Katanga!

Tenor saxophonist Curtis Amy recorded six albums for Pacific Jazz during 1960-63. This CD reissue from 1998 has all of the music from his sixth set (Katanga) and half of the performances (three selections) from his fourth outing, Way Down. Amy had a fine hard bop-oriented style with a soulful sound. The Katanga date matched him with the legendary (and barely documented) trumpeter Dupree Bolton, guitarist Ray Crawford (heard in top form), pianist Jack Wilson, bassist Victor Gaskin and drummer Doug Sides on four originals, plus "A Shade of Brown" and "You Don't Know What Love Is." The other session finds Amy with a completely different group consisting of trumpeter Marcus Belgrave (one of his few recordings from the era), valve trombonist Roy Brewster, vibraphonist Roy Ayers (at the beginning of his career), bassist George Morrow and drummer Tony Bazley, performing three of Amy's tunes. Obscure but rewarding music that was overshadowed during the era and was previously long out of print. ~ Scott Yanow|