The Music of the Clark Terry/Bob Brookmeyer Quintet at 55 Bar

During the early '60, valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer
formed a quintet with trumpeter Clark Terry, which resulted
in a long running gig at the Half Note in NYC and three
albums - "Tonight," "The Power of Positive Swinging,"
and "Gingerbread Men." Clark's joyous, effervescent
style contrasted and blended perfected with Bob's
thoughtful, compositional approach. Known to the
staff at the Half Note as "Mumbles" and "Grumbles,"
Terry and Brookmeyer combined very hip
arrangements with a palpable sense of humor and
spontaneous interplay, a winning combination that ...

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During the early '60, valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer
formed a quintet with trumpeter Clark Terry, which resulted
in a long running gig at the Half Note in NYC and three
albums - "Tonight," "The Power of Positive Swinging,"
and "Gingerbread Men." Clark's joyous, effervescent
style contrasted and blended perfected with Bob's
thoughtful, compositional approach. Known to the
staff at the Half Note as "Mumbles" and "Grumbles,"
Terry and Brookmeyer combined very hip
arrangements with a palpable sense of humor and
spontaneous interplay, a winning combination that
made a unique and underappreciated contribution to jazz.
This group topped the jazz polls in the early 60's, ahead
of the legendary Miles Davis Quintet. But the music has
been lost to time. Scott has transcribed much of this music
and assembled a great quintet to reintroduce this music to the public. Included are originals by Brookmeyer and Terry, as well as contributions by their pianist Roger Kellaway and composer
Gary McFarland.

Scott Reeves has performed with the Dave Liebman big band,
the Vanguard Orchestra, the Smoke Big Band, and the Chico
O'Farrill Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra and is a music professor
at The City College of New York. Duane Eubanks is part
of the iconic Eubanks jazz family (Kevin, Robin) and has
performed with Dave Holland, Oliver Lake, Illinois Jacquet, and
Jason Lindner. Ray Gallon's credits include work with Ron Carter,
Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson and T.S. Monk. Bill Crow is a veteran of the New York scene, having played with Stan Getz, Gerry Mulligan and Al Cohn. He is recreating his role as the bassist with the Terry/Brookmeyer Quintet and is swinging harder than ever! Eliot Zigmund is known for his work with pianist Bill Evans, Jim Hall, Stan Getz, Fred Hersch and many other luminaries.

REVIEWED IN DECEMBER 23, 2012 "ALL ABOUT JAZZ"

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