Scott Hamilton And Harry Allen

Heavy Juice

Concord Jazz  CCD - 2258 - 2

        The late jazz drummer Art Blakey would often remark that jazz that was really happening "washes away the dust of everyday life." And when the likes of tenor sax men Scott Hamilton and Harry Allen get together to record, the dust of everyday life is not only washed away but it is washed away lavishly with luxurious bath oils.

The Dynamic Duo have joined forces for the second time on wax with Heavy Juice, on the Concord Jazz label. The eight-track thunderous session instantly recalls the great tenor battles of yore that have been legendary in jazz's rich history. (The two saxophonists' first recorded work together, Just You, Just Me, is on the BMG Japan label from         ).

Both tenor men claim Ben Webster as an early influence, and flashes of other tenor giants such as Illinois Jacquet, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims and Al Cohn also surface from time to time in the pair's playing throughout the CD.

Things get off to a jumping start with the title track, a basic blues riff from the pen of Tiny Bradshaw while Webster's Did You Call Her Today?, derived from Duke Ellington's In A Mellow Tone, finds Hamilton and Allen rocking in a steady groove.

The bebop canon is represented with two crashing pieces, Groovin' High, a conversion of Whispering, and Ow!, another I Got Rhythm-based tune. 

The album's only ballad tune, Warm Valley, a Johnny Hodge's opus from Ellington's 1940 band, showcases the lush sounds of the tenors.

Providing outstanding swinging support throughout the project are John Bunch, piano; Dennis Irwin, bass; and Chuck Riggs, drums.

Superlatives do this CD and it's artists no justice. Bath yourself abundantly in this awe-inspiring album. Listen intently. Capture the essence of the music in your soul. Live life with gusto.

Hamilton, 49, and Allen, 37, are on top of their games with Heavy Juice.

Track selections:  Heavy Juice, Did You Call Her Today?, Groovin' High, If I Should Lose You, Blues Up And Down, If Dreams Come True, Warm Valley, Ow!

Recorded at Sound On Sound Recording, New York, NY, on Feb. 11 and 12, 2004.

- Stephen Fratallone/Jazz Connection Magazine

Rating:  *****

*****