AIN'T MISBEHAVIN Souvenir Program FATS WALLER Tour BOWERS / FREEMAN / PRYMUS `79

Naxos Jazz, Genre: Jazz Instrument

RCA Victor Records (USA)

Like Hallmark's 1996 Fats Waller "best-of" collection, this label's Ain't Misbehavin' is a jumbled mass of Waller material, although tune for tune the selections are slightly stronger than on the earlier release. These recordings, made between 1929 and 1940, include solo essays on piano and pipe organ, two gutsy little jams from 1929 featuring the first band to make records as Fats Waller & His Buddies, and a rowdy rendition of Slim Gaillard's "Flat Foot Floogie" recorded in London by Fats Waller & His Continental Rhythm in 1938. Tossing Waller's Buddies' recording of "Harlem Fuss" into the middle of a batch of songs whipped off by his Rhythm band during the 1930s rather muddies the palette and smears the distinction between the Prohibition-era intensity of the hastily assembled Buddies and the more routine proceedings of Waller's Rhythm, a group that settled into a pattern of Bluebird record production that would only cease with the union-imposed recording ban of 1942. This is a good album to have around unl

Candid Records

The Broadway musical based on the music of Fats Waller.Cast includes: Andre De Shields, Nell Carter.Ain't Misbehavin' originated as a simple song by Thomas "Fats" Waller that he sold for $500 and that was then performed by Louis Armstrong. In 1978, it became the title track of a cabaret show featuring the music of Waller. It was such a considerable success that it became a Broadway show, and was resurrected in 1988 for a brief stint. Ain't Misbehavin' won numerous Tonys, not the least of which was the award for Best Musical. The original Broadway cast recording features the Tony Award-winning performance of Nell Carter and captures the cabaret feel of the show that made it so charming and refreshing. An excellent recording of the show. ~ Sarah Erlewine

Golden Greats

Liner Note Author: Scott Yanow.Thomas "Fats" Waller was the complete entertainer during the Depression years, conveying a constant joyous presence as a singer, pianist, and organist, and as a superb songwriter -- his "Ain't Misbehavin', " for instance, is a timeless classic. Arguably his best work was done for Victor in 1934 and 1935, but Waller was always a steady performer, and the radio transcriptions on this two-disc set -- recorded between 1931 and 1943 -- are as delightful as anything else he ever recorded, and maybe even more so, thanks to his warm song introductions and occasional spoken asides; he introduces "Ain't Misbehavin'" here by saying "Ladies and gentlemen, this is just to let you know that I paid my alimony, and I ain't misbehavin'." Everything presented here is of a piece, full of a calm and sprightly joy, and tracks like his beautifully hushed interpretation of "Tea for Two" are nothing less than stunning. Again, Waller's studio work for Victor is the place to start with this marvelous musi

Release Date: August 21, 1975

Personnel: Hank Jones (piano); Teddy Edwards (tenor saxophone, clarinet); Bob Ojeda (trumpet); Kenny Burrell (guitar); Richard Davis (bass); Roy Haynes (drums).Recorded at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California on August 5 & 6, 1978. Includes liner notes by Murray Horwitz.Digitally remastered by Kirk Felton (1999, Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California).Personnel: Hank Jones (piano); Kenny Burrell (guitar); Teddy Edwards (clarinet, tenor saxophone); Bob Ojeda (trumpet); Roy Haynes (drums).Audio Remasterer: Kirk Felton.Recording information: Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, CA (08/05/1978/08/06/1978).Illustrator: Phil Carroll.Arranger: Bill Holman.When this set (reissued on CD) was recorded, Hank Jones was the pianist in the Broadway show Ain't Misbehavin', a revue that celebrated Fats Waller's music. Jones never sounded like Waller, being a swing-to-bop transition player rather than a stride pianist, and he makes no effort to copy Fats during this brief program. Instead he plays five Waller compositions and the swing

Release Date: 2011-08-22, Audio CD, Craze Productions