Leonard Feather Blindfold Tests

[Plays "A Bunch of the Blues" by Mel Torme with the Mel-Tones, from Back in Town, Verve Records (1960). Personnel: Art Pepper: tenor saxophone; Jack Sheldon: trumpet.]

Leonard Feather: Now.

Jon Hendricks: A potpourri of the blues, yeah. I heard Sweets' centerpiece. I heard Let it roll, and I don't know who that was playing saxophone, but that no bar modulation was a gas. Good trumpet. Good rhythm section. Good group. It's beautiful. Yeah, I like this. I'd like to hear more of this kind of thing, by groups. I don't know who it was. I don't know who any of the people were on the date. But they were good musicians and good singers. They sang in tune. Four stars.

[Plays "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off" by Ronnie Scott and Tubby Hayes, from Couriers of Jazz, Carlton Records (1958). Personnel: Tubby Hayes: vibes.]

Jon Hendricks: Hmm. Yeah. Stubborn blues. I liked that thing they did on the last four bars. It kind of had an Oriental feeling to it, on the last four there. I don't know who that was on vibes. Sound like Bags, but I don't think so. I don't know who any of the other cats were. But it was pretty. Four stars.

Leonard Feather: Okay.

Jon Hendricks: Who was that?

Leonard Feather: I mean, what school would you say it was? Who does it sound like? East coast or West coast?

Jon Hendricks: No.

Leonard Feather: What type of music would you classify it as?

Jon Hendricks: Yeah, I wouldn't know. Because, if I say West coast, it might have been done right in New York. If I say New York it might've been LA.

Leonard Feather: Yeah.

Jon Hendricks: Could have been anything. The blues.

Leonard Feather: But, it sounds authentic?

Jon Hendricks: Hmm. Cause it was...

[Plays unknown song]

Jon Hendricks: That had a nice feel to it. Whoever that was playing that clarinet had a pretty tone, reminded me something of Artie Shaw. Sounded like his tone. And that was a nice tune too, nice set of changes. But I have no idea who it was. Well done too. Nice arrangement. Well played. That was good. Give it four stars.

Leonard Feather: Four?

Jon Hendricks: Yeah.

[Plays unknown song]

Jon Hendricks: That's interesting. There was somebody in that, Anita O'Day, June Christy, Chris Connor school. I don't know who. Might've been.... Let me see. Could have been Chris. See that was a Frank Sinatra tune. Pretty lately. I don't know who that was. Can I know who that is?

Leonard Feather: What did you think of the singing first?

Jon Hendricks: Except for that one part there, it was in tune. Nice arrangement too. I liked it. Give it three stars, but I wish I knew who it was. Who was that?

[Plays "Darktown Strutters' Ball" by the Duke of Dixieland, from ...You Have To Hear It To Believe It! The Duke of Dixieland (Vol. 1), Audio Fidelity Records (1959). Personnel: Red Hawley: drums.]

Jon Hendricks: Yeah, it gave a happy feeling. I heard they had a banjo in there and no bass fiddle, because they had one of them other horns. And what was that big horn, instead of a bass fiddle? What is the name of that horn?

Leonard Feather: A tuba or a sousaphone.

Jon Hendricks: That sounded like it must've been a tuba? But I noticed the guy playing drums, he didn't play the old roll, like they played in the authentic stomping music, the old time ragtime. He played on his cymbal and that cymbal had a new sound. It sounded like one of them brand new Zildjians.

Leonard Feather: Yeah.

Jon Hendricks: And that guy playing, when he brought that cat on the tuba, that was modern riff. Sounds like to me a bunch of modern cats playing Dixieland, but I can't be hip and put it down, because I was stomping with my feet all the way. Four stars.

Leonard Feather: Do you know who it was?

Jon Hendricks: No.

Leonard Feather: You said who you thought it was? The band, I mean.

Jon Hendricks: The Dukes of Dixieland.

[Plays "Eventually" by Ornette Coleman, from The Shape Of Jazz to Come, Atlantic Records (1959). Personnel: Ornette Coleman: alto saxophone; Don Cherry: trumpet.]

Jon Hendricks: Yeah, this is the cats everybody is talking about. Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry. And I think they only use a bass and a set of drums, right? Well, I wouldn't know how to rate this, because for technical skill and getting around their horns, I have to give him five stars. But for singing melodically and putting things together well so that they create a beautiful melody, there isn't that much happening. So, I wouldn't know how to rate it. I'll have to pass on this and let-

Leonard Feather: You wouldn't agree with the theory that they're doing something entirely new and sensational, and different?

Jon Hendricks: No, I don't go along with that at all. I don't think that they're doing anything entirely new or sensationally different New, maybe. And certainly different, but not entirely new and not sensationally different.

Leonard Feather: But, otherwise you don't get any message from it?

Jon Hendricks: I get it in pieces. I'd have to put it together, before I can understand it, which to me, is not the purpose of what a person plays. You should get the message as he plays it, and be able to put it together at the time, not have to wait till later.

Leonard Feather: Okay, no further rating?

Jon Hendricks: No, I can't rate that.

[Plays "Salt Peanuts" by the Nutty Squirrels, from The Nutty Squirrels, Hanover Records (1959). Personnel: Sascha Burland: vocal; Don Elliot: vocal.]

Jon Hendricks: Should I make my comment, or?

Leonard Feather: Yeah, go ahead.

Jon Hendricks: Sascha Burland and Don Elliott, The Chipmunks. Sascha to me, is an unsung hero, for what he's doing to get jazz on the television, behind all those ads. Commercials. This is very interesting that they pick songs like that. I think it's a wonderful thing. I'm sorry they have to do it like that, speed up the tape and everything. But, if it gets out here and people start hearing it, maybe there'll be a time when they won't have to do it like that. And they can do it the regular way.

Leonard Feather: Yeah.

Jon Hendricks: Because, they sure can do it. Well, all those cats can scat. Don running those changes is pretty. I'm just sorry they have to do it that way but you know? Mysterious.

Leonard Feather: It's still good music, isn't it?

Jon Hendricks: Yeah it is.

Leonard Feather: How you rate it?

Jon Hendricks: Yeah.

Leonard Feather: Huh?

Jon Hendricks: Mm-hm.

Leonard Feather: How many stars?

Jon Hendricks: Oh, that's hard to rate too. Just because I'm glad it's out here, I'll give it four stars.

[Plays "Twisted" by Wardell Gray, from Swedes from Jazzville, Epic Records (1957). Personnel: Aake Persson: trombone.]

Jon Hendricks: What do they want to mess with Wardell's tune like that for? I don't know who they were, but I liked it better the old way. So that spoiled this for me. That was a nice thing, to change the key in the middle of the tune, but it doesn't really add to it.

Leonard Feather: Yeah.

Jon Hendricks: Don't mess with something good.

Leonard Feather: Did any of the soloists make any kind of impression?

Jon Hendricks: No. Except I was wondering whether that was a valve trombone or what's the name of the trombone? One with the slide. I don't know which was which. I didn't know if it was one of the other. Sounded like it might've been a valve trombone, but they were undistinguished and I don't like the way they mistreated the tune. Did you give the same title to the tune?

Leonard Feather: What title is that?

Jon Hendricks: Wardell Gray's tune, Twist. Oh, they kept the same title? That's good. Two stars.

[Plays "You Got It" by Cannonball Adderley, from The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in SAn Fransisco, Riverside Records (1960). Cannonball Adderley: alto saxophone; Nat Adderley: cornet.]

Jon Hendricks: Yeah, Ming the merciful. I was sitting in the workshop on Sunday afternoon, me and Judy, listening to him get this together. And at the rehearsal of the date they were going to do. This is Julian and Nat and Bobby Timmons, Louis Hayes and Sam Jones. Beautiful. Give them the whole constellation.

[Plays unknown song]

Jon Hendricks: That impressed me as one of those things where the arranger, or the composer and arranger, if it's both, is the one most known on that kind of date. It's one of the terms that jazz has taken, whoever writes or arranges is the focal man on the date. And not the people playing. And it was effective, in that it had a lot of effects in it, but I wasn't very moved by it. And I'd rather hear the one we just heard, moved me much more than that. I was able to respond more.

Jon Hendricks: This is good for listening to something effective, but that didn't give me any particular thrill. It didn't thrill me. As far as the writing goes, I'm sure it's very good. I can't even make any kind of comment on that, because I don't know anything about that. But speaking just as the listener, and a non-reading non-playing listener, it's good, but it didn't kill me.

Leonard Feather: Yeah.

Jon Hendricks: Give it a three stars.