Woody Shaw Live, Volume One
Woody Shaw's trumpet is in full flight here, driven by a rhythm section that keeps pushing him forward.
The session behind this set was a working band doing what working bands do: playing the same material night after night until it becomes something they can push. Woody Shaw leads a quartet of Larry Willis on piano, Stafford James on double bass, Victor Lewis on drums, and Carter Jefferson on tenor saxophone, and the recording captures them in a live room where the energy comes from the audience and the bandstand rather than the studio.
What you hear is Shaw at his most unguarded. He plays long, muscular lines, bending harmonies hard and taking chances that a more cautious trumpeter would avoid. Lewis is a constant presence, shifting the pulse and goading the soloists, and Willis comes through with clean, forward-leaning comping. Jefferson adds a rougher texture on tenor that contrasts well with Shaw's brighter attack.
This is not the place to start with Shaw. Blackstones (1975) and Rosewood (1977) show more of his compositional range and studio control. But as a document of how the band sounded on its feet, this is one of the more direct entries in his catalogue, and for listeners who want to hear the trumpet working at full volume, it earns its place.
Who's playing
Stafford Jamesdouble bass
Larry Willispiano
Carter Jeffersontenor saxophone
Victor Lewisdrums
Woody Shawbrass
