Mercury Records Collection: EmArcy MG-36040: The Herb Geller Sextette

MG-36040: The Herb Geller Sextette

Label Type :	blue EmArcy type B
Matrix Number :	SIDE-A	MG 36040A MF2 A1 I
	SIDE-B	MG 36040B MF2 A1 I

Comments

back cover in heavy coffee stains, but the disc itself is in excellent condition: plays awesome!

Inside The Groove

Herb Geller's 2nd album on EmArcy, a part of his “EmArcy trilogy”. A great west-coast session.

Personal Impression (and brief notes)

Herb Geller is definitely one of the greatest Alto players in the West-Coast era: He left gems of leader sessions on EmArcy and Jubilee labels in the 1950s. Of course he continued to play and recorded many of fine plays after he left to Europe (and after his wife / a piano player Lorraine Geller's death), but many may agree that he climbed to the artistic peak in his 1950s.

This album, his 2nd 12-inch LP release (3rd LP in recorded order), captures his finest plays in this era. His improvisations are delicate, fluent and beautiful, but in the same time have power of persuasion. Lorraine Geller also plays finest solos throughout.

Both sides are inevitable, but especially Side-B is great: steady and solid ensemble on B-1, relaxed and comfortable swing on B-2, straightahead improvisation with sharpened rhythm section on B-3, an unique arrangements of famous song on B-4 ... yes I love them all.

Strictly Personal Rating (to what extent I could enjoy this album)

10 out of 10

Track Listing

SIDE-A
A-1	12000	Outpost Incident (H. Geller)	4:19
A-2	12001	Crazy He Calls Me (Russell - Sigman)	5:24
A-3	12007	Gin For Fuguelhorns (H. Geller)	3:35
A-4	12005	Tardi At Zardi's (H. Geller)	4:27
SIDE-B
B-1	12004	Vone Mae (B. Freeman)	5:28
B-2	12002	Rockin' Chair (H. Carmichael)	4:48
B-3	12006	Owl Eyes (H. Geller)	4:20
B-4	12003	You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To (Cole Porter)	3:05

Personnel

Personnel/recorded date/master numbers confirmed with the Ruppli's discography.
(“The Mercury Labels - A Discography” by Ruppli and Novitsky, Greenwood Press, 1993)

A-1, A-2, B-2, B-4:
Herb Geller (as), Lorraine Geller (p), Conte Candoli (tp), Ziggy Vines (ts),
Keith Mitchell (aka Red Mitchell) (b), Eldridge Freeman (ds).
Recorded in Los Angeles, August 19, 1955.

A-3, A-4, B-1, B-3:
Same personnel as above, except Leroy Vinnegar (b) replaces Mitchell.
Recorded in Los Angeles, August 22, 1955.