Lou Donaldson - Blues Walk

Lou Donaldson - Blues Walk (1958, Blue Note Records) https://t.co/zibCvziEtv

— AddictedToJazz (@AddictedToJazz) April 22, 2019

Lou Donaldson: San Javier, 2013

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

In 2013, Lou Donaldson appeared at the San Javier Jazz Festival in southeast Spain with Randy Johnston on guitar, Akiko Tsuruga on organ and Fukushi Tainaka on drums. Lou had much to do with the birth of hard bop in the early 1950s (go here for my Wall Street Journal article on Lou and here for my multipart JazzWax interview).

Here he is with his quartet playing Cherokee (but stay at the page and see and hear the group play three more). The video is HD and the music is fantastic...

A special thanks to Tom Fine.

Used with permission by Marc Myers

Lou Donaldson was one of the first alto saxophonists....

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

Lou Donaldson was one of the first alto saxophonists to perform and record consistently with a Hammond B3 behind him. He used the sound extensively on the road in the '50s while touring across the country and developed a new jazz-funk approach in the '60s. Here's a list of the groovy organists who have recorded with him over the years. Dates signify their first recording session:

• Jimmy Smith (1957)
• Baby Face Willette (1961)
• Brother Jack McDuff (1961)
• Big John Patton (1962)
• Lloyd Mayers (1964)
• Billy Gardner (1965)
• Dr. Lonnie Smith (1967)
• Charles Earland (1968)
• Leon Spencer Jr. (1970)
• Paul Griffin (1973)
• David Braham (1992)
• Sonny Phillips (1993)

Used with permissionby Marc Myers
http://www.jazzwax.com/2011/01/jazzwax-list-lou-donaldsons-faves.html

Lou Donaldson in the WSJ

Reprinted from http://jazzman.com
I typically do not post on Saturdays, but I wanted to let you know that my profile of Lou Donaldson appears today in the "Greater New York" section of the Wall Street Journal. If you have access to WSJ.com, you'll find my article on (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703846604575447993481023532.html?KEYWORDS=marc+myers).

The first three paragraphs...

Few musicians today can claim to have changed the direction of jazz. Lou Donaldson did so twice—once in 1953 with Clifford Brown and again in 1957 with Jimmy Smith. From Tuesday through Sept. 5, the 83-year-old alto saxophonist will lead an organ-guitar-drums trio at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola.

If Mr. Donaldson's name isn't familiar, it's likely because he spent long stretches away from New York. Like many other artists who combined country blues and jazz, "Sweet Poppa Lou," as he's known, built his career on the road. While long tours were a financial boon for Mr. Donaldson, being away from New York for extended periods lowered his visibility. Despite his six-decade career, he has yet to be named a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts.

"I just do my thing—which is getting audiences' feet shuffling," said Mr. Donaldson in a recent interview. Long compared with saxophonists Charlie Parker, Benny Carter and Johnny Hodges for his fluid attack and blues infusion, Mr. Donaldson is among the last of a generation of jazz-musician entertainers.

For more information about Lou's gig at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, go http://www.jalc.org/dccc/details09.asp?EventID=2406.

Used with permission by Marc Myers

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Spotlight on Lou Donaldson

Our video spotlight this week shines on the veteran alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson, who will return to St. Louis to play Wednesday, February 3 through Saturday, February 6 at Jazz at the Bistro.

A native of North Carolina, the 83-year-old Donaldson came of age in the post-war bebop era and first recorded way back in 1952. He went on to work with many of the leading jazz musicians of the 1950s, including Milt Jackson, Thelonious Monk, Horace Silver, Art Blakey and Clifford Brown. By the 1960s Donaldson was a staple of the Blue Note label, which released his signature tune "Alligator Boogaloo" as well as many other LPs featuring him. He continues to perform regularly, often teaming up with the organ player Dr. Lonnie Smith, and delivers a crowd-pleasing mix of bop, ballads, blues and backbeats.

Today's first clip features Donaldson swinging the standard "Bye Bye Blackbird" at a 1994 gig in Geneva, Switzerland, accompanied by pianist Horace Parlan, bassist Wayne Dockery and drummer John Riley. Down below, you can check out Donaldson's ballad style on a version of "Laura" from the same show.
http://stljazznotes.blogspot.com/2010/01/stljn-saturday-video-showcase-spotlight.html

Lou Donaldson....

by Scott Yanow
Lou Donaldson has long been an excellent bop altoist influenced by Charlie Parker, but with a more blues-based style of his own. His distinctive tone has been heard in a variety of small-group settings, and he has recorded dozens of worthy and spirited (if somewhat predictable) sets through the years.

Donaldson started playing clarinet when he was 15, soon switching to the alto. He attended college and performed in a Navy band while in the military. Donaldson first gained attention when he moved to New York and in 1952 started recording for Blue Note as a leader. At the age of 25, his style was fully formed, and although it would continue growing in depth through the years, Donaldson had already found his sound. In 1954, he participated in a notable gig with Art Blakey, Clifford Brown, Horace Silver and Tommy Potter that was extensively documented by Blue Note and that directly predated the Jazz Messengers. However, Donaldson was never a member of the Messengers, and although he recorded as a sideman in the 1950s and occasionally afterwards with Thelonious Monk, Milt Jackson and Jimmy Smith, among others, he has been a bandleader from the mid-1950s up until the present.

Donaldson's early Blue Note recordings were pure bop. In 1958, he began often utilizing a conga player, and starting in 1961 his bands often had an organist rather than a pianist. Donaldson's bluesy style was easily transferable to soul-jazz, and he sounded most original in that context. His association with Blue Note (1952-63) was succeeded by some excellent (if now-scarce) sets for Cadet and Argo (1963-66). The altoist returned to Blue Note in 1967 and soon became caught up in the increasingly commercial leanings of the label. For a time, he utilized an electronic Varitone sax, which completely watered down his sound. The success of "Alligator Boogaloo" in 1967 led to a series of less interesting funk recordings that were instantly dated and not worthy of his talent.

However, after a few years off records, Lou Donaldson's artistic return in 1981 and subsequent soul-jazz and hard bop dates for Muse, Timeless and Milestone have found the altoist back in prime form, interacting with organists and pianists alike and showing that his style is quite timeless.

The Complete Blue Note Lou Donaldson Sessions 1957-1960

The celebrated Blue Note career of Lou Donaldson was highly prolific. The three years featured in his Mosaic collection recall those classic
early morning sessions at Minton's uptown.
Limited Edition Box Set (6 CDs), Purchase at http://www.mosaicrecords.com