(Dixieland) Bud Freeman - Chicago/Austin High School Jazz In Hi-Fi (1957) - 2006, MP3, 320 kbps

Three overlapping groups are heard from here, and they revisit the repertoire of the McKenzie & Condon's Chicagoans of 1927 (playing new versions of the four songs originally recorded) and Bud Freeman's 1939-1940 Summa Cum Laude Orchestra. The two septets and the octet feature such immortal Condonites as tenor saxophonist Bud Freeman; Jimmy McPartland and Billy Butterfield on trumpets; trombonists Tyree Glenn and Jack Teagarden (who also takes some vocals); clarinetists Pee Wee Russell and Peanuts Hucko; pianists Gene Schroeder and Dick Cary; rhythm guitarist Al Casamenti (but surprisingly no Eddie Condon); bassists Milt Hinton, Al Hall, and Leonard Gaskin; and drummer George Wettling. The veterans were all still in prime form at the time, and they sound quite inspired.
The performances contained herein of three sessions led by Bud Freeman, one of the founders of the Chicago jazz style, on RCA Victor in 1957 are further proof that even the age of some of the participants and the constant repetition of these tried and true warhorses hadn't diminished any individualistic fire or creative thought process. Given the changes in jazz and the public's musical taste during the late 1950s, it is remarkable that Bud Freeman got to make an album on a major label at all!
Wisely, the great tenor saxophonist did not waste this rare opportunity and assembled three excellent bands to tackle 14 venerated compositions from the '20s and '30s. as well as one new tune, composed by Freeman and Dick Cary. Sidemen include Jimmy McPartland or Billy Butterfield on trumpet, Tyree Glenn or Jack Teagarden on trombone, Pee Wee Russell or Peanuts Hucko on clarinet, Dick Cary or Gene Schroeder on piano, Al Casamenti on guitar, Milt Hinton or Leonard Gaskin on bass and George Wettling on drums.
Both Bud Freeman and Jack Teagarden, not surprisingly, are on top of their game and Teagarden contributes three vocals to the seven tunes on which he is featured. Some of Billy Butterfield's finest playing on record is featured. The seamless flow of Peanuts Hucko's clarinet on the last session contrasted by the incomparable daring statements made by Pee Wee Russell on the first two will continue to amaze and enthrall the listener. When Chicago/Austin High School Jazz in Hi-Fi was initially released, four titles had been omitted due to time restraints and found their way onto the compilation Bread, Butter and Jam In Hi-Fi a year later. This is the first time all fifteen tracks have been gathered together on one release. The tunes include classics from those McKenzie and Condon Chicagoan sessions for OKeh in 1927 - Liza, Nobody's Sweetheart, China Boy and Sugar - and the Bud Freeman and his Famous Chicagoans date for Columbia in 1940 featuring Teagarden and Russell - Prince of Wails, Jack Hits The Road, Forty-Seventh And State and At The Jazz Band Ball.
Thankfully, this group of sessions not only remains a testament to the quality of musicianship in a by-gone style but to a herd of musicians who defined an era and journeyed through life together celebrating it.