1945-1946

These are the first recordings to appear under the name of Gerald Wilson. Schooled at Cass Technical College in Detroit and seasoned on the road with Jimmie Lunceford, Wilson started leading his own excellent big band in 1944, employing many of the most promising young musicians in the Los Angeles area at that time. Wilson may be heard blowing his trumpet along with Hobart Dotson, Emmett Berry, Fred Trainor, and Snooky Young. During a lovely version of Duke Ellington's "Come Sunday," trombonist Melba Liston takes her very first solo on record. Saxophone soloists include Eddie Davis (not "Lockjaw"), Floyd Turnham, and beefy-toned tenor Vernon Slater. All nine instrumentals are exceptionally fine big-band swing performances. Note that "Puerto Rican Breakdown" is exciting but contains no discernible Caribbean characteristics. As for vocalists, Wilson made some interesting choices. Pat Kay, who sings "Moonrise," sounded substantial, as did Estelle Edson and Betty Roche. Dick Gray was at his best when he wasn't trying to out-vibrate Billy Eckstine. "I've Got a Right to Sing the Blues" contains his strongest moments. The Thrasher Sisters were a better act than a lot of other harmonizing vocal trios on the scene during the 1940s. They were without a doubt considerably hipper -- less corny -- than the Andrews Sisters. Even so, after all of those vocals the last four tracks -- instrumentals -- are especially satisfying. For here listeners get to enjoy the 1946 Gerald Wilson Orchestra at its very finest, swinging hard on themes borrowed from the Basie and Calloway bands, and glowing with the beauty of Melba Liston's original composition "Warm Mood." One cannot help but consider the impact of this band and the L.A. jazz scene of the mid-'40s upon two creative musicians who would so radically alter the course of modern music -- Charles Mingus and Eric Dolphy. ~ arwulf arwulf|