Reel to Real Recordings is proud to announce the label's co-
inaugural release, Swingin' in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse (1966-1967), a
scintillating set of previously unissued live recordings of the Cannonball
Adderley Quintet featuring Cannonball's brother and cornetist Nat Adderley,
pianist Joe Zawinul, bassist Victor Gaskin and drummer Roy McCurdy recorded
over the course of 4 nights between 1966 and 1967 at the legendary Penthouse
jazz club in Seattle, Washington. This is the very same band that recorded the
classic Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at "The Club" album on Capitol
Records on October 20, 1966, and it captures the quintet in rare form at the
height of their most powerful swingin'.
Back in the
spring of 2016, producer (and co-president of the acclaimed archival jazz
label, Resonance Records) Zev Feldman met up with Canadian jazz impresario and
saxophonist Cory Weeds for a series of shows at Frankie's jazz club in
Vancouver centered around a series of historical releases on Resonance. It was
during this time that the seed was planted of them starting a new label
dedicated to finding and preserving important historical jazz recordings. Zev
Feldman explains, "Cory was fascinated by the idea of unearthing
previously unheard archival recordings by great jazz artists. There are so many
great recordings out there that deserve to be heard and Cory wanted to offer up
another home for them. When I mentioned to him in passing that I had come
across some Cannonball Adderley tapes from the 1960s a while back, he was
immediately interested in seeing how he could release them on what would become
his new label venture, Reel to Real. To say he was excited by the prospect is a
major understatement."
Cory Weeds
says, "Cannonball Adderley's music has had a great impact on me as
musician, not only as a saxophonist but as a frontman communicating with an
audience. Swingin' in Seattle gives the listener a good idea of what it was
like to be in the presence of this great musician at one of his shows. I'm so
thrilled to have had the opportunity to work with Zev's team to give this
release the deluxe treatment it so deserves."
The deluxe
double-LP and CD packages for Swingin' in Seattle are beautifully designed by
longtime Resonance Records designer Burton Yount, and include extensive
booklets containing rare photos by Lee Tanner, Tom Copi and others. Music
journalist and veteran liner note writer Bill Kopp contributes the featured
essay placing Cannonball's music in historical context. Seattle radio DJ and
the original engineer of the Penthouse, Jim Wilke, is interviewed by
Seattle-based saxophonist and jazz writer Steve Griggs about what the scene was
like at the Penthouse in the 1960s and about Cannonball's relationship to the
club over the years. And rounding out the packages are words form Cannonball's
widow and head of the Julian Adderley estate, Olga Adderley Chandler, and
acclaimed saxophonist Vincent Herring.
Jazz
collectors may already be familiar with the name Jim Wilke from two other
recent archival recordings on Resonance Records - Groovin' Hard by The Three
Sounds feat. Gene Harris and Smokin' in Seattleby Wes Montgomery & The
Wynton Kelly Trio. Wilke had a front-row seat for countless shows at the
Penthouse he captured between 1962-1968 for his radio broadcasts on KING- FM.
He describes the Penthouse broadcasts as, "really old-school radio - live
broadcasts on location. People heard great music played right as they listened
in their cars and they'd come to the club to catch the second set."
Cannonball Adderley played the Penthouse 8 times during the club's 6- year run,
and was one of its most popular acts.
For a
glimpse into the personal side of Cannonball, Zev Feldman interviewed his widow,
Olga Adderley Chandler, a former actress who was married to him from 1962-1975.
Chandler describes Cannonball as, "Very intelligent. He had eclectic
taste. And he was very articulate and very witty. And very sweet to be
with." Drummer Roy McCurdy adds, "He was very smart. Not just about
music but lots of different things. He had a big personality. His stage banter
came from being an educator. He wanted the audience to be informed. He wanted
to involve them."
Cory Weeds
interviewed fellow saxophonist Vincent Herring, who has recorded with Nat
Adderley's quintet and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band, to shed light on
what impact Cannonball has had the generations of saxophonists that came after
him. Herring explains, "Cannonball could play something and it was so
sophisticated for all of us jazz snobs, but at the same time, for the down-home
folk, it felt just right."
"A big
part of my job is to find homes for important recordings such as these,"
says Zev Feldman at the close of his liner note essay. "Not everyone is up
to the task of going through all the steps it takes, but I'm thankful to have
found a passionate partner in Cory Weeds who shares my dedication and vision to
do this important work the right way."
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