This week's bargain--Urbie Green and Umpteen Trombones

Doing jumping jacks in aerobics class can cause heart rate problems for me (born with an extra circuit that causes A-fib), but so can finding a great bargain. But a bargain with trombones! Be still my heart!

Thursday at the Discovery Shop (resale shop for American Cancer Society) I found a CD titled, "Umpteen Trombones" featuring Urbie Green and 20 other trombonists (Kai Winding, Eddie Bert, Wayne Andre, Will Bradley, Bill Elton, Phil Giardina, Mervin Gold, Mickey Gravine, J.J. Johnson, Barry Maur, Lou McGarity, John Messner Jr., Buddy Morrow, Jack Rains, Sonny Russo, Charles Small, Chauncy Welsch, Jimmy Cleveland, Harry Di Vito). I knew nothing about it, but for one dollar, it would have to be very bad or a pirated copy not to be the deal of the month, or year. I bought it and 3 others for a total of $4.00, Regis Philbin (2004), Charlotte Church (1998), and Jack Widner at the Clarmont (local pianist, n.d.). I popped it into my CD player in the van on the way home--and WOW! I thought I'd cry, it was so beautiful. My right hand was trying to do that little slide vibrato movement while I drove, and that's just not safe!

So I needed to find out something about it and turned to Google. Here's the most helpful item I found about Umpteen Trombones after looking through what seemed like dozens of newsletters about jazz and listservs about trombones and prices ranging from $4 to $200:

Rich Woolworth on The Trombone Forum in 2005 wrote: " "Umpteen Trombones," released on CD in 1987, is "Twenty-One Trombones" (Volume 1), originally released in 1967. Several years after Volume 2 was released (1968) Project 3 re-released both as a two-record set. To my knowledge Volume 2 was never released on CD.

Volume 1 is mostly ballads and showcases Urbie's gorgeous tone and tasty style. Volume 2 is nowhere near as good as Volume 1. Volume 2 leans more heavily on pop tunes of the day with a boogaloo beat and novelties ("The Green Bee" is of course a rock version of "Flight of the Bumble-Bee" and was considered for the the theme song to the 1968 TV show "The Green Hornet". It seemed like a perfect match but Al Hirt's version was selected). Volume 2 does have some nice Ellington tunes, and "Timbe" by Tommy Newsome is a study in bell-tones."

At All About Jazz I found a brief bio about Urbie Green and his son Jesse Green:

"[Urban] Urbie Green was born [Aug. 8, 1926] and raised in Mobile, Alabama, and by the time he was sixteen was working professionally with Tommy Reynolds band. There followed music and years with Jan Savitt, Frankie Carle, Gene Krupa, and finally, Woody Herman. In October 1950, Urbie became part of Woody Herman's Thundering Herd, and in 1954 won the Down Beat International Critics Award for NEW STAR.

Urbie became one of the most sought-after trombonists for recording and club work in New York City. He is a multiple winner of the Most Valuable Player Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, and perhaps the most recorded musician of all time. He has recorded with Gene Krupa, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Leonard Bernstein, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Tony Bennett, Peggy Lee, Pearl Bailey, Ella Fitzgerald, Mile Davis, Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins, Dizzy Gillespie, Barbara Steisand, Perry Como, Aretha Franklin, Quincy Jones, J.J.Johnson, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Burt Bacharach, Buck Clayton and Herbie Mann, to name a few. . . Urbie Green actually settled in the Poconos and raised a family with his wife Kathy Preston, herself a big-band singer. Pianist Jesse Green is their talented son, and he still calls Delaware Water Gap home. . .Jesse Green dips his toes into the New York scene occasionally, but he spends most of his time teaching piano and trombone out of the home he shares with his wife and three daughters.

So I'm happy.

The Charlotte Church CD turned out to be a Christmas album, but that's OK. The Regis CD wouldn't play in the car, but worked in the office. The Widner CD has some serious issues--a little faint background squeek, and some burps, but I gave it a good rub on my sweater, and it improved a lot. (David Meyers notes that Widner is in the Columbus Senior Hall of Fame, 2003).