The Count Basie Orchestra was one of the most influential bands in jazz between 1938 and 1978. Basie pioneered the sound of hardcore and minimalist swing, and his arrangers specialized in a style in which the band's sections—trumpets, trombones, saxophones and rhythm—seemed to converse with each other. Virtually all top post-war jazz musicians and big-band arrangers admired Basie, and tribute albums over the years were fairly common. They included Shorty Rogers's Shorty Courts the Count (1944), Oscar Peterson Plays Count Basie (1955), Francis Bay Plays Count Basie (1961), Frank Foster's No Count (1956), Maxwell Davis's Compositions of Count Basie and Others (1959), Gene Harris's Tribute to Count Basie (1987) and Jesper Thilo's Don't Count Him Out (1993).
Here's another one that's lesser known: André Persiany Joue Count Basie. Recorded in Paris for French Columbia in January and February 1958, the tracks were One O'Clock Jump, Shorty George, Blue and Sentimental, Miss Thing, Swinging the Blues, Jive at Five and Topsy. For the January session (featuring the first four songs listed above), the band was comprised of Fernand Verstraete, Lucien Juanico and Georges Gay (tp); Bill Tamper and Claude Gousset (tb); Ted Hameline, Rene Godard and Michel Attenoux (as); Armand Conrad and Georges Bessieres (ts); Robert Bagnieres (bar); Andre Persiany (p); Pierre Cullaz (g); Paul Rovere (b) and Christian Garros (d). For the February session, the band was the same, except that Pierre Thibaud (tp) and Sandy Fall (tb) replaced Fernand Verstraete and Claude Gousset.
It's interesting to hear a French jazz interpretation of Basie. Songs have all the might and drive of the original, but there's a magical elegance to the playing, especially with Persiany's tinkling crystal-like top notes on the piano. It's as if the arrangements were written in French.
All seven Basie tracks originally were on a French EP and now appear on the CD André Persiany and His Orchestra Featuring Guy Lafitte (Fresh Sound). Two other Persiany big-band albums from June 1954 and May 1955 appear on the same CD. The songs and arrangements have an Ernie Wilkins bounce throughout. Pure swinging joy with a French twist. Killer stuff.
André Persiany died in 2004.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find André Persiany and His Orchestra, Featuring Guy Lafitte (Fresh Sound) here.
JazzWax clips: Here's Shorty George...
Here's Just for Fun...
And here's Two Cats and a Piece of Lung, with Guy Lafitte on the tenor sax solo and Michel de Villers on baritone. Try to keep your feet from moving around...
