We are back for another round of classic jazz with swing and soul. More toe-tapping, head-bobbing, and hip-shaking awaits, so grab a drink, find your groove, and let the rhythm take you wherever it pleases.
| Title | Artist | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| The Cat (From “Joy House”) | Jimmy Smith | Written by Lalo Schifrin as part of the score for the French film Joy House, this track blends jazz and cinematic drama, driven by Smith’s iconic Hammond B-3 organ. Jimmy Smith revolutionized jazz organ, blending blues, bebop, and funk into an electrifying sound. |
| For Dancers Only | The Clark Terry Spacement | Originally written for Jimmie Lunceford’s Orchestra, this swinging dance tune was revived by Clark Terry, known for his playful, energetic trumpet style. Clark Terry, a legendary trumpeter and mentor to countless musicians, was a pioneer of jazz education and a key figure in both swing and bebop. |
| In Crowd | The Ramsey Lewis Trio | A jazz interpretation of Dobie Gray’s hit, this song became an anthem for stylish socialites. Ramsey Lewis, a three-time Grammy-winning pianist, blended jazz, R&B, and pop, bringing instrumental music into the mainstream. Ramsey Lewis has been an iconic leader in the contemporary jazz movement for over 50 years with an unforgettable sound and outgoing personality that has allowed him to crossover to the pop and R&B charts. |
| Tic Toc Pollywoc | Pérez Prado | A high-energy mambo piece showcasing Prado’s signature “dilo” (grunting) vocals and explosive brass. Pérez Prado, the “King of Mambo,” popularized the Latin dance craze in the 1950s with his rhythmic, big-band arrangements. |
| Frasquita Serenade | Don Byron | A modern jazz take on Franz Lehár’s operetta melody, blending classical influences with swing. Don Byron, a genre-blurring clarinetist and composer, is known for reinterpreting classical, jazz, and klezmer music. |
| Alexander’s Ragtime Band | Irving Berlin | Written by Irving Berlin, this song celebrates the lively energy of ragtime music. Berlin, one of America’s greatest songwriters, wrote over 1,500 songs, including “White Christmas” and “God Bless America.” |
| Undecided | Bobby Hackett & Vic Dickenson | A swinging jazz standard about love’s uncertainty, originally recorded by John Kirby’s Sextet. Bobby Hackett, a lyrical cornetist, and Vic Dickenson, a soulful trombonist, were masters of the classic jazz sound. |
| Buddy Bolden Stomp (ft. Olivier Franc) | Daniel-Sidney Bechet Quintet | A tribute to Buddy Bolden, the early jazz pioneer, featuring traditional New Orleans-style improvisation. Daniel-Sidney Bechet, the son of legendary saxophonist Sidney Bechet, continued his father’s legacy in jazz. Olivier Franc is a French soprano sax player. |
| Wade in the Water | Ramsey Lewis Trio | A jazz adaptation of a traditional gospel song, infused with bluesy grooves. Ramsey Lewis’s version became a hit, bridging jazz and spiritual music. |
| Midnight In Moscow | Kenny Ball | Originally a Russian folk song, this version turned it into a Dixieland jazz hit. Kenny Ball, a British trumpeter, helped lead the UK’s traditional jazz revival in the 1960s. |
| Opus One (ft. Gene Krupa) | Anita O’Day | Originally composed by Sy Oliver for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, this song became a big-band favorite. Anita O’Day, known as the “Jezebel of Jazz,” was a bold and innovative vocalist who brought swing to new heights. |
| Sent For You Yesterday | Big Al Dupree | A bluesy jazz classic first popularized by Count Basie, featuring a laid-back yet swinging feel. Big Al Dupree, a Texas-based blues and jazz pianist, kept the Basie sound alive. |
| Jumpin’ at the Woodside | Count Basie | A fast-paced swing classic named after the Woodside Hotel in Harlem, where many jazz musicians stayed. Basie, . Count Basie (born Aug. 21, 1904, Red Bank, NJ, USA – died Apr. 26, 1984, Hollywood, FL, USA), he king of swing piano, was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer, who led one of the greatest big bands of all time. |
| Filthy McNasty | Horace Silver Quintet | Written by Horace Silver, this funky, hard bop tune reflects his bluesy, playful piano style. Silver, a key architect of soul jazz, brought humour and groove to the jazz scene. Horace Silver was an American jazz pianist, composer and bandleader (born September 2, 1928, in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA; died June 18, 2014 (age 85), in New Rochelle, New York, USA) and son of John Tavares Silver (Silva), of Portuguese descent, born in the Cape Verde Islands, and Gertrude Silver, of New Canaan, Connecticut. |
| Blue Monk | Thelonious Monk | A bluesy composition featuring Monk’s signature angular, offbeat phrasing. Thelonious Sphere Monk (born on 10 October 1917 in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, USA and died on 17 February 1982 in Weehawken, New Jersey, USA) was an American jazz pianist and composer and a bebop pioneer, known for his eccentric personality and genius-level piano playing. |
| Scrapple From The Apple | Dancing Mood | A bebop masterpiece written by Charlie Parker, blending the chord changes of “Honeysuckle Rose” and “I Got Rhythm.” Dancing Mood, a Latin jazz group, infused it with new energy. |
| Willow Weep For Me | Dexter Gordon | A melancholic ballad about lost love, originally written by Ann Ronell in 1932. Dexter Gordon ((1923-1990)), a towering figure in jazz saxophone, was known for his smooth, expressive sound. He is widely regarded as the first musician to translate the language of mid-20th century modern jazz – a.k.a. “bebop” to the tenor saxophone. |
| Thanks for the Misery | Coleman Hawkins | A bluesy tune reflecting on life’s ups and downs. Coleman Hawkins, “The Father of the Tenor Saxophone in Jazz” transformed the instrument into a serious jazz voice. Also known as Bean or Hawk, Coleman Hawkins started piano lessons when he was five. He switched to the cello at the age of seven and two years later Coleman began to work on the tenor saxophone, turning professional by the age of 12. In August 1923, he began to record with Fletcher Henderson, whose orchestra also featured Louis Armstrong at this time. |
| Remember | Hank Mobley | A hard bop reimagining of Irving Berlin’s melody, showcasing Mobley’s warm tenor sax tone. Mobley, one of the most lyrical saxophonists in jazz, played a key role in Blue Note Records’ golden era. |
| Milestones | Miles Davis | A landmark modal jazz composition, shifting jazz harmony away from chord changes. Miles Davis (born on 26 May 1926 in Alton, Illinois, USA and died on 28 September 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA), one of jazz’s greatest innovators, constantly reinvented the genre. Trumpeter, bandleader, composer, and one of the most important figures in jazz music history, and music history in general, Davis adopted a variety of musical directions in a five-decade career that kept him at the forefront of many major stylistic developments in jazz. |
| Nica’s Tempo | Art Blakey | A tribute to Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter, a jazz patron who supported many bebop musicians. Blakey, the ultimate hard bop drummer, mentored generations of jazz greats. Arthur Blakey (Abdullah Ibn Buhaina) (born October 11, 1919, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA and died October 16, 1990, New York City, New York, USA) was an American jazz drummer, composer and bandleader, best remembered as founder and leader for 35 year of The Jazz Messengers. |
| Tea for Two (ft. Gene Krupa and His Orchestra) | Anita O’Day | A playful swing rendition of Vincent Youmans’s 1924 composition. Anita O’Day, famous for her rhythmic phrasing, transformed jazz singing into a more instrumental-like art form. |
| Go Chango (Les Baxter & His Orchestra) | Les Baxter | A wild, percussion-heavy track from Baxter’s “exotica” period, inspired by Afro-Cuban rhythms. Les Baxter, a pioneer of “exotica” music, brought world influences into jazz and lounge music. As American composer and conductor (born March 14, 1922, Mexia, Texas and died January 15, 1996, Newport Beach, California) he wrote over 150 film soundtracks. |
Sources
The information sources of the song facts include, but are not limited to, Wikipedia, songfacts.com, discogs.com, secondhandsongs.com, YouTube and artists’ related websites.
