Ben Sidran - Nick's Bump (2003)



Groove-oriented jazz didn't start with the organ combos and soul-jazz groups of the '60s and '70s; plenty of grooving occurred with Dixieland in the '10s and '20s and swing in the '30s and early to mid-'40s. But soul-jazz did remind the jazz world that it was still OK for an improviser to groove -- that not everything had to be as complex and demanding as John Coltrane's "Giant Steps" or Sonny Rollins' "Oleo." And those soul-jazz and jazz-funk grooves of the '60s and '70s continue to hold up well after all these years, which is why Ben Sidran celebrates that era on this 2003 date. Although Sidran is known for his singing, he favors an instrumental setting on Nick's Bump; this time, Sidran uses the Hammond organ and the electric piano to get his points across -- and he savors the funkier side of post-swing jazz whether he is embracing Sonny Clark's "Blue Minor," Donald Byrd's "Black Jack," or three Eddie Harris compositions ("Listen Here," "Mean Greens," and "Cryin' Blues"). If Nick's Bump sounds dated, it is dated in the positive sense -- dated as in remembering how rewarding a particular era was and being faithful to the spirit of that era. Nick's Bump recalls a time when soul-jazz players realized that jazz was losing more and more listeners to R&B and rock -- and that the only way to win over those Marvin Gaye, Rolling Stones, and James Brown fans was to groove and be accessible. Soul-jazz, unfortunately, didn't restore the mass appeal that jazz enjoyed during the Great Depression and World War II, but it was a noble effort -- one that Sidran happily remembers on Nick's Bump, which falls short of essential but is still an infectious, enjoyably funky demonstration of what he can do in an instrumental setting. ~ Alex Henderson
Jazz has always been about a party - "Having fun in spite of conditions," as saxophonist Johnny Griffin once said. It's originally and essentially street music, music that comes from the bars, the clubs, the corners where people hang out and share the news, "wash away the dust of everyday life," (Art Blakey said that.). In that social space, during the social time, a lot of magic can happen. And of course, from time to time, people in that frame of mind will have a drink. Nick's Bump is our drink of choice.
In the classic tradition of the fifties and sixties, when groups like Benny Golson's Jazztet and Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers would stay on the road perfecting their music before recording it, the Nick's Bump Band road tested this music through two years of touring in Europe, Japan and the United States. Nick's Bump, then, is a metaphor as well as a drink. It stands for having a good time, playing music, in the words of Horace Silver, that makes you wanna "pat your feet, pop your fingers, and shake...whatever else you want to shake."
The songs, too, come from the halcyon days of groove jazz -- Lee Morgan's "Zambia", Eddie Harris' "Mean Greens" and Sonny Clark's "Blue Minor" to mention a few -- and are brought up to date through the production and recording technology of the great Hector Coulon. "Coulon understands the past and is hands on with the future," says Sidran, commenting on Coulon's drum-centric mixes and his skillful blending of the wisdom of Art Blakey and Dizzy Gillespie, captured via audio excerpts from Sidran's own enormous stockpile of jazz interviews. These interviews, collected over ten years, from 1981 through 1990, when Sidran was the host of National Public Radio's Jazz Alive! And Sidran on Record, will one day be released as a series of "Talking Jazz" CDs, conversations with many jazz greats, but they make their public debut here onNick's Bump.
Nick's Bump finds Ben Sidran returning to his roots on the Wurlitzer electric piano and Hammond B-3 organ, instruments he helped popularize during the early seventies with his recordings for the Blue Thumb and Arista labels, classic sides that were heard on jazz and rock stations across the country. Over the years, several ofJazzTimes (p.140) - "[A] studio album that swings with the spontaneity and inventiveness of live performance....[T]horoughly enjoyable."\

Personel:

Ben Sidran - Hammond Organ & Worlitzer Electric Piano
Bob Rockwell - Tenor Saxophone & Flute
Billy Peterson - Bass
Leo Sidran - Drums & Percussion
Louka Patenaude - Guitar

Genre................: Jazz
Source...............: CD
Year.................: 2003
Ripper...............: CDex 1.50b7 & Samsung CD/DVDW SH-222A
Codec................: LAME 3.97
Version..............: MPEG 1 Layer III
Quality..............: Insane, (avg. bitrate: 320kbps)
Channels.............: Joint Stereo / 44100 hz
Tags.................: ID3 v1.1, ID3 v2.3, APE v2.000
Ripped by............: pparadiso on 29.11.2010
Included.............: NFO
Covers...............: Front Back

01. Little Sherry
02. Cryin' Blues
03. Black Jack
04. Blue Panther
05. The Cats
06. Zambia
07. Means Greens
08. Listen Here
09. Blue Minor
10. Nick's Bump

Playing Time.........: 00:48:19
Total Size...........: 110.68 MB


[code]http://uploaded.net/file/vm9mzvfu/BSNB_by_pparadiso.rar[/code]