"ATLAS JAZZ EXPLOSION"

Finally someone has the smarts to release the fine output from the late fifties vintage vaults of Atlas out of New York along with some like minded stuff from the Vita and Mambo labels from LA. Incredible rockin' jazz from the horn of LA session man extroardinaire Jackie Kelso from the Mambo / Vita sessions(he and Plas Johnson were the go-to men of the day) and some positively burnin' sides from Charlie Singleton from the Atlas label layin' down some heavy stuff that straddle's the border of jazz and jump blues - add to that mixture some uniformly splendid sides from Harold Austin plus June Davis and Freddy Washington's band and you've got a surefire winner here. This some explosive stuff. (Congo Slim, Amazon)An interesting selection of jazz-leaning jump blues tracks recorded in the early '50s for Larry Mead's L.A.-based Mambo and Vita labels and Tom Robinson's New York-based Atlas Records, Atlas Jazz Explosion consists mostly of tenor sax-led instrumentals that edge toward a hard R&B sound without actually getting there, and hint at jazz without really getting there, either, with the opener, Jackie Kelso's version of "Blue Moon," being fairly representative. There are also a couple of vocal tracks from June Davis, "I Am One of God's Children" and "8-9-10," and a strange organ-and-congas duet called "Congo Buggie" from Freddy Washington that sounds like it could almost be from the surf instrumental craze of a decade later. These are all obscure and rare tracks, and collectors of later-era jump blues will no doubt be delighted at this set, but casual listeners may well be more bewildered than anything else, since these sides seem to occupy a strange zone that is not quite jazz and not quite R&B, retaining some elements of both. (Steve Leggett, Allmusic)

trax:
Jackie Kelso:
1. Blue Moon 2. Smiles 3. Not Yet 4. Easy Pickin' (Part I) 5. Encore 6. My Buddy 7. Once More 8. Piccadilly 9. The Sleeper 10. Rat-A-Tat 11. Easy Pickin' (Part II)
Harold Austin:
12. Jesse's Ideas (Part I) 13. Jesse's Ideas (Part II) 14. I Am One Of God's Children (Without Wings)
June Davis w/Freddy Washington's Band:
15. 8, 9, 10 16. Congo Buggie
Charlie Singleton:
17. Super Chief 18. The Boardwalk 19. Blow Mr. Singleton 20. Deep Purple 21. Oozing Along 22. Gone With The Wind 23. Pony Express 24. Broadway Beat 25. Jiving With Doctor Jive
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