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Another great blues head from one of the truly great "groove masters." We've notated both the "in chorus" and the "out chorus" in all of the lead sheet versions. Our audio excerpt starts with the last chorus of the out head, so you get a taste of Gene's great "turnaround" melody that grooves its way to the end of the arrangement.
This was a great choice to start the recording session. It definitely shows that "The Boss Is Back!" after being absent from the recording studio as a leader since September of 1962. That last session, in 1962, was titled "Bad! Bossa Nova" and included one Ammons title, Moito Mato Grosso.
Gene Ammons is the son of the great boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons. Born in Chicago, Gene studied music at Du Sable High School under Captain Walter Dyett. He left Chicago at 18 to tour with King Kolax. On September 5, 1944, at the age of 19, he made his first recording with Billy Eckstine and his Orchestra. The Eckstein band was truly legendary, with Dexter Gordon on tenor sax, Leo Parker on baritone, Dizzy Gillespie in the trumpet section, Art Blakey on drums, Tommy Potter on bass, Sarah Vaughan singing with the band, and Tadd Dameron as one of the arrangers. It was a hothouse of talent and creativity and an immense opportunity for the young Gene, whom Billy nicknamed “Jug” when the straw hats ordered for the band were too small for his head. Read more...
