(Bop, Cool) [CD] Hal McKusick (feat. Art Farmer, Bill Evans, Paul Chambers) - Cross Section: Saxes (1959) - 2004, FLAC (tracks), lossless

Scott Yanow --
A fine cool-toned altoist and an occasional clarinetist, Hal McKusick worked with the big bands of Les Brown, Woody Herman (1943), Boyd Raeburn (1944-1945), Alvino Rey (1946), Buddy Rich, and Claude Thornhill (1948-1949). In the 1950s, in addition to his work with Terry Gibbs and Elliot Lawrence, he was a busy and versatile studio musician. During 1955-1958, McKusick recorded nine albums of material as a leader for Jubilee, Bethlehem, Victor, Coral, New Jazz, Prestige, and Decca. Those small-group recordings, although basically cool bop, sometimes used very advanced arrangements, including charts by George Handy, Manny Albam, Gil Evans, Al Cohn, Jimmy Giuffre, and particularly George Russell. Hal McKusick died in April 2012 at the age of 87.

Hal McKusick's final recording as a leader mixes three separate sessions with contributions by four great arrangers. The cast of musicians varies from onedate to the next, although McKusick and pianist Bill Evans are present on every track, while Art Farmer, Milt Hinton, and Barry Galbraith also make strong impressions. This music has held up extremely well over the decades, especially George Russell's forward-thinking treatment of "You're My Thrill" and his sauntering, somewhat atonal, blues "Stratusphunk." Also valuable are the charts by Jimmy Giuffre, George Handy, and Ernie Wilkins. The blend of the saxophones in Handy's upbeat "The Last Day of Fall" almost sound like an accordion. Most of this music was reissued on the CD Now's the Time (1957-1958), although two brilliant arrangements by Jimmy Giuffre ("Yesterdays" and his own "Sing Song") were, unfortunately, omitted from that compilation, making it worth the effort to search for this elusive Decca LP.
-- Ken Dryden --

Personnel:
(## 3, 7 & 9)
Hal McKusick - bass clarinet & alto saxophone
Art Farmer - trumpet
Bill Evans - piano
Paul Chambers - bass
Connie Kay - drums
Recorded in New York City; March 25, 1958
(## 1, 5, 6 & 10)
Hal McKusick - alto saxophone
Frank Socolow - alto saxophone
Dick Hafer - tenor saxophone
Jay Cameron - baritone saxophon
Bill Evans - piano
Paul Chambers - bass
Connie Kay - drums
Recorded in New York City; March 28, 1958
(## 2, 4 & 8)
Hal McKusick - clarinet & alto saxophone
Art Farmer - trumpet
Barry Galbraith - guitar
Bill Evans - piano
Milt Hinton - bass
Charlie Persip - drums
Recorded in New York City; April 7, 1958