20 Feb CANNONBALL ADDERLEY – SWINGIN’ IN SEATTLE: LIVE AT THE PENTHOUSE 1966-67
This is the inaugural release on Reel to Real Recordings co-produced by Zev Feldman and Cory Weeds and it looks stunning! This is a deluxe CD edition of previously-unissued and scintillating set of live recordings of the Cannonball Adderley Quintet featuring Cannonball’s brother and cornetist Nat Adderley, pianist Joe Zawinul, bassist Victor Gaskin and drummer Roy McCurdy recorded over the course of 4 nights between 1966 and 1967 at the legendary Penthouse jazz club in Seattle, Washington. This is the very same band that recorded the classic Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at “The Club” album on Capitol Records on October 20, 1966, and it captures the quintet in rare form at the height of their most powerful swingin’.
On the CD edition:
The album is beautifully designed and includes extensive booklets containing rare photos by Lee Tanner, Tom Copi and others. Music journalist and veteran liner note writer Bill Kopp contributes the featured essay placing Cannonball’s music in historical context. Seattle radio DJ and the original engineer of the Penthouse, Jim Wilke, is interviewed by Seattle-based saxophonist and jazz writer Steve Griggs about what the scene was like at the Penthouse in the 1960s and about Cannonball’s relationship to the club over the years. And rounding out the package are words form Cannonball’s widow and head of the Julian Adderley estate, Olga Adderley Chandler, and acclaimed saxophonist Vincent Herring.
Jazz collectors may already be familiar with the name Jim Wilke from two other recent archival recordings on the Resonance Records label – Groovin’ Hard by The Three Sounds feat. Gene Harris and Smokin’ in Seattleby Wes Montgomery & The Wynton Kelly Trio. Wilke had a front-row seat for countless shows at the Penthouse he captured between 1962-1968 for his radio broadcasts on KING- FM. He describes the Penthouse broadcasts as, “really old-school radio – live broadcasts on location. People heard great music played right as they listened in their cars and they’d come to the club to catch the second set.” Cannonball Adderley played the Penthouse 8 times during the club’s 6- year run, and was one of its most popular acts.
About Cannonball Adderley:
For a glimpse into the personal side of Cannonball, Zev Feldman interviewed his widow, Olga Adderley Chandler, a former actress who was married to him from 1962-1975. Chandler describes Cannonball as, “Very intelligent. He had eclectic taste. And he was very articulate, witty and very sweet to be with.” Drummer Roy McCurdy adds, “He was very smart. Not just about music but lots of different things. He had a big personality. His stage banter came from being an educator. He wanted the audience to be informed. He wanted to involve them.”
Cory Weeds interviewed fellow saxophonist Vincent Herring, who has recorded with Nat Adderley’s quintet and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band, to shed light on what impact Cannonball has had the generations of saxophonists that came after him. Herring explains, “Cannonball could play something and it was so sophisticated for all of us jazz snobs, but at the same time, for the down-home folk, it felt just right.”