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WXDU 88.7 FM
PO Box 90689
Duke Station
Durham, NC 27708
919-684-2957
wxdu@duke.edu
Artist | Song | Album | Label | Comments | |||||
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The Seven Brown Babies (Fletcher Henderson) | Dicty Blues | The Definitive Collection | rec 1923. Hawkins' very first recordings were with Mamie Smith & Her Jazz Hounds in 1922, but you can't hear him on the recordings. This was his first recording with Fletcher Henderson, his first job after Mamie Smith & where he first began to establish himself as an important musician | ||||||
Fletcher Henderson Orchestra | Naughty Man | Fletcher Henderson & Louis Armstrong 1924-1925 | Timeless Holland | rec 1924. One of the only recordings of Hawkins and Armstrong together. They didn't like each other: Hawkins found Armstrong a rube and resented that he became the star as soon as he joined the band, and Armstrong found Hawkins condescending | |||||
Dixie Stompers (Fletcher Henderson) | The Stampede | The Definitive Collection | rec 1926. The first major tenor sax solo on record. Many younger musicians including trumpeter Roy Eldridge studied and memorized this solo. | ||||||
Fletcher Henderson Orchestra | Whiteman Stomp | Fats Waller Complete Recorded Works | JSP | rec 1927. Hawkins later said this was Henderson's best recording. By this point Hawkins was the star of the Henderson orchestra & was featured on almost every recording | |||||
Mound City Blue Blowers | One Hour (If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight) | The Essential Sides Remastered 1929-1933 | JSP | rec 1929. this was Hawkins' first important recording. An early example of what tenor sax was capable of with improvisation | |||||
The Chocolate Dandies | Dee Blues | The Essential Sides Remastered 1929-1933 | JSP | rec 1930. the Chocolate Dandies was a side project of members of the Henderson orchestra, including Hawkins, Benny Carter, Bobby Stark, Jimmy Harrison, John Kirby and Horace Henderson | |||||
Mound City Blue Blowers | Georgia (Georgia On My Mind) | Eddie Condon 1: Makin' Friends | rec 1930. Mound City Blue Blowers was a white band led by Red McKenzie & included Jimmy Dorsey and Eddie Condon. Note that a band could be integrated in studio recordings, but white and black musicians could not appear together on stage at this time | ||||||
Fletcher Henderson Orchestra | The House of David Blues | The Definitive Collection | rec 1931. note Hawkins' masterful understanding harmony in his improvisation | ||||||
Fletcher Henderson Orchestra | Honeysuckle Rose | The Definitive Collection | rec 1932. this session has been called the day the swing era began | ||||||
Spike Hughes & His Negro Orchestra | Donegal Cradle Song | 1933 - The Complete Set | Retrieval Records | rec 1933. Hawkins' solo was improvised, then transcribed and written into the score. Hawkins described the piece as "a sweet, slightly eerie mood is set up at the onset and when it comes to my turn I have to study that atmosphere and develop it." He described his use of superimposed harmonies as "it israther modern in that it goes counter to the accompanying chords" | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & His Orchestra | The Day You Came Along | The Essential Sides Remastered | JSP | rec 1933 this session was the first time Hawkins acted as bandleader on record | |||||
Horace Henderson & His Orchestra | I've Got to Sing a Torch Song | Happy Feet | rec 1933 author John Chilton calls Hawkins' work here "pioneering the art of playing jazz ballads on the saxophone" | ||||||
Benny Goodman & His Orchestra v/ Mildred Bailey | Ol' Pappy | Benny Goodman 1931-1935 | Timeless Holland | rec 1934 this was several years before Teddy Wilson and Lionel Hampton joined the Goodman band, and at this point Goodman was reluctant to include a Black musician in a recording session as he was afraid of professional ostracism. But Goodman's desire to make the best recording he could, with the best musicians, won out | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & Buck Washington | It Sends Me | The Essential Sides Remastered 1934-1936 | JSP | rec 1934 no orchestra, just Hawkins on tenor sax and Washington on piano | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & The Ramblers | Meditation | The Essential Sides Remastered 1934-1936 | JSP | rec 1935 recorded in Europe, where Hawkins lived for 5 years | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & the Berries | Tiger Rag | The Essential Sides Remastered 1934-1936 | JSP | rec 1936 recorded in Zurich | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & His All Star Band | Out of Nowhere | The Essential Sides Remastered 1936-1939 | JSP | rec 1937 band included Benny Carter, Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli (on piano!), and Alix Combelle | |||||
Coleman Hawkins Trio | Swinging In The Groove | The Essential Sides Remastered 1936-1939 | JSP | rec 1938 with Freddy Johnson and Maurice van Cleef. Hawkins and Johnson were good friends; when Hawkins got out of Europe in 1939, just before the war, Johnson decided to stay behind and stick it out. This was a bad decision; Johnson was arrested by the Nazis and spent 2 years in a prison camp in Belgium | |||||
Lionel Hampton Orchestra | Dinah | 1937-1939 | Classics | rec 1939 shortly after Hawkins returned to the US | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & His Orchestra | Body and Soul | Essential Jazz: 'Round Midnight | rec 1939 this piece is not just Hawkins' greatest achievement, but arguably the greatest tenor sax performance ever recorded | ||||||
Coleman Hawkins & The Chocolate Dandies | I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me | Little Jazz Trumpet Giant | Proper UK | rec 1940 the Chocolate Dandies featured former Henderson band members, plus on this session Roy Eldridge | |||||
Count Basie Orchestra | Feedin' The "Bean" | Essential Count Basie | Decca | rec 1940 Basie tried to recruit Hawkins into his band years before, but Hawkins no longer wanted to be a sideman. However he did willingly participate in sessions with other bands, like this date | |||||
Leonard Feather's All Stars | My Ideal | The Commodore Story | GRP | rec 1943 band included Hawkins ts, Edmond Hall cl, Cootie Williams t, Al Gasey g, Art Tatum p, Oscar Pettiford b, Sid Catlett d | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & His Orchestra | How Deep Is The Ocean | The Essential Coleman Hawkins | Verve | rec 1943 this was one of Hawkins's favorites of his own recordings. He felt it should have been a hit like 'Body and Soul' | |||||
Coleman Hawkins' Swing Four | The Man I Love | The Essential Coleman Hawkins | Verve | rec 1943 this recording was almost lost because of the length: at 5 minutes it was far longer than a single could be on a record. The engineer saw that they had run over and almost turned off the recording but the producer stopped him, saying "we'll make it a 12 inch!" | |||||
Charlie Shaver's All American Five | El Salon De Gutbucket | Too Marvelous for Words: The Story of Keynote | rec 1943 Hawkins did a series of sessions in 1943-44 for Keynote, these recordings are prized | ||||||
Coleman Hawkins Quintet | I Only Have Eyes For You | Jazz Masters 34 | Verve | rec 1944 recorded for Keynote | |||||
Coleman Hawkins Quintet | Woody'n You | Bop Lives! | Delmark | rec 1944 this is considered the first bebop recording. Leonard Lowry, Leo Parker as, Ray Abrams, Don Byas, Coleman Hawkins ts, Budd Johnson bar, Vic Coulson, Dizzy Gillespie, Ed Vandever t,Clyde Hart p, Pscar Pettiford b, Max Roach d | |||||
Coleman Hawkins | Picasso | Jazz Masters 34 | Verve | rec 1948 the first solo tenor sax jazz recording | |||||
Coleman Hawkins, Hank Jones, Ray Brown, Buddy Rich | Rifftide | The Complete Jazz At the Philharmonic on Verve 1944-1949 | Verve | rec 1949 at Carnegie Hall, Hawkins performed with JATP many times in the late 40s/early 50s | |||||
Coleman Hawkins & Ben Webster Quintet | You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To | Coleman Hawkins Encounters Ben Webster | Verve | rec 1952 as a young musician Webster had been inspired by Hawkins |