Kenny Dorham - This Is The Moment!: Sings And Plays (Mono)
ORDER LIMITED TO ONE ITEM PER CUSTOMER
Trumpet, vocals - Kenny Dorham [click here to see more vinyl featuring Kenny Dorham]
Trombone - Curtis Fuller [click here to see more vinyl featuring Curtis Fuller]
Bass - Sam Jones
Piano - Cedar Walton
Drums - Charlie Persip, G.T. Hogan
Written by Joseph Cosma (A1), Johnny Mercer (A1), Jacques Prévert (A1), Benny Golson (A2), Kim Gannon (A4), Mabel Wayne (A4), Cole Porter, (A5), Carl Brent (bé), Matt Dennis (B2), Harold Adamson (B3), Jimmy McHugh (B3), Ray Evans (B4), Jay Livingston (B4), Victor Young (B4), Joe Greene (B5)
1 LP, standard sleeve
Limited to 1,000 copies
Original analog Master tape : YES
Heavy Press : 180g
Record color : Black
Speed : 33 RPM
Size : 12'’
Mono
Studio
Record Press : unspecified
Label : New Land
Original Label : Riverside
Recorded July 7 & August 15, 1958 at Reeves Sound Studios New York City
Engineered by Jack Higgins
Produced by Orrin Keepnews
Design by Paul Bacon
Photography by Paul Weller
Originally released in November 1958
Reissued in 2024
Tracks:
Side A:
- Autumn Leaves
- I Remember Clifford
- Since I Fell for You
- I Understand
- From This Moment On
Side B:
- This Is the Moment
- Angel Eyes
- Where Are You?
- Golden Earrings
- Make Me a Present of You
Reviews:
"The release of this recording must have surprised most jazz listeners at the time, for trumpeter Kenny Dorham sings on all ten selections. He had never hinted at any desire to sing previously (although he had sung a blues regularly with Dizzy Gillespie & His Orchestra in the 1940s) and, as it turned out, this was his one and only vocal album; the sales were probably quite a bit less than Chet Baker's records of the period. Dorham had an OK voice, musical if not memorable, but the arrangements for these selections (which utilize his trumpet and Curtis Fuller's trombone, both of which are muted all the time) are inventive and pleasing. The supportive rhythm section is also an asset; pianist Cedar Walton made his recording debut on this album (released on CD via the Original Jazz Classics imprint), which is a historical curiosity." AllMusic Review by Scott Yanow.
"Tough bootin’ tenor sax players and blues-wailin’ guitarists may immediately be associated with Texas, but it should be remembered that trumpet ace Kenny Dorham also hailed from the Lone Star State. One of the Savoy label’s original BeBop Boys, somehow, in the scheme of things, KD, is sometimes overlooked despite the fact he replaced Miles in Bird’s quintet (1948), partnered Hank Mobley in The Jazz Messengers (1956-58), fronted his own short-lived Jazz Prophets with J.R. Montrose, recorded with Monk, Rollins, Coltrane and just about everyone else you could wave a stick at. Furthermore, KD was the only person that Max Roach was adamant could fill the gap in his quintet following the tragic death of Clifford Brown and, as he moved from bebop into hard bop KD greatly improved both his tone and his skills.
Of the four albums spread over two discs here, This Is The Moment suffers from Dorham’s unimpressive vocals whereas Quiet Kenny is one of his finest showings prior to his game-changing Blue Note sojourn. Meanwhile, the two noteworthy LPs with Jackie McLean (the live – Inta Somethin’, the other the studio Matador) document a most fulfilling partnership (check out McLean’s solo showstopper ‘Lover Man’) that were cut in the middle of KD’s tenure with Blue Note where, in the company of Joe Henderson he reached a creative peak." Jazz Wise Review by Roy Carr
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4 / 5 ; Discogs : 3.67 / 5 ; The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings : 3 / 4