The Lady Who Swings the Band - Rediscovered Music of Mary Lou Williams

Album Review

Mary Lou Williams was a giant in jazz history, in spite of Ken Burns' inexcusable failure to acknowledge her importance in his public television documentary. Prior to her death in 1981, she set up a foundation to expose children to jazz, leaving all of her manuscripts to its archives. Since then her music has slowly begun to reappear on CD, but this phenomenal release by the Dutch Jazz Orchestra explores a number of her compositions and arrangements that were never recorded, or in some cases, performed at all. She wrote the rhythmic "Chief" as one of several pieces intended for Duke Ellington, though it was never played. Ruud Breuts' expressive muted trumpet and Rob Van Bavel's post-bop piano keep this piece sounding very modern. Alto saxophonist Albert Beltman brings Johnny Hodges to mind in the lush, very subdued ballad setting of "Scratchin' in the Gravel." Clarinetist John Ruocco shines in the relaxed interpretation of Williams' famous blues "What's Your Story, Morning Glory?" It seems obvious throughout this excellent CD that the musicians spent time and effort exploring this music prior to recording it, adding to Mary Lou Williams' already sizable jazz legacy.