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Jim snodgrass saxophone6/2/2023 ![]() The exception is track 1 on disc 1, a cautious reading of Marty Paich's arrangement of "My Old Flame" that was taped during a rehearsal on March 15, '61, in Hollywood. Discs 1, 3 and 5 are comprised (with one exception) of live performances by the Kenton Orchestra in Cincinnati, OH Santa Barbara, CA, and Long Island, NY, the first taped by Wes Morland, the others by legendary recording engineer Wally Heider. ![]() Let's start with a brief overview of what is included. ![]() The question is, how should one best appraise such an anthology, academically or musically? Either approach has merit, but as I am certainly no scholar, of Kenton or anyone else, I've chosen the latter path. And what a storehouse of riches it is, with three of the discs devoted to selections, some previously unissued, by Stan Kenton's groundbreaking Mellophonium Orchestra circa 1961-62, the others to performances by top-of-the-line Kenton-inspired collegiate ensembles, two from the U.S.(in performances marred only by second-rate sound) and one from overseas. It's not often that I devote an entire column to a new big-band release, but Horns of Plenty, a superlative six-disc set from Tantara Records, is the exception that proves the rule.
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