Vic Dickenson – Plays Bessie Smith: 'Trombone Cholly' (Sonet, 1976)

Vic Dickenson (tb); Frank Wess (ts); Joe Newman (tr); Ray Tunia (p); Milt Hinton (b); Jackie Williams (d)

Recorded on March 31, 1976

This Vic Dickenson record is evidence of the burgeoning jazz revivalism that gathered steam in the latter half of the 1970s.  The music may be rooted in the past, but there's nothing musty or museum-like about these performances.

This deliciously "old-fashioned" collection of songs composed by (and associated with) Bessie Smith features three of my favorite soloists in Dickenson, Frank Wess, and Joe Newman.