African Waltz is an album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, released on the Riverside label and performed by Adderley with an orchestra conducted by Ernie Wilkins.[1] The title track had been a UK hit single for Johnny Dankworth.
| African Waltz | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1961 | |||
| Recorded | February 28, May 9 & 15, 1961 | |||
| Studio | Plaza Sound (New York City) | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 35:04 | |||
| Label | Riverside | |||
| Producer | Orrin Keepnews | |||
| Cannonball Adderley chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception edit
The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album three stars and states: "The music on this CD reissue is better than it should be. Cannonball Adderley had a fluke hit with 'African Waltz' so a full album was recorded with the hope of coming up with additional hits... There is some strong material on the set (including 'West Coast Blues', 'Stockholm Sweetnin' ' and a remake of 'This Here') but the results are not too substantial and this was not that big a seller; it is still a reasonably enjoyable effort".[2] The Penguin Guide to Jazz awarded the album three stars stating "'A departure from and an extension of what the Adderleys were doing in their small groups. Ernie Wilkins arranges a set of full-bodied top-heavy charts which Adderley has to jostle with to create their own space, and the music's worth hearing for its Sheer Brashness and impact".[3]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| DownBeat |  [4] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [5] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz | [3] |
Track listing edit
- "Something Different" (Chuck Mangione) – 3:04
- "West Coast Blues" (Wes Montgomery) – 4:04
- "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" (Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach) – 3:02
- "The Uptown" (Junior Mance) – 2:15
- "Stockholm Sweetnin'" (Quincy Jones) – 3:41
- "African Waltz" (Galt MacDermot) – 2:12
- "Blue Brass Groove" (Nat Adderley) – 4:52
- "Kelly Blue" (Wynton Kelly) – 3:51
- "Letter from Home" (Mance) – 2:00
- "I'll Close My Eyes" (Buddy Kaye, Billy Reid) – 3:42
- "This Here" (Bobby Timmons) – 3:00 Bonus track on CD
- Recorded at Plaza Sound Studio, NYC, on February 28 (tracks 6 & 8), May 9 (tracks 1–3, 7, 9 & 11), and May 15 (tracks 4, 5, 10 & 12), 1961.
Personnel edit
- Cannonball Adderley – alto saxophone
- Nat Adderley, Joe Newman, Ernie Royal, Clark Terry, Nick Travis – trumpet
- Jimmy Cleveland, George Matthews, Arnett Sparrow, Melba Liston – trombone
- Bob Brookmeyer – valve trombone
- Paul Faulise – bass trombone
- Don Butterfield – tuba
- George Dorsey – alto saxophone, flute
- Oliver Nelson – tenor saxophone, flute
- Jerome Richardson – tenor saxophone, flute, piccolo
- Arthur Clarke – baritone saxophone
- Wynton Kelly – piano
- Sam Jones – bass
- Charlie Persip, Louis Hayes – drums
- Michael Olatunji – congas, bongos
- Ray Barretto – congas
- Ernie Wilkins – arranger
Production
- Orrin Keepnews – producer
- Ray Fowler – engineer (recording)
- Ken Deardoff – design
- Hugh Bell – photography (cover)
- Steve Schapiro – photography (liner, back)
References edit
- ^ Cannonball Adderley discography accessed 2 November 2009
- ^ a b Yanow, S. Allmusic Review accessed 19 October 2009
- ^ a b Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2006) [1992]. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (8th ed.). London: Penguin. pp. 10. ISBN 978-0-141-02327-4.
- ^ Wilson, John S. (August 17, 1961). "Cannonball Adderley: African Waltz". DownBeat. Vol. 28, no. 17. p. 27.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.