In the early 1950s, just as the 10-inch LP and 45 were becoming standard formats, Capitol decided to showcase artists who either played in Stan Kenton's bands or Kenton fancied at the time. The label put Don Hassler in charge of producing the "Kenton Presents" series, which made the switch to the 12-inch format when the LP expanded in 1956.
Most of the artists who recorded for the "Kenton Presents" line were familiar names. They included pianist Claude Williamson, trombonist Frank Rosolino, tenor saxophonist Bob Cooper, baritone saxophonist Serge Chaloff, tenor saxophonist Bill Holman, alto saxophonist Boots Mussulli, guitarist Sal Salvador and arranger Ken Hanna.
And then there was Al Belletto. The saxophonist, clarinetist and arranger never recorded with Kenton and was based mostly on the East Coast and in Chicago. His first "Kenton Presents" EP in 1954 was An Introduction to the Al Belletto Quintet. The pair of 45s featured four songs with five neatly arranged musicians: Jack Martin (tp,fhr,b), Jimmy Guinn (tb,vcl), Al Belletto (as,bar), Fred Crane (p,bar) and Charles McKnight (d). I'm guessing the group was recorded for "Kenton Presents" because they also sang vocal harmony on tracks in a style similar to the Four Freshmen.
In 1954 and '55, Belletto recorded Sounds and Songs. By then, Belletto's group was a sextet: Jack Martin (tp,fhr), Danny Conn (tp,Mellophone,b), Jimmy Guinn (tb), Al Belletto (as,bar), Fred Crane (p), Skip Fawcett (b) and Charles McKnight (d). Two other Capitol albums would follow.
When Woody Herman heard Belletto's recordings, he decided to include the sextet in his State Department tour of Central and South America in the late 1950s. Born and raised in New Orleans, Belletto returned to the city in the early 1960s as the entertainment director of the Playboy Club chain. He also was on the board of New Orleans's JazzFest in 1968. He successfully pushed the festival to include the city's prominent black musicians and that they be compensated on par with white performers.
As you'll hear, Belletto's surfy, high-register attack on the alto saxophone sounded very much like Art Pepper. His tight groups had a West Coast jazz feel—rich in melody with fugue-like harmony and lots of space. After Sounds and Songs, Belletto recorded Half and Half in 1956, Whisper Not in 1957 and a superb album with singer Jerri Winters in '57 entitled Somebody Loves Me. His Jazznocracy big band album in 1997, his last, also was a knockout.
An added bonus on the 1950s Capitol recordings of Al Belletto is the inclusion of Fred Crane, a rarely recorded jazz pianist who was a major influence on Bill Evans.
Al Belletto died in 2014.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find the Al Belletto Sextet's Sounds and Songs here (which includes tracks from An Introduction to the Al Belletto Quintet) and Half and Half here.
You'll find Belletto's Jazznocracy big-band album at Spotify.
JazzWax clips: Here are a handful of Belletto's group recordings for Capitol's "Kenton Presents" series. Here's Russ Freeman's Russ Job...
Here's Jack Martin's Mabel...
Here's Al Kerr's Bebe...
And here's Jeepers Creepers with vocals by the group...
