A History Of Blue Note Records: 1951

Wynton Kelly Trio – July 25 1951

Michael Cuscuna - CD Reissue Liner Notes (BNJ-71001 LP / 7-84456-2 CD)

Born in Jamaica on December 2, 1931 , Wynton Kelly grew up in Brooklyn, New York, a fertile breeding ground for many of the major modern musicians in jazz, especially pianists. At age 15, he returned to his Caribbean roots, touring there with saxophonist Ray Abrams' octet. Gigs with Hal Singer and Eddie Lockjaw Davis followed. His first major break came with the opportunity to record for Blue Note records, the complete results of which are finally gathered together on this album.

At this time, Wynton was working as accompanist with the great Dinah Washington. This was a position later held by a number of fine Blue Note pianists including Sonny Clark, Kenny Drew and Andrew Hill. But Kelly made his greatest mark in 1952, when he joined Dizzy Gillespie's band. Interrupted by a stint in the U.S. Army, he rejoined Gillespie upon discharge and stayed with him until 1957.

Eight tunes from these sessions were issued in 1952 on four 78's. In September, 1953, Blue Note put 5 of those tunes and 3 previously unissued titles on a 10-inch album Blue Note 5025. In the early seventies, Toshiba EMI issued an album of Sonny Clark and Kelly material (LNJ 70079) which included several titles that had been only on 78 or previously unissued.

Down Beat Magazine

This album brings ail of that material together with new disc transfers that improve the sound quality greatly and completes the sessions by including the previously unissued Opus Caprice and Foolin' Myself. Although Foolin' Myself is listed on LNJ-70079, that track was actually an alternate take of Born To Be Blue.

Leonard Feather – Wynton Kelly – New Faces – New Sounds BLP 5025 Liner Notes

THE pianist presented on these sides is one of the youngest and brightest luminaries in the new jazz constellation. Wynton Kelly was barely 21 years old when, while enjoying his greatest jazz recognition as a member of the Dizzy Gillespie combo, he was inducted into the Army in the summer of 1952, thus interrupting a career that will undoubtedly be resumed in high gear upon his return to civilian life.

Kelly. who was brought to the United States from his native Jamaica at the age of four, was playing professionally when he. was only eleven, using a stack of telephone books to give him an elevation proportionate to his inspiration. He was only 15 when he went on a Caribbean tour with Ray Abrams' octet. In the next few years he worked mostly in the rhythm and blues field, with Hal "Cornbread" Singer, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and for three years as accompanist to Dinah Washington. His move into the jazz realm started with Lester Young and continued with Dizzy. Whenever he was in town, even after a tough Saturday night in a jazz bistro. he would show up promptly at the Abyssinian Church in Brooklyn to play organ for the Sunday mass. He prefers to preserve his jazz work for the piano, leaving classical and religious music to the organ.

November 1953

Down Beat 21 March 1952 Volume 19 Issue 6

Blue Note here presents its new piano discovery in the modern vein. Like Garner, he works with bass and drums. Oscar Pettiford is the bassist on three of the sides, while Franklin Skeete works on Cherokee. Lee Abrams is the drummer.

Performance is pleasing and in good taste, but hard to define. We are told he is only 20 years old and spent a couple of years playing accompaniments for singer Dinah Washington. This boy is an accomplished musician and will be heard from in the future. (Blue Note.)

Blue Note Biography

A superb accompanist loved by Miles Davis and Cannonball Adderley, Wynton Kelly was also a distinctive soloist who decades later would be a strong influence on Benny Green. He grew up in Brooklyn and early on played in R&B bands led by Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson, Hal Singer, and Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis. Kelly, who recorded 14 titles for Blue Note in a trio (1951), worked with Dinah Washington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lester Young during 1951-1952. After serving in the military, he made a strong impression with Washington (1955-1957), Charles Mingus (1956-1957), and the Dizzy Gillespie big band (1957), but he would be most famous for his stint with Miles Davis (1959-1963), recording such albums with Miles as Kind of Blue, At the Blackhawk, and Someday My Prince Will Come. When he left Davis, Kelly took the rest of the rhythm section (bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Jimmy Cobb) with him to form his trio. The group actually sounded at its best backing Wes Montgomery. Before his early death, Kelly recorded as a leader for Blue Note, Riverside, Vee-Jay, Verve, and Milestone.

https://www.bluenote.com/artist/wynton-kelly/

Notes etc. Blue Note session debuts for both Wynton Kelly and Lee Abrams. Also Abrams only recording session for the label