Rusty Bryant - Original Quintet, Complete Rec. (1957 Dot, 1954) (Lone Hill 2004) - Rare straight-ahead jazz set!!!

This unprecedented release features twenty-six tracks of the powerful groove-oriented tenor saxophonist playing a rare straight-ahead set accompanied by such outstandings figures as Gerald Wiggins on the piano chair, Howard Roberts or John Collins on guitar, Red Callender on bass and Alvin Stoller or Shelly Manne on drums. The various formations swing with precision, providing Rusty with the perfect backdrop to demonstrate his ample saxophone skills and impecable taste.
The repertoire contains a lot of Standards as well as seven own compositions. As a Bonus Tracks appeared two tracks of his first LP recorded in NYC, 1954.

1. Over the Rainbow
2. Secret Love
3. Thou Swell
4. 48th Street Smile
5. Easy Living
6. Mr Wonderful
7. That Old Black Magic
8. Susie
9. This Time The Dream's on Me
10. Almost Like Being in Love
11. When Your Lover has Gone
12. Sonar
13. The Deacon
14. Boofus
15. Herbert's Coming
16. Sooty
17. My Shining Hour
18. I Should Care
19. Why Was I Born
20. I Cover the Waterfront
21. Blue Lou
22. Frances' Dream
23. It's a Blue World
24. Street of Dreams
25. Hanka Boo (bonus track)
26. Back Street (bonus track)

Total Time: 77:43


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Include two lp's plus two tracks:

Rusty Bryant - Plays Jazz DLP-3079/25079, recorded on 1957 Originally issued in monaural only on 1958. Stereo version issued in 1959.

Over the Rainbow/Sonar/Secret Love/Thou Swell/The Deacon/48th Street Smile/That Old Black Magic/Goofus/Easy Living/Mr. Wonderful/Herbert's Coming/Sooty


America's Greatest Jazz, vol.2 - Rusty Bryant 1957 - DOT DLP 25353

My Shining Hour (Mercer-Arlen), I Should Care (Cahn-Stordahl-Weston), Susie (Bryant-Mack), Why Was I Born (Kern-Hammerstein), This Time's the Dream's on Me (Mercer-Arlen), I Cover the Waterfront (Green-Heyman), Blue Lou (Sampson-Mills), Frances' Dream (Bryant), It's a Blue World (Forrest-Wright), Street of Dreams (Young-Lewis), Almost Like Being in Love (Loewe-Lerner), When Your Lover Has Gone (Swan).

Although recorded at the same session that produced Rusty Bryant plays jazz these recordings weren't released until 1961.

NOTE: also exist a lp titled America's Greatest Jazz (vol.1, Dot) released on cd in Japan, but it's a different lp and not included here, except two tracks ( the two bonus from this CD release).
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The Brooklyn Paramount had fantastic shows often featuring hornmen like Big Al Sears. Sam The Man Taylor or Screamin' Jimmy Wright but it was a sound and method not relegated to any particular area. Try to think back Lynn Hope, Big Jay McNeely, Gator Jackson, Joe Houston. Chuck Higgins, all those guys from the Hampton band and, of course, the hundreds of men who never got into the recording studios. Yeah! No question about it--warriors.

The point of all this is that Rusty Bryant was a part of that scene. Each one of the men mentioned managed to come up with some kind of hit record and Rusty had several an the old Dot label. The big one was All Night Long--a doubletime treatment of Night Train. The hit carried Rusty all over the country--into a feature billing at the Apollo Theatre through a long string of one-nighters and eventually back to his home base in Columbus, Ohio. It was at the Carolyn Club in Columbus where many of those records were cut and the use of a train-whistle and the pounding enthusiasm of his live audience gave Rusty an identifiable and quite marketable sound.

But time marches on and those warriors who have been unable to update their playing are now among the missing.

In reality, Rusty has never joined those missing in action. He has continued to play in Columbus and throughout Ohio. He has led a band for most of that time and at one point his vocalist was a young lady named Nancy Wilson. Rusty worked very hard trying to put her out front and some sides were cut for Dot but they have no doubt been completely forgotten.

As far as recording is concerned, Rusty has been away for some time. The Dot affiliation came to an end after two ill-conceived albums in that label's Jazz Horizons series and there were only a few sideman dates with old buddy, Hank Marr, for King. In September of 1968, he recorded for Prestige with Richard Groove Holmes, That Healin' Feelin' (Prestige 7601).

Today Rusty works with his trio at a club in Columbus called The Zoo. If you are in the area, drop by to see him--he will still play All Night Long for you. He will also play alto for you and probably demonstrate the electronics of the Conn Multi-Vider. During the day he is an official in the Columbus Musicians Union--the first black representative in the Union's history.

--BOB PORTER, from the liner notes
Rusty Bryant Returns, Prestige.