Notes & Personnel Info |  | Additional personnel: Dr. John, Dizzy Gillespie, Branford Marsalis. | | The Dirty Dozen Brass Band certainly knew how to have a good time while playing their music. Their spirited blending of New Orleans jazz parade rhythms with R&B-ish horn riffs made them flexible enough to welcome guests Dr. John (who sings and play piano on "It's All Over Now"), Dizzy Gillespie ("Ooh-Pop-A-Dah"), and Branford Marsalis ("Moose the Mooche") to their Columbia debut without altering their music at all. With Gregory Davis and Efrem Towns playing strong trumpet in the ensembles and occasional solos, and with sousaphonist Kirk Joseph not letting up for a moment, this is a typically spirited set by the unique DDBB. ~ Scott Yanow | | Employing traditional brass band instrumentation (generally two trumpets, two saxophones, trombone, sousaphone, snare and bass drummer), the Dirty Dozen filter a turn-of-the-century heritage through the more contemporary lenses of modern jazz, R&B and funk, with touches of Latin American dance rhythms thrown in for good measure. The results are nothing less than a condensed--and supremely danceable--history of roots music. | | VOODOO, the group's 1987 release, finds the Dozen in fine form. Guest appearances by such jazz/R&B legends as Dizzy Gillespie, whose inimitable scatting propels "Oop Pop A Dah"), Dr. John, who takes lead vocals on the Bobby Womack classic "It's All Over Now," and Branford Marsalis, who climbs aboard for a funked-up re-working of Charlie Parker's "Moose The Mooche," highlight the set. The relentless pace of groove-centered shuffles such as Tony Dagradi's "Gemini Rising" and the Dozen-penned title track testify to the ensemble's formidable power at moving booties. At the same time, superior musicianship from all involved (notably Kirk Joseph, whose dexterity on the sousaphone can make the instrument sound uncannily like electric bass) gives evidence of seasoned jazz training. VOODOO is a thoroughly enjoyable outing that fuses traditionalism with a fresh, eminently danceable contemporary approach. |
Producer: Scott Billington |
Musical Guests | | Dr. John | | Dizzy Gillespie | | Branford Marsalis |
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