Charlie Rouse

The complete recordings by The Jazz Modes, an experimental small jazz formation fronted by Charlie Rouse on tenor sax and Julius Watkins on French horn, plus Gildo Mahones on piano.

With slight personnel variations, this group recorded a total of five albums, most of which are now very hard to find. All of these LPs are included here in their entirety and in chronological order.

A member of big bands, among them those of Billy Eckstine, Dizzy Gillespie, and Duke Ellington, Charlie Rouse is best remembered for his more than ten years as a member of the Thelonious Monk Quartet. One of the first and probably the best jazz French horn player, Julius Watkins
recorded with numerous jazz greats, including John Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, Charles Mingus, Miles Davis and Gil Evans, Phil Woods, Clark Terry, Quincy Jones, Johnny Griffin, Randy Weston, and the Jazz Composer's Orchestra.

As a bonus, we have included three further complete albums, all of which were originally issued as 10” LPs. Oscar Pettiford’s Oscar Rides Again is the only other existing album, outside of the Jazz Modes body of work, to feature both Rouse and Watkins in the front line. The two volumes by the Julius Watkins Sextet, on the other hand, present Watkins in the company of other celebrated tenor saxophonists: Frank Foster and Hank Mobley.

Includes 32-page booklet with complete information

DISC 1
01 DANCING ON THE CEILING 2:26
02 LEGEND 3:17
03 TEMPTATION 3:57
04 EPISODE 2:05
05 DANCING IN THE DARK 2:05
06 GOODBYE 3:41
07 TOWN AND COUNTRY 4:16
08 WHEN THE BLUES COMES ON 4:15
09 BLUE MODES 4:30
10 YOU ARE TOO BEAUTIFUL 3:43
11 SO FAR 2:56
12 IDLE EVENING 4:16
13 GARDEN DELIGHTS 5:28
14 STRANGE TALE 4:30
15 TWO SONGS 3:13
16 STALLION 3:04
17 BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS 2:43
18 AUTUMN LEAVES 5:14
19 THE GOLDEN CHARIOT 2:45
20 LET’S TRY 3:18
21 BOHEMIA 3:26
22 CATCH HER 2:38
Total Time: 77:56

DISC 2
01 HOO TAI 6:27
02 MOOD IN SCARLET 5:11
03 LINDA DELIA 4:18
04 I’VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN 3:23
05 WE CAN TALK IT OVER 3:21
06 STANDING ON THE CORNER 3:46
07 JOEY, JOEY, JOEY 3:57
08 WARM ALL OVER 4:58
09 HAPPY TO MAKE YOUR
ACQUAINTANCE 4:29
10 MY HEART IS SO FULL OF YOU 3:29
11 THE MOST HAPPY FELLA 3:45
12 DON’T CRY 3:10
13 LIKE A WOMAN 3:01
14 SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE 3:13
15 THE OBLONG 5.45
16 1-2-3-4-0 IN SYNCOPATION 3:54
17 BLUE FLAME 4:04
18 MOOD IN MOTION 5:36
Total Time: 75:55

DISC 3
01 KNITTIN’ 6:26
02 THIS ‘N THAT 5:29
03 GLAD THAT I FOUND YOU 2:39
04 PRINCESS 4:35
05 SEXTETTE 2:57*
06 THE GOLDEN TOUCH 2:33*
07 CABLE CAR 2:21*
08 TRICTROTISM 2:42*
09 EDGE OF LOVE 2:24*
10 OSCAR RIDES AGAIN 2:32*
11 LINDA DELIA 5:21*
12 PERPETUATION 5:09*
13 I HAVE KNOWN 4:28*
14 LEETE 4:53*
15 GARDEN DELIGHTS 4:45*
16 JULIE ANN 3:35*
17 SPARKLING BURGUNDY 4:18*
18 B AND D 5:00*
19 JORDU 4:45*
Total Time: 77:01

CHARLIE ROUSE, tenor sax JULIUS WATKINS, French horn GILDO MAHONES, piano
On all tracks, plus:

Disc One, 1-6: Jazzville '56, Vol.1 (Dawn DLP1101):
Paul West (b), Art Taylor (d). New York, June 1956. Note: Despite its short duration, this album was a 12” LP, although Side B featured a Gene Quill-Dick Sherman Quintet.

Disc One, 7-16: Les Jazz Modes (Dawn DLP1108):
Paul Chambers (b), Oscar Pettiford (b, replaces Chambers on 11, 12 & 14 only), Janet Putnam (harp on 8 & 10 only), Ron Jefferson (d), Eileen Gilbert (soprano vocals on 8, 12 & 14 only). New York, June 12, 1956. Note: This album was reissued in 1960 on the Seeco label as Smart Jazz for the Smart Set (Seeco CELP466).

Disc One, 17-22 & Disc Two, 1-5: Mood in Scarlet (Dawn LP1117):
Martin Rivera (b), Ron Jefferson (d), Chino Pozo (bongos on CD One, 20-21 only), Eileen Gilbert (soprano vocals on CD Two, 1-2 only). New York, December 4, 1956.

Disc Two, 6-14: The Most Happy Fella (Atlantic LP1280):
Martin Rivera (b), Ron Jefferson (d), Chino Pozo (conga & bongos), Eileen Gilbert (soprano vocals on 10 only). New York, November 7, 1957.

Disc Two, 15-18 & Disc Three, 1-4: The Jazz Modes (Atlantic LP1306):

Disc Two, 15, 16 & 18, & Disc Three, 2: Sahib Shihab (bar), Martin Rivera (b), Jimmy Wormworth (d). New York, 1959.

Disc Two, 17 & Disc Three 1, 3 & 4: Martin Rivera (b), Ron Jefferson (d), Chino Pozo (congas, bongos), Eileen Gilbert (soprano vocals). New York, October 28, 1959.

*BONUS ALBUMS:
Disc Three, 5-10: Oscar Rides Again (Bethlehem 10” LP BCP1003) [reissued on Bass (Bethlehem 12” LP BCP-6]:
Charlie Rouse (ts), Julius Watkins (French horn), Duke Jordan (p), Oscar Pettiford (b, cello on 6 & 9-10), Ron Jefferson (d). New York, September 1954.

Disc Three, 11-14: Julius Watkins Sextet [aka New Faces, New Sounds] (Blue Note BLP5053):
Julius Watkins (French horn), Frank Foster (ts), George Butcher (p), Perry Lopez (g), Oscar Pettiford (b), Kenny Clarke (d). Hackensack, N.J., August 8, 1954.

Disc Three, 15-19: Julius Watkins Sextet Volume Two (Blue Note BLP5064):
Julius Watkins (French horn), Hank Mobley (ts), Duke Jordan (p), Perry Lopez (g), Oscar Pettiford (b), Art Blakey (d). Hackensack, N.J., March 20, 1955.