RSSJimmy McGriff and Junior Parker [extended]
- The Dudes Doin' Business [Capitol, 1970] C+
- I Tell Stories Sad and True, I Sing the Blues and Play Harmonica Too, It Is Very Funky [United Artists, 1972] B
- The Dream Team [Milestone, 1996]
- Greatest Hits [Blue Note, 1997] A-
See Also:
Consumer Guide Reviews:
The Dudes Doin' Business [Capitol, 1970]
A waste. Vocalist Parker, an underrated blues pro, and organist McGriff, who has a name as a soloist but is better off accompanying, should produce a more than passable record almost automatically. But not when they're burdened with strings, insipid soprano choruses, and hopelessly inappropriate material. Is a bluesman singing "The Inner Light" supposed to make contact--and money--in St. Albans? Sonny Lester--remember that name--produced. C+
Junior Parker: I Tell Stories Sad and True, I Sing the Blues and Play Harmonica Too, It Is Very Funky [United Artists, 1972]
Once a big man on the blues circuit, Parker was turning into the forgotten Beale Streeter by the time he died last year, and this is a respectful farewell--Sonny Lester, who wrecked his recent collaboration with Jimmy McGriff, keeps things simple (well, fairly simple). Never as penetrating as B.B. or Bobby, Parker smooths his way over the arrangements with the calm of a man who was mellow before the concept existed, at least in its present deracinated form. Highlight: the sad, true story that goes with "Funny How Time Slips Away." B
Jimmy McGriff: The Dream Team [Milestone, 1996]
"McGriffin"
Jimmy McGriff: Greatest Hits [Blue Note, 1997]
In a world where Roy Ayers is counted a beatwise godfather by acid jazz casualties, the continued obscurity of this B-3 master isn't excused by his signature quote: "What I play isn't really jazz. It's sort of in between." Sounds disastrous, I know, but what he didn't say because he didn't know it is that he played funk, and not in the hard-bop sense. Early on he's still rooted in cocktail swing, although he has the populism to be vulgar about it, and as this collection cherry-picks its way through 10 '60s albums, both his attack and his uncredited rhythm sections grow tougher and trickier. By the end, well, "The Worm" and "Fat Cakes" may not be "Cissy Strut" or "Look-Ka Py Py," but that's the territory. And later McGriff was known to join forces with Hank Crawford, whose continued obscurity will be taken up in a future lesson. A-