In this fifth volume of our Fats Waller edition, Fats takes rare trips overseas. Fats' audiences were falling in the US. Europe was an obvious refuge. Fats' asking price was an unprecedented $2500 a week. The British accepted the figure without hesitation. Fats' first appearance was in Glasgow - a tough town. To up the ante, Fats wore a kilt for his first show. They'd either love him or hate him. It was love. An audience of 2100 called him back for ten curtain calls. A week later, he did the same at the London Palladium. After the Palladium date, Fats recorded at HMV's Abbey Road. Jazz-inspired players were called in. One broke off his honeymoon to play with Fats. A week after his first UK session, Fats was at the Abbey Road organ to cut a sequence of spirituals. He finished in tears. Across the Channel he was as feted as he had been in Britain. His spiritual records had reached France and he was asked to play them in Notre Dame. Fats then started a royal progress, marred by problems in Germany. Hitler's saber-rattling became so worrying that the tour was canceled. Fats went home. So to the famous October 13th session. With the four confidently struck chords that open Two Sleepy People, Fats seems to be saying I'm back! And with his regular band in terrific form, he was. Europe could rout out a decent group of session players, but they'd rarely duplicate this casual virtuosity. The round of touring and recording continued. So great were Europe's attractions, that Fats made another Transatlantic trip, where again, he made some historic 'serious' recordings that might not have been considered in the US. Those recordings are here. Make your own judgment. Fats returned to a US that welcomed him. The grueling treadmill resumed. The last sides here are less famous than Fats' showcase material, but no worse for that. On Oh Frenchy the whole band reveals its New Orleans side - the finale a call-to-arms that would soon be sounded for real.
D**R
GREAT MUSIC
Occasionally you come across an artist whose longing to do something more than his ordinary playing allows leaks over into his music. The accomplished post-stride, pre-swing pianist/organist/comedy singer and bandleader Thomas “Fats” Waller may be the prime example in mainstream jazz.It’s not that he didn’t record a lot or that he wasn’t popular. ‘Popular’ was his problem. That and being black. Over the course of a much too short life, this wonderful artist recorded way too many truly trivial songs that exploited his ability to turn a sow’s ear into, if not into a velvet purse, at least into an acceptable fine cloth item. Whoa, you can’t believe the crap he recorded across his hectic but too short career!Even in the worst pieces of dreck he recorded, he was never a trivial player. And at his best, he was an immensely consequential performer, who played with a unique mixture of jollity, joy and melancholy. (You have to listen closely for the melancholy but it’s there.)Now we have six sets of four CDS each, twenty-four albums of approximately twenty-five tunes on each, for a total of roughly six hundred cuts, all of Waller as sideman (first and second sets), then head honcho (the inimitable Gene Sedric his sideman on sax() ,and on a few cuts, alone or playing with unexpected collaborators. There are several cuts with Waller playing pipe organ, which was his preferred instrument.Listen to these recordings both casually and intensely. Let the music soak in. Eventually, if not at first, you will understand why consequential players, like stride giant Ralph Sutton (whose playing of Waller’s “The Spider and the Fly” is better than Fats on his own recording) and Michel Legrand/Miles Davis’ (Waller’s “Jitterbug Waltz”), venerated this gentle jazz giant.
T**L
What's not to like?
I bought all of the complete works except volume 1. If you like tremendous 1930's small groupjazz that really swings, is not self-conscience or phony with a master of 'tongue in cheek'humor, this set should give you hours of enjoyment. Not everything Fats recorded is a masterpiece,but he did wonders with most of the material he was forced to record. The sound of the transfersis excellent as well.' tongue in cheek humor of a master you will find this collectionvery worthwhile. Technically it is excellent
J**Y
Fats' expanded repetoire is enjoyable. If you want the mainstream hits, these are not.
At first I was disappointed because the versions of Ain't Misbehavin were done on organ unlike the piano versions with which I am familiar. However I found so many great tracks I soon got over it. My new favorite track by Fats is Got No Time, from this recording. The quality of the recordings range from muddy to sonically tolerable but the performances are entertaining and I am happy with this purchase.
L**R
Fats lives
This whole series has somehow managed to do what the thousands of other earlier Waller releases have not managed to do: Get the music juice out of the grooves. All CDs in this series are almost what used to be called hi-fi though releases to date reach only to 1938, long before the advent of hi-fi (never mind stereo).My favorite, on one of the earlier collections of four CDs in this series, is "Serenade for a Wealthy Widow." You hear licks, notes, background fills, that were never before audible. That made that tune brand-new again. But that happens to most of the recordings in this series.The only negative I have is that while a group of four CDs may have various takes, recorded on a given day, of the same tune, they are separated. That makes listening more fun for the non-aficionado of Fats Waller, but less so for people like me. Oh well.Recommended without reservation.
P**K
the complete facts waller collection!!!
so amazing to have all these 25 CDs of Waller's complete works
G**7
Five Stars
I'm very satisfied with the complete recorded works of Fats Waller
A**N
Review
received vol 5 promptly and it was everything I expected. PleasedWhat else can I say...did a good job period
L**Y
GREAT WALLER !
VERY HAPPY WITH VOL 5, SOME TRACKS UNKOWN TO ME, EXCELLENT REMASTERING, WOULD BE INTERESTED IN OTHER VOLUMES OF WALLER IN THIS SERIES - LINDSAY
L**N
Indispensable music
This is an extra interesting volume in this JSP-series with THE COMPLETE RECORDED WORKS of Fats Waller.You will find his London-38 recordings here and even his pipe organ solos from 1939. Also a Lee Wiley-session with the Condon-mob also from 1939. A lot of alternative takes are a bonus. In addition to this ALL master takes and Ted Kendall's very fine remastering. 101 tracks with Fats Waller is exactly what you need just now. You can find them all in this 4-CD set. I have bought "Complete Fats" several times, first during the vinyl-era(French Black & White), on CD (US BlueBird but without the piano solos) and now JSP. Maybe this IS the last chance to get them all? Don't hesitate.
M**T
Five Stars
This is the part of an excellent series and I recommend it to lovers of jazz piano
B**E
Fats Waller The complete recorded works
Sind Sie traurig ? Habens Lebensschwierigkeiten ? Mit Fats Waller verschwinden alle ihre Unannehmlichkeiten. Keine andere Musik ist so anregend und freudig. Diese Bemerkungen gelten für die 6 Teile dieser unvergleichbaren und vollständigen Ausgabe.
Trustpilot
1 month ago
1 month ago