ART TATUM AND BEN WEBSTER QUARTET/180g Red Vinyl

Description

With: Art Tatum (piano), Ben Webster (tenor sax), Red Callender (bass), Bill Douglass (drums).
It would be quite difficult to find two musicians who, while being born in the same year, are as different from each other as Art Tatum and Ben Webster were. The former, who is still considered today a genius of jazz piano, became known primarily as a soloist for his virtuoso style of astonishing precision. The latter is among the most famous saxophonists in the history of jazz, notably for having beautifully contributed to the famous Duke Ellington orchestra. It was not in an attempt to erase these differences that they were brought together under the guidance of producer Norman Granz for their only quartet album. Surrounded by a solid rhythm section, each remains true to the sound that made them successful: Art Tatum produces strings of beaded notes from an imagination that is clearly limitless while wonderfully fulfilling the role of accompanist, while Ben Webster, unflappable in nonchalant elegance and simplicity, finds in this as delightful as improbable contrast an ideal setting for his improvisations.