LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

Cal Tjader (pronounced "Chay-Der") is easily the most famous non-Latino leader of a Latin jazz band. His joyous, light vibes style worked in both Jazz and Latin contexts and he also played drums, timbales and bongos. In the late forties in San Francisco, Tjader joined with Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond as a drummer to form the Dave Brubeck Octet and during that period taught himself vibes. After a spell with pianist George Shearing, he formed the Cal Tjader Modern Mambo Quintet. Recording for Fantasy records, the group produced several albums in rapid succession featuring seasoned Cuban players and top-notch jazz talent. Some consider this aggregation to be the greatest small-combo Latin jazz band ever. After almost ten years at Fantasy, Tjader signed to verve and now with seasoned recording engineer Creed Taylor at the helm cut an imaginative sequence of albums working with Donald Byrd, Lalo Schifrin and Kenny Burrell. Tjader first (with "sky-rocketing brilliance") combined Asian music and jazz to create 'several shades of jade' and 'breeze from the east' then in 1964 released the hit album 'Soul Sauce' which charted and sold 100,000 copies. In 1968, Tjader formed Skye Records with guitarist Gabor Szabo and composer and fellow vibist Gary Mcfarland, launching the label with the fine 'solar heat' (which includes two mcfarland's compositions 'Fried Bananas', the beautiful 'Theme From 13' from the film 'eye of the devil' and 'felicidade' by the master of bossa nova, Antonio Carlos Jobim) followed by an underrated collection of Bacharach standards ('Cal Tjader sounds out Burt Bacharach') where the vibist performs this famous material with originality (notably the solemn 'Message To Michael') and rare melodic sensitivity. It is the Skye period on which 'Fried Bananas' concentrates, drawing on both McFarland produced studio albums and two live sets including 'Cal Tjader Plugs In' recorded in California early in 1969. After the label's regrettable demise in 1970, Tjader returned to the fantasy label, later signing to the concord jazz, and was prolific until his untimely death of a heart attack whilst working in Manila in 1982.
Track listing: Amazon Here Eye Of The Devil A Felicidade Fried Bananas What The World Needs Now A Message To Michael My Little Red Book I Say A Little Prayer Walk On By Alonzo Song For Pat The Tra La Song Spooky Get Out Of My Way