Buck Clayton - How Hi The Fi (Featuring Woody Herman)

Side 1: How Hi The Fi Side 2: Blue Moon Recorded March 31st 1954 – Buck Clayton, Joe Thomas : trumpet/ Urbie Green, Trummy Young : trombone/ Woody Herman : clarinet/ Lem Davis : alto saxophone/ Julian Dash, Al Cohn : tenor saxophone/ Jimmy Jones : piano/ Steve Jordan : guitar/ Walter Page : bass/ Jo Jones : drums Side 3: Sentimental Journey Side 4: Moten Swing Recorded December 14th 1953 – Buck Clayton, Joe Newman : trumpet/ Urbie Green, Benny Powell : trombone/ Lem Davis : alto saxophone/ Julian Dash : tenor saxophone/ Charlie Fowlkes : baritone saxophone/ Sir Charles Thompson : piano/ Freddie Green : guitar/ Walter Page : bass/ Jo Jones : drums Recorded at Columbia’s 30th Street Studios, New York City. Produced by George Avakian with John Hammond The Buck Clayton LP “How Hi The Fi” was the first issue in 1954 from the famous Buck Clayton jam sessions. It was recorded at Columbia’s 30th Street Studios, which was one of the greatest recording sites in the world (the studio has since been abandoned, which must be one of the most stupid decisions executed by the corporate record industry), with a sound that’s still instantly recognisable. These Buck Clayton jam sessions were among the first large scale projects to utilise the potential of the new LP technology. The exciting music on this long out-of-print LP is now available again on 180gram vinyl, with the cuts "How Hi the Fi" and "Blue Moon" being the most memorable. Buck and fellow musicians are all in inspired form. The most memorable soloists are the rambunctious Trummy Young, the harmonically advanced chordings of Jimmy Jones and an exuberant Woody Herman who was rarely heard in this type of jam session setting. With Clayton having worked out some ensemble riffs for the horns beforehand and plenty of space left for spontaneity, this music is timeless magic.