King of the ballads, indeed! "Frog" or "The Brute" didn't sound brutish at all on material like this one, unlike his "Cottontail" style. A tenor-playing friend of mine told me that it's very difficult to get that breathy effect at the end of a note that Ben was famous for.
Ben Webster. Doesn't get better than this
I agree. With such feeling. Thanks for your comment.
King of the ballads, indeed! "Frog" or "The Brute" didn't sound brutish at all on material like this one, unlike his "Cottontail" style. A tenor-playing friend of mine told me that it's very difficult to get that breathy effect at the end of a note that Ben was famous for.
For me the only other tenor that could put so much into a ballard was Coleman Hawkins..Maybe I need the great tenors play the ballads playlist.
He epitomises tenderness. Sad news that Rick Laird just passed away. There's an obituary on Lance Liddle's BSH Blog.
Nothing like Ben Webster playing ballards, and had no idea that Rick Laird had passed on.