Record Reviews

JOHN DANKWORTH ~ DUET FOR 16 VOCALION 6230 (Barcode: 765387623029) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1959 Released: 2015 This is an archival recording by the British Jazz saxophonist / composer / bandleader John DankworthFind albums by this artist and his orchestra. Taken from the BBC vaults, the music collected here was originally recorded during three sessions as part of the BBC´s transcription recordings, which were then broadcasted around the world by the BBC World Service. This particular recording includes spoken commentary in French and must have been intended for the French speaking territories; France, Belgium and perhaps Canada. Apart from the theme which is used as the opening and closing track, the album includes nineteen compositions, which include five Dankworth originals. Rest of the material is either standards or material composed by David LindupFind albums by this artist, who was the staff composer / arranger often collaborating with Dankworth. The orchestra´s lineup includes some of the top British Jazz players at the time, including the new arrival in UK, trumpeter Kenny WheelerFind albums by this artist. The excellent rhythm section comprised of pianist Derek SmithFind albums by this artist, bassist Eric DawsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Kenny ClareFind albums by this artist. Stylistically the music mimics the American Big Band tradition, which was very popular in Britain during the post-WWII period. Therefore the orchestra plays easy swinging music, which is very well executed, but hardly innovative or challenging in any way. Dankworth represents the transitional British Jazz generation, which was deeply rooted in the American tradition and never really moved into the modern Jazz idiom completely, although he was certainly open minded in comparison to many of his contemporaries, and did include a certain element of experimentation in his later work. These recordings are a snapshot of a period when Jazz was extremely popular and even served as dance music to a large part of the population. The popularity, however, demanded that the music would be kept strictly within closely defined melodic and rhythmic boundaries. One the modern British Jazz emerged by the mid 1960s Jazz naturally lost its popularity. Having said all that, this album is still a great fun to listen to and a wonderful piece of British Jazz history, which deserves to be remembered. Dankworth and his orchestra prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jazz can be played by Europeans without any inferiority complexes attached.

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