Name: Alley Cats
Brand: Concord Jazz
SKU: 41290
Availability: OutOfStock

Alley Cats

Rating

Album: Alley Cats
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Put It Where You Want It	More Info...	5:49
2)	Magic Lady	More Info...	4:17
3)	Blues March	More Info...	11:09
4)	Bird's Idea	More Info...	4:54
5)	Walkin' With Zach	More Info...	6:58
6)	Jive Samba	More Info...	6:03
7)	You've Changed	More Info...	6:18
8)	Guess Who	More Info...	5:35
9)	Listen Here	More Info...	11:50
10)	Please Send Me Someone To Love	More Info...	5:09

Performer Notes

Gene Harris Quartet: Gene Harris (piano); Frank Potenza (guitar); Luther Hughes (bass); Paul Kreibich (drums).
Additional personnel: Niki Harris (vocals); Ernie Watts (alto saxophone); Red Holloway (tenor saxophone); Brother Jack McDuff (Hammond B-3 organ).
Recorded live at Jazz Alley, Seattle, Washington on December 11 & 12, 1998. Includes liner notes by Howard Mandel.
Personnel: Frank Potenza (guitar).
Audio Mixer: Phil Edwards .
Recording information: Dimitriou's Jazz Alley, Seattle, WA (12/11/1998/12/12/1998).
Too many artists have gone their entire careers without providing any live albums, but that hasn't been a problem for Gene Harris whose live recordings from the 1980s and 1990s ranged from unaccompanied solo piano to big-band dates. Arguably, the best live album he gave listeners in the 1990s was Alley Cats; recorded live at Jazz Alley in Seattle on December 11-12, 1998, this CD finds Harris' working quintet (Harris on piano, Frank Potenza on guitar, Luther Hughes on bass, and Paul Kreibich on drums) joined by such accomplished soloists as Red Holloway (tenor sax), Ernie Watts (alto and tenor sax), and Jack McDuff (organ). Many inspired moments occur, and a 65-year-old Harris really goes that extra mile on gems ranging from Nat Adderley's "Jive Samba" and Benny Golson's "Blues March" to Joe Sample's "Put It Where You Want It" (which, in the 1970s, was introduced by the Crusaders before being covered by the Average White Band). A talented but underexposed singer (underexposed in the 1990s, anyway) who has recorded R&B albums but is quite capable of handling jazz, Harris' daughter Niki Harris is featured on earthy performances of "You've Changed," "Please Send Me Someone to Love," and "Guess Who." McDuff, meanwhile, brings his gritty, down-home Hammond B-3 to two songs: Eddie Harris' "Listen Here" and Gene Harris' "Walkin' With Zach." Soul-jazz enthusiasts will definitely want this excellent CD. ~ Alex Henderson

Professional Reviews

JazzTimes (5/00, pp.189-90) - "...Soulful, bluesy, funky grooves...working new magic on familiar charts....These cats have created a jazz-blues classic."