Resonance Records has announced the Feb. 19 release of the two-CD Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra’s All My Yesterdays: The Debut 1966 Recordings at the Village Vanguard.
According to a press release, “This first official release of these
recordings capturing the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra in their opening
night performance at the legendary Village Vanguard in NYC on February
7, 1966, a performance that launched a tradition of successive Monday
night appearances by the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra that lasted 12
years and which continues today through the dedication of the band's
musical heir, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.”
The release includes over 100 minutes of music, with a 92-page book, featuring
rare, previously unpublished photos, essays, interviews and memoirs.
Contributors include executive producer George Klabin, who recorded the
original tapes, producer Zev Feldman, associate producer Chris Smith
(author of The View from the Back of the Band: The Life and Music of Mel Lewis),
longtime Vanguard Jazz Orchestra arranger and pianist Jim McNeely, and
trombonist/educator and current member of the Vanguard Orchestra John
Mosca. All of the living musicians who played on these recordings
contributed to the notes, recounting their personal experiences of the
Thad Jones / Mel Lewis Orchestra. Included are accounts from
saxophonists Jerry Dodgion, Eddie Daniels and Marv "Doc" Holladay,
trumpeter Jimmy Owens, trombonists Garnett Brown and Tom Macintosh,
along with bassist Richard Davis. The pages display rare photos by Chuck
Stewart, Raymond Ross, Ray Avery and Jan Persson.
Track List
Disc One - Recorded Feb. 7, 1966
Back Bone (13:21)
All My Yesterdays (4:22)
Big Dipper (5:51)
Mornin' Reverend (4:49)
The Little Pixie (14:24)
Big Dipper (alt take) (5:44)
Disc Two - Recorded March 21, 1966
Low Down (4:38)
Lover Man (5:24)
Ah, That's Freedom (10:08)
Don't Ever Leave Me (4:28)
Willow Weep For Me (6:15)
Mean What You Say (5:51)
Once Around (12:44)
Polka Dots & Moonbeams (4:02)
Mornin' Reverend (5:49)
All My Yesterdays (4:24)
Back Bone (12:58)