TRANSITION (FLORESCENT SALMON WITH SWIRL VINYL 160G)

Buddy Rich, Lionel Hampton, Teddy Wilson, Zoot Sims, George Duvivier - Transition / A mixed bag of work from Buddy and Hamp - part straight jazz, and part sweet electric funk! The first two-thirds of the album features Rich and Hampton with Terry Wilson on piano, Zoot Sims on tenor, and George Duvivier on bass - grooving hard in that open-ended way of some of Hamptons small group dates for Verve from the early 50s, on titles that include Avalon, Ring Dem Bells, Ham Hock Blues, and Air Mail Special. The last third of the album features a larger group - still with Rich and Hampton, but also with some keyboards from Kenny Barron, plus tenor by Sal Nistico and guitar from Jack Wilson. The vibe on these tracks is a bit more 70s-styled - with some of the soaring electric modes you might expect from Groove Merchant! Titles include EG and Fum - both great funky numbers!