Friday, September 14, 2012

#55: Jimmy Smith - Back at the Chicken Shack (1960)

Considering the name of the album, (assuming you don't already know) what style of music do you think this album contains?

That's what I thought too but it's jazz. It's only six tracks long and not enough jumped out at me, so we're going to ditch the familiar format once more.

What an organ sound throughout the album, it's so rich, so full, and yet it can flat out scream. The bass is even better with it's deep, round sound. The only instrument to put them all to shame is the sax. What a tone. It howls, it sings, it's got that breathy whisper. Night Court's sax ain't got nothing on this guy.




I don't know what the difference is between previous jazz albums and this, but as far as every album that I've reviewed so far, this is the technically the best recorded album yet. Everything is so vibrant and bright. It has the full gamut of frequencies and it really sounds modern.

I struggle to focus on the music, but I do find it exceedingly easy to daydream while listening. If you're looking for some non-wallpaper jazz music to have on in the background then this has to be on your list. It's impossible to think this could be left off anyone's 50 best jazz albums list.
All in all, it's very solid. I wish I were still into jazz like I used to be. Then maybe I'd be able to truly appreciate it. These musicians are greater than the sum of their parts. I'll be playing this record at work for sure.

Tomorrow's album: Mumford and Sons' Sigh No More.

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