Drum Suite is an album by drummer Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers and the Art Blakey Percussion Ensemble, recorded in late 1956 and early 1957 and originally released on Columbia in April 1957.[2][3] It was the first of several albums recorded by Blakey in the 1950s and 1960s that explored percussion-oriented jazz. It was followed by Orgy in Rhythm, Holiday for Skins, and The African Beat.
| Drum Suite | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers | ||||
| Released | April 1957[1] | |||
| Recorded |
| |||
| Studio | Columbia 30th Street Studio New York City | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 40:57 | |||
| Label | Columbia CL 1002 | |||
| Producer | George Avakian | |||
| Art Blakey chronology | ||||
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| The Jazz Messengers chronology | ||||
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The 2005 CD reissue added three tracks from a June 1956 session, two of them previously released on Originally in 1982.[4]
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [5] |
Allmusic awarded the album 4 stars, calling it "Groundbreaking for its time, and still sounding vital, powerful, and visionary, the Drum Suite album is somewhat of a lost masterpiece that deserves a fresh audience".[5]
Track listing edit
Original release edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Sacrifice" | Art Blakey | 5:16 |
| 2. | "Cubano Chant" | Ray Bryant | 4:01 |
| 3. | "Oscalypso" | Oscar Pettiford | 8:48 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Nica's Tempo" | Gigi Gryce | 8:24 |
| 2. | "D's Dilemma" | Mal Waldron | 8:32 |
| 3. | "Just for Marty" | Bill Hardman | 5:56 |
2005 Columbia/Legacy CD reissue edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Sacrifice" | Art Blakey | 5:16 |
| 2. | "Cubano Chant" | Ray Bryant | 4:01 |
| 3. | "Oscalypso" | Oscar Pettiford | 8:48 |
| 4. | "Nica's Tempo" | Gigi Gryce | 8:24 |
| 5. | "D's Dilemma" | Mal Waldron | 8:32 |
| 6. | "Just for Marty" | Bill Hardman | 5:56 |
| 7. | "Lil' T (a.k.a. The Third)" | 8:12 | |
| 8. | "The New Message (a.k.a. Little T)" (Take 1) | 8:39 | |
| 9. | "The New Message (a.k.a. Little T)" (Take 3) | 5:32 |
Personnel edit
June 25, 1956 (Tracks 7–9) edit
- Art Blakey – drums
- Donald Byrd – trumpet
- Ira Sullivan – tenor saxophone
- Kenny Drew – piano
- Wilbur Ware – bass
The Jazz Messengers—December 13, 1956 (Side two) edit
- Art Blakey – drums
- Bill Hardman – trumpet
- Jackie McLean – alto saxophone
- Sam Dockery – piano
- Spanky DeBrest – bass
The Art Blakey Percussion Ensemble—February 22, 1957 (Side one) edit
- Art Blakey – drums
- Ray Bryant – piano
- Oscar Pettiford – bass, cello
- Jo Jones – drums
- Charles "Specs" Wright – drums, timpani, gong
- Candido Camero, Sabu Martinez – bongos
References edit
- ^ Billboard, April 29, 1957.
- ^ "Art Blakey Catalog - album index", JazzDisco.org; accessed June 5, 2013.
- ^ Schwartz, Steve, and Michael Fitzgerald, "Chronology of Art Blakey (and the Jazz Messengers)", May 1996-July 6, 2008; accessed June 5, 2013.
- ^ "Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers* – Drum Suite" at Discogs.
- ^ a b Leggett, Steve, Allmusic Review; accessed June 5, 2013.