Cannonball Adderley - Soul Motion
One of the great alto saxophonists to emerge from the hard bop era, Julian "Cannonball" Adderley possessed an exuberant, bright tone that communicated directly and emotionally. He initially wanted to play tenor, but was thwarted by tight finances before and during the second world war; he settled on a second-hand alto saxophone. Adderley's primary influence on the alto was, in fact, Benny Carter.
"Cannonball Adderley gave up his own band in 1957 when he had the opportunity to become a sideman in Miles Davis' epic ensemble with John Coltrane, eventually resulting in some of the greatest jazz recordings of all time. Davis returned the favor in March of 1958, appearing as a sideman on Adderley's all-star quintet date for Blue Note, and the resulting session is indeed Somethin' Else. Both horn players are at their peak of lyrical invention, crafting gorgeous, flowing blues lines on the title tune and "One for Daddy-O," as the rhythm team (Hank Jones, Sam Jones, Art Blakey) creates a taut, focused groove (pianist Hank Jones' sly, intuitive orchestrations are studies of harmonic understatement). Adderley's lush, romantic improvisation on "Dancing in the Dark" is worthy of Charlie Parker or Johnny Hodges, while the band refurbishes "Autumn Leaves" and "Love for Sale" into cliché-free swingers. Somethin' Else is definitely one of the most gloriously laid-back blowing sessions of the hard bop era."
Somethin' Else Review by Rovi Staff
"Recorded in early 1960, Them Dirty Blues contains two classic jazz compositions: Nat Adderley's "Work Song" and Bobby Timmons' "Dat Dere," the sequel to "This Here." This was alto saxophonist Cannonball Adderley's second quintet with brother Nat Adderley (cornet), and features Bobby Timmons on piano (who plays on four tracks and was replaced by Barry Harris on the remaining five), Sam Jones on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums. Them Dirty Blues was originally released on Riverside until Adderley made the switch to Capitol where he brought several master tapes with him, including these sessions."
- Them Dirty Blues Review by Al Campbell
"I like this album, the decent track selection means it's fairly easy listening without being boring. Nothing to get too excited about, but a good example of fairly Mainstream Jazz from the time, probably most notable for premiering Nat Adderley's "Work Song" and "Bobby Timmons' "Dat Dere"."
- Them Dirty Blues Review by Hendrix Lockhart
released April 17, 2025
Julian "Cannonball" Adderley - alto sax
with
Miles Davis - trumpet
Nat Adderley - cornet
John Coltrane - tenor sax
Bill Evans - piano
Hank Jones - piano
Bobby Timmons - piano
Barry Harris - piano
Paul Chambers - bass
Sam Jones - bass
Louis Hayes - drums
Jimmy Cobb - drums
Art Blakey - drums
