris and
tenorman Flip Phillips, and a rhythm section pushed by bassist/cheerleader
Chubby Jackson and drummer Dave Tough. In 1945 (with new trumpeters in Sonny
Berman and Conte Candoli), the First Herd was considered the most exciting new
big band in jazz. Several of the arrangements of Ralph Burns and Neal Hefti are
considered classics, and such Herman favorites entered the book as "Apple
Honey," "Caldonia," "Northwest Passage," "Bijou" (Harris' memorable if eccentric
feature), and "Your Father's Mustache." Even Igor Stravinsky was impressed, and
he wrote "Ebony Concerto" for the orchestra to perform in 1946. Unfortunately,
family troubles caused Woody Herman to break up the big band at the height of
its success in late 1946.

Herman recorded a bit in the interim, and then, by mid-1947, had a new
orchestra, the Second Herd, which was also soon known as the Four Brothers band.
With the three cool-toned tenors of Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, and Herbie Steward
(who a year later was replaced by Al Cohn) and baritonist Serge Chaloff forming
the nucleus, this orchestra had a different sound than its more extroverted
predecessor, but it could also generate excitement of its own.
Trumpeter/arranger Shorty Rogers and eventually Bill Harris returned from the
earlier outfit, and with Mary Ann McCall back as a vocalist, the group had a
great deal of potential. But, despite such popular numbers as Jimmy Giuffre's
"Four Brothers," "The Goof and I," and "Early Autumn" (the latter ballad made
Getz into a star), the band struggled financially. Before its collapse in 1949,
such other musicians as Gene Ammons, Lou Levy, Oscar Pettiford, Terry Gibbs, and
Shelly Manne made important contributions.

Next up for Woody Herman was the Third Herd, which was similar to the Second
except that it generally played at danceable tempos and was a bit more
conservative. Herman kept that band together during much of 1950 to 1956, even
having his own Mars label for a period; Conte Candoli, Al Cohn, Dave McKenna,
Phil Urso, Don Fagerquist, Carl Fontana, Dick Hafer, Bill Perkins, Nat Pierce,
Dick Collins, and Richie Kamuca were among the many sidemen. After some
short-lived small groups (including a sextet with Nat Adderley and Charlie
Byrd), Herman's New Thundering Herd was a hit at the 1959 Monterey Jazz
Festival. He was able to lead a big band successfully throughout the 1960s,
featuring such soloists as high-note trumpeter Bill Chase, trombonist Phil
Wilson, the reliable Nat Pierce, and the exciting tenor of Sal Nistico. Always
open to newer styles, Woody Herman's bop-ish unit gradually became more
rock-oriented as he utilized his young sidemen's arrangements, often of current
pop tunes (starting in 1968 with an album titled Light My Fire). Not all of his
albums from this era worked, but one always admired Herman's open-minded
attitude. As one of only four surviving jazz-oriented bandleaders from the swing
era (along with Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Stan Kenton) who was still
touring the world with a big band, Herman welcomed such new talent in the 1970s
as Greg Herbert, Andy Laverne, Joe Beck, Alan Broadbent, and Frank Tiberi. He
also recorded with Chick Corea, had a reunion with Flip Phillips, and celebrated
his 40th anniversary as a leader with a notable 1976 Carnegie Hall concert.

Woody Herman returned to emphasizing straight-ahead jazz by the late '70s. By
then, he was being hounded by the IRS due to a manager from the 1960s not paying
thousands of dollars of taxes out of the sidemen's salaries. Herman was forced
to keep touring and working constantly into his old age. He managed to put on a
cheerful face to the public, celebrating his 50th anniversary as a bandleader in
1986. However, his health was starting to fail, and he gradually delegated most
of his duties to Frank Tiberi before his death in 1987. Tiberi continued to lead
a Woody Herman Orchestra on a part-time basis but it never had the opportunity
to record. Fortunately, Herman was well documented throughout all phases of his
career. ~ Scott Yanow

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