#georgie auld

[jazzplusplus]

1939 - Artie Shaw - publicité Selmer

[peter-tschirky]

Georgie Auld - Misty - Tenor Sax - Coral Lp Cover

[dustedmagazine]

Thelma Gracen & Milli Vernon – The Best Voices That Time Forgot (Fresh Sound)

Tirelessly active in the increasingly thankless realm of classic jazz reissue stewardship, producer Jordi Pujol is deserving of both copious thanks for his efforts and no small amount of consternation at how he keeps at it. The Best Voices That Time Forgot embodies the latest in a long line of series proffered under his Fresh Sound banner. The mission is to mine the work of abandoned jazz singers of yore, aspiring talents who for whatever reasons failed to reach the professional heights of peers from their own era. The format is that of the two-fer, pairing vintage albums by singers who may or may not be stylistically similar. In the case of Thelma Gracen and Milli Vernon, names who fit the mantle of the forgotten without argument, the common ground is that of a combination of tiny label contracts and songbooks of standards.

Separated by coasts and the span of several months between 1955-1956 both women benefit from crackerjack backing bands on their respective sessions. Gracen, whose proclivities also included outright pop songs, negotiates a program also populated by a handful of jazz standards. Swing veteran tenorist Georgie Auld fronts the Los Angeles-based sextet in her service alongside guitarist Barney Kessel and pianist Lou Levy. The twelve tunes are all jukebox-sized with only two surpassing four minutes, which leaves the bulk of space to Gracen’s graceful and ingratiating interpretation of song verse starting with a suitably sultry take on “I’ll Remember April.” Limited in range, there remains lilting intonation to her confident phrasing that complements Auld’s assured, vibrato-laced support. Kessel and Levy’s gilded chords work well in tandem and apart and drummer Sid Bulkin (now as forgotten as Gracen) keeps supple swishing beat with brushes.

Vernon is a shade more openly emotive in contrast to the cooler shadings of her counterpart. Pianist Dave McKenna and guitarist Jimmy Raney join the indisputable ace on the roster that is Jo Jones, a swing drumming pioneer who brings his customary panache to the date despite receiving no sonic favors from the Manhattan studio engineer. Trumpeter Ruby Braff joins the action on most tunes and journeyman bassist Wyatt Rhuter who shared Bulkin’s anonymity even in the 20th century completes the combo. “Spring is Here” teams Vernon with Raney’s spare chords to winsome effect before Jones leads the delayed entry of the rest of the crew and the singer playfully tests her range with a couple of belted verses. “St. James Infirmary” proves her mettle on more antiquated if authentic fare, benefiting greatly from the bucolic Braff’s muted interjections and Raney’s clip-clop fret effects. Gracen and Vernon are gone, but thanks to Pujol, no longer forgotten.

Derek Taylor

[twangyk]

Georgie Auld - Taking A Chance On Love

First appeared on the album "The Georgie Auld Quintet – The Georgie Auld Quintet Plays The Winners" (Philips, 1963). This one was taken from the compilation "Various ‎– Saxophone Vol.2" (Verve Records, 1990), track #5. Georgie Auld (real name: John Altwerger, 1919-1990) was a Canadian jazz saxophonist (tenor, alto, and soprano) and bandleader who moved to Brooklyn, New York at the age of 10. He played alongside countless notables and in many prominent Big Bands such as Benny Goodman And His Orchestra, Artie Shaw And His Orchestra, Billie Holiday And Her Orchestra, etc.

[jazzplusplus]

1984 - La Grande Parade du Jazz de Nice - Georgie Auld, Harry Edison, Phil Wilson - Photo P. Savelon

[opticandmasturbation]

Portrait of Dizzy Gillespie and Georgie Auld, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947 by William Gottlieb

[dirtylowdown2]

Georgie Auld - Harlem Nocturne

"Clocking in at under three minutes, yet stretching every note into forever...... A true Master of his craft"

[mosaicrecords]

Maynard Ferguson: Dancing Nitely

One of my favorite 1950s Maynard Ferguson recordings is this Bill Holman arrangement (based on Ja Da) called Dancing Nitely. Straightforward swing with fine solos by Lorraine Geller, Georgie Auld and of course Maynard. Mike Zirpolo contrasts this EmArcy classic from 1955 with a version with MF in 1973.

-Scott Wenzel

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