Woody Herman: Bijou

Track

Bijou

Group

Woody Herman

CD

The Thundering Herds, 1945-1947 (Columbia Jazz Masterpieces CK 44108)

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Musicians:

19-piece band featuring Woody Herman (alto sax), Bill Harris (trombone), Dave Tough (drums)

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Composed by Ralph Burns

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Recorded: New York, August 20, 1945

Albumcoverwoodyherman-thunderingherds1945-1947

Rating: 95/100 (learn more)

Recorded by Woody Herman's all-white Herd two years before Dizzy Gillespie introduced Afro-Cuban jazz, "Bijou" (subtitled "rhumba à la jazz") might be called Ofay-Cuban jazz. The leader leads off with a Johnny Hodges-style alto solo, but thereafter "Bijou" becomes the property of powerhouse trombonist Bill Harris, by turns pretty, burry and blasting. A neglected master of 1940s jazz, Harris must be heard to be believed.

Caveat: Columbia/Legacy's self-styled "Ultimate Woody Herman Anthology," Blowin' Up a Storm! (2001), presented two alternate takes of "Bijou" but identified only one as such and omitted the superior master take (mxCO.35106-1), thus nullifying the "ultimate" claim. Consider the track on The Thundering Herds, 1945-1947 definitive.

Reviewer: Alan Kurtz

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