****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
There's no need to feel deprived by missing this one unless you're a Stitt-ophile, following the Lone Wolf's every move. This one was recorded in 1979 as Stitt was in the midst of a European tour. The presence of drummer Bobby Durham (a favorite of Oscar Peterson and Monty Alexander) and Sonny's performance of the original title tune--vocally(!)--are the main reasons to select this session over dozens of superior candidates.Sonny, the world's most "perfect" saxophonist, is sounding somewhat desperate if not dispirited on this session while the rhythm section comes dangerously close to sounding like a burlesque band (the pianist's overplaying would be less annoying if I were convinced he was merely trying to compensate for Sonny's deficiencies on the occasion)--definitely a regression from the Roach-Klook-Blakey-Bud Powell days of which Sonny was an integral part. This is one of those times when Sonny was very likely playing through pain (perhaps a necessary dry spell) and, at best, is forcing his most familiar, auto-piloted formulae. At times ("There Will Never Be Another You") he gives it his all (sort of) but falls short of hitting the notes squarely on pitch. In a perfect world someone would select the 50 best Sonny Stitt albums for a time capsule and make them required listening not merely for any aspiring saxophonist but musician. He embodies--yes, lives in--the horn, exemplifies the Great American Songbook as much as Crosby or Sinatra, and he practiced a work ethic that would probably discourage as many musicians as it inspired. At times I wish he'd taken a bit more time off--to absorb the influence of "Kind of Blue," "Giant Steps," and Coltrane harmonics--but no one was better at doing what he did which, as Sonny once stated, was to play "simple music that the public could understand"--just "like Art Tatum"! (You could never accuse Sonny of underestimating the public.) No, it's not a 4-star album. Let's say 3 stars because it's Sonny Stitt, but if you're new to Sonny and sensitive to things like intonation, do yourself and Sonny a favor, and pass up this recording entirely!
