Sassy Soul Strut
Encyclopedia
Sassy Soul Strut is an album by jazz
saxophonist Lou Donaldson
recorded for the Blue Note
label featuring Donaldson with Thad Jones
, Garnett Brown
, Seldon Powell
, Buddy Lucas, Paul Griffin
, Horace Ott
, Hugh McCracken
, David Spinozza
, John Tropea
, Wilbur Bascomb, Bernard Purdie
, Omar Clay, and Jack Jennings, with arrangements by George Butler
.
The album was awarded 2½ stars in an Allmusic review by Jason Ankeny who stated "Sassy Soul Strut quickly settles comfortably into a light, accessible mode too lively to dismiss as smooth jazz but too mellow to pass as anything else. Butler's arrangements haven't dated particularly well, but the record's too innocuous and good-natured to qualify as an outright failure. It's simply forgettable, nothing more and nothing less".
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
saxophonist Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson is a jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Badin, North Carolina. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker.His first recordings were...
recorded for the Blue Note
Blue Note Records
Blue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis. Francis Wolff became involved shortly afterwards. It derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. At the end of the 1950s, and in the early 1960s, Blue Note headquarters...
label featuring Donaldson with Thad Jones
Thad Jones
Thaddeus Joseph Jones was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.-Biography:Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten . Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen...
, Garnett Brown
Garnett Brown
Garnett Brown is a jazz trombonist who has worked with The Crusaders, Herbie Hancock, Lionel Hampton, and others.He graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and later studied film scoring and electronic music at UCLA In 1974 he won the Down Beat Reader's poll for trombonist, and...
, Seldon Powell
Seldon Powell
Seldon Powell was an American soul jazz, swing and R&B tenor saxophonist and flautist born in Lawrenceville, Virginia, probably best remembered for his early work with musicians like Tab Smith , Lucky Millinder 1949-51), Neal Hefti or Louis Bellson...
, Buddy Lucas, Paul Griffin
Paul Griffin (musician)
Paul Griffin was an American session musician and pianist, who recorded with hundreds of artists from the late 1950s to the 1990s...
, Horace Ott
Horace Ott
Horace Ott is a noted composer, record producer, conductor and pianist. Although not formally credited he was one of the writers of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood and arranged the Village Peoples hit Y.M.C.A.. He also led of the Horace Ott Orchestra....
, Hugh McCracken
Hugh McCracken
Hugh McCracken is a rhythm guitar player and session musician, arranger and producer based in New York.Especially in demand in the 60s, 70s and 80s, he appears on many recordings by Steely Dan, as well as albums by Donald Fagen, Jimmy Rushing, Billy Joel, Roland Kirk, Roberta Flack, B. B...
, David Spinozza
David Spinozza
David Spinozza is an American musician , who worked with former Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon during the 1970s, and had a long collaboration with singer-songwriter James Taylor, producing Taylor's album Walking Man....
, John Tropea
John Tropea
John Tropea is a guitarist with extensive experience in the rock, pop, and jazz genres. Tropea has written for and played with major recording artists from around the world...
, Wilbur Bascomb, Bernard Purdie
Bernard Purdie
Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie is an American session drummer, and is considered an influential and innovative exponent of funk...
, Omar Clay, and Jack Jennings, with arrangements by George Butler
George Butler (record producer)
George Butler was a prominent American jazz record producer, executive and A&R man. He worked for a number of well known jazz record labels from the 1960s to the 1990s including Blue Note Records, Columbia Records and United Artists Records. He signed and launched the careers of a number of now...
.
The album was awarded 2½ stars in an Allmusic review by Jason Ankeny who stated "Sassy Soul Strut quickly settles comfortably into a light, accessible mode too lively to dismiss as smooth jazz but too mellow to pass as anything else. Butler's arrangements haven't dated particularly well, but the record's too innocuous and good-natured to qualify as an outright failure. It's simply forgettable, nothing more and nothing less".
Track listing
- All compositions by Lou Donaldson except as indicated
- "Sanford and Son Theme (The Streetbeater)Sanford and Son Theme (The Streetbeater)Sanford and Son Theme is the theme to the 1970s situation comedy, Sanford and Son.-Overview:The song was composed by Quincy Jones through A&M Records and first released in 1973...
" (Quincy JonesQuincy JonesQuincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
) - 7:00 - "Pillow TalkPillow Talk (song)"Pillow Talk" in 1973 song by American soul singer-songwriter Sylvia.-History:Sylvia had originally hoped the song would be recorded by Al Green, who turned it down as he thought it was too risqué and against his religion. She eventually recorded "Pillow Talk" and released it in 1973...
" (Michael Burton, Sylvia RobinsonSylvia RobinsonSylvia Robinson was an American singer, musician, record producer, and record label executive, most notably known for her work as founder/CEO of the hip hop label Sugar Hill Records. She is credited as the driving force behind two landmark singles in the genre...
) - 4:52 - "Sassy Soul Strut" - 5:00
- "Good Morning HeartacheGood Morning Heartache"Good Morning Heartache" is a song written by Irene Higgenbotham, Ervin Drake, and Dan Fisher. Originally recorded by jazz singer Billie Holiday on January 22, 1946.-About the songwriters:...
" (Ervin DrakeErvin DrakeErvin Drake, born Ervin Maurice Druckman is an American songwriter whose works include such American Songbook standards as "It Was a Very Good Year". He has written in a variety of styles and his work has been recorded by musicians from all over the world in a multitude of styles...
, Dan Fisher, Irene HiggenbothamIrene HiggenbothamIrene Higginbotham was an American songwriter and concert pianist...
) - 2:32 - "City, Country, City" - 9:10
- "This Is Happiness" (Tadd DameronTadd DameronTadley Ewing Peake "Tadd" Dameron was an American jazz composer, arranger and pianist. Saxophonist Dexter Gordon called Dameron the "romanticist" of the bop movement, while reviewer Scott Yanow writes that Dameron was the "definitive arranger/composer of the bop era".-Biography:Born in Cleveland,...
) - 5:19 - "Inner Space" - 6:58
- Recorded at Generation Sound Studios, NYC on April 17, 1973 (tracks 1, 6 & 7) and April 18, 1973 (tracks 2-5).
- "Sanford and Son Theme (The Streetbeater)
Personnel
- Lou DonaldsonLou DonaldsonLou Donaldson is a jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Badin, North Carolina. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker.His first recordings were...
- varitoneVaritoneThe Varitone is an amplified saxophone that the Selmer Company introduced in 1965. The Varitone included a small microphone mounted on the saxophone neck, a set of controls attached to the saxophone's body, and an amplifier and loudspeaker mounted inside a cabinet. The Varitone's effects included...
alto saxophoneAlto saxophoneThe alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions... - Thad JonesThad JonesThaddeus Joseph Jones was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.-Biography:Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten . Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen...
- trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air... - Garnett BrownGarnett BrownGarnett Brown is a jazz trombonist who has worked with The Crusaders, Herbie Hancock, Lionel Hampton, and others.He graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and later studied film scoring and electronic music at UCLA In 1974 he won the Down Beat Reader's poll for trombonist, and...
- tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate... - Seldon PowellSeldon PowellSeldon Powell was an American soul jazz, swing and R&B tenor saxophonist and flautist born in Lawrenceville, Virginia, probably best remembered for his early work with musicians like Tab Smith , Lucky Millinder 1949-51), Neal Hefti or Louis Bellson...
- tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening... - Buddy Lucas - harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
- Paul GriffinPaul Griffin (musician)Paul Griffin was an American session musician and pianist, who recorded with hundreds of artists from the late 1950s to the 1990s...
- pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, electric pianoElectric pianoAn electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
, organ - Horace OttHorace OttHorace Ott is a noted composer, record producer, conductor and pianist. Although not formally credited he was one of the writers of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood and arranged the Village Peoples hit Y.M.C.A.. He also led of the Horace Ott Orchestra....
- electric piano - Hugh McCrackenHugh McCrackenHugh McCracken is a rhythm guitar player and session musician, arranger and producer based in New York.Especially in demand in the 60s, 70s and 80s, he appears on many recordings by Steely Dan, as well as albums by Donald Fagen, Jimmy Rushing, Billy Joel, Roland Kirk, Roberta Flack, B. B...
, David SpinozzaDavid SpinozzaDavid Spinozza is an American musician , who worked with former Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon during the 1970s, and had a long collaboration with singer-songwriter James Taylor, producing Taylor's album Walking Man....
, John TropeaJohn TropeaJohn Tropea is a guitarist with extensive experience in the rock, pop, and jazz genres. Tropea has written for and played with major recording artists from around the world...
- electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Wilbur Bascomb - electric bassElectric BassElectric bass can mean:*Electric upright bass, the electric version of a double bass*Electric bass guitar*Bass synthesizer*Big Mouth Billy Bass, a battery-powered singing fish...
- Bernard PurdieBernard PurdieBernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie is an American session drummer, and is considered an influential and innovative exponent of funk...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Omar Clay, Jack Jennings - percussion
- George ButlerGeorge Butler (record producer)George Butler was a prominent American jazz record producer, executive and A&R man. He worked for a number of well known jazz record labels from the 1960s to the 1990s including Blue Note Records, Columbia Records and United Artists Records. He signed and launched the careers of a number of now...
- arrangerArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...