1956 · Album
Hooray for Milt Jackson John Lewis Art Blakey Kenny Dorham
Recorded 1956 · Riverside Records · Produced by Orrin Keepnews
Five Voices, One Loose Afternoon
This is a relaxed blowing session that works because everyone involved was simply very good at jazz.
The title tells you most of what you need to know: Milt Jackson, John Lewis, Art Blakey, Kenny Dorham, and the album is essentially a showcase for all four, with the billing itself a kind of democratic gesture. This was a Riverside recording from the late 1950s, when the label was doing some of its best work corralling hard bop and mainstream jazz talent into sessions that felt genuinely casual rather than manufactured. The result here is exactly that — a blowing date where the material is familiar enough that nobody has to think too hard, and the playing is loose in the good way.
Dorham is the glue here. His trumpet sound is warm and slightly understated, which suits the session better than a more aggressive player would. Jackson on vibes brings his usual melodic intelligence — he's never in a hurry, never showing off, just finding the prettiest line available. Lewis contributes his characteristic restraint at the piano, which in another context might feel chilly but here reads as welcome breathing room. Blakey drives the whole thing without overwhelming it, which is not always a given with him.
This isn't an album you'd reach for if you wanted a definitive statement from any of these musicians — Jackson's best work with the MJQ is deeper, Dorham's own leader dates are more focused. But that's almost beside the point. What this record offers is four genuinely skilled players enjoying themselves on material they know well, and that has its own kind of value. Put it on when you want real jazz without any particular agenda, and it delivers exactly that.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Kenny Dorham
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The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
