ProJazz.net

In the annals of Jazz Drumming History one man can be credited with giving the drummer status as an entity and as a solist.
He was the late great Gene Krupa who combined a scientific appearance to the art of his performance.

Gene had been in a professional drummer in commercial bands from the late twenties until he joined the Benny Goodman Band in 1935, and the three year period that followed brought him worldwide acclaim as a Star Jazz Drummer. This in itself was quite a feet considering how slowly news travelled in those days.

Despite the excellence of his contemporaries such as Baby Dodds, Paul Barbarin and Zutty Singleton, it was Gene who had the magic in his performance which obviously caught Goodman´s eye who certainly gave him the oppurtunity to display his ability particularly in the marathon arrangement of “Sing, Sing, Sing”. Like his colleage harry james, Gene left the Goodman band to form his own very sucessful big band with which he continued off and on, until he started touring regularly with the Jazz at the Philharmonic Troupe both as a featured soloist and as leader of his trio.

The tracks on this record form a strongrepresentation of Gene´s Big band with soloists of the calibre of RoyEldridge, Don Fagerquist, Red Rodney and Charlie Ventura, the vocal styling of both Anita O´Day and Irene Day together with the great arranging talents of Jimmy Mundy, Ed Finckel and Gerry Mulligan.

(From The Original Liner Notes)

Personnel:

A1 Drummin´ Man 0:00
A2 Opus 3:00
A3 Leave Us Leap 5:57
A4 Drum Boogie 8:58
A5 Body And Soul 12:08
A6 Boogie Blues 15:30
A7 Massachusetts 18:52
B1 How High The Moon 22:10
B2 Tuxedo Junction 25:30
B3 Dark Eyes 28:28
B4 That´s What You Think 31:53
B5 Bolero At The Savoy 35:08
B6 Lover 38:03