Coleman Hawkins - Memorial Album

A compelling European collection devoted to Coleman Hawkins, one of the foundational figures of jazz tenor saxophone. Memorial Album brings together a series of Hawkins performances recorded in New York during 1944, an important period when swing was beginning to give way to the emerging language of modern jazz.

The album features “Just One of Those Things,” “Don't Blame Me,” “Hallelujah,” “Make Believe,” “In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town,” “Under a Blanket of Blue,” “Beyond the Blue Horizon,” “Flame Thrower,” “Imagination,” “Cattin' at Keynote,” “Louise,” “On the Sunny Side of the Street,” “Three Little Words” and “Battle of the Saxes.”

Hawkins appears in several configurations, including his All American Four, Quintet and Quartet, as well as a Hawkins/Ben Webster ensemble. The sessions feature an exceptional supporting cast including Teddy Wilson, Buck Clayton, Oscar Pettiford, Cozy Cole, Don Byas, Harry Carney, Johnny Guarnieri, Al Lucas and Denzil Best.

Issued in France by Mercury as part of its Jazz Series, this LP is an appealing document of Hawkins' remarkably fertile 1944 period and a strong addition for collectors of classic swing, early modern jazz and historic tenor saxophone recordings.