Not all West Coast jazz of the 1950s was shaded by the relaxed influences of the Los Angeles suburbs and the Pacific Ocean. Black jazz artists brought their own artistic perspectives to the studios and clubs, forged through migration from the South and Southwest, living in the Watts and South Central sections, and trying to stand out as musicians in a city with heightened segregation and racism.
Among the finest black jazz musicians in Los Angeles in the 1950s was tenor saxophonist Harold Land. Born in Houston, his family moved to San Diego, Ca., when he was a child. His first recording as a leader came in L.A. in 1949. In 1954, he was part of the Clifford Brown/Max Roach Quintet until mid-1955. Then he began playing and recording with the very best jazz musicians in L.A., including Hampton Hawes, Art Pepper, Chet Baker, Curtis Counce, Herb Geller and others. [Photo above of Harold Land]
Land's third album, The Fox, was recorded in August 1959 for the HiFijazz label (above), founded by Robert Vaughn in 1956. The quintet consisted of Dupree Bolton (tp), Harold Land (ts), Elmo Hope (p), Herbie Lewis (b) and Frank Butler (d). The LP was most notable for Land's fiery hard-bop energy and the blistery playing of Bolton and Hope.
The album's title (and the name of the first track) was a nickname. As Land told liner-notes writer Leonard Feather in 1969, when the album was remastered and reissued by Contemporary Records: "The truth is, that was a nickname Lawrence Marable, the drummer, dropped on me and which hardly anyone ever uses now. Aside from that, I felt that this particular composition has the speed, the action and movement of a fox. So it seemed a fitting title." [Photo above of Herbie Lewis]
Hope, who moved to L.A. in 1957 after his license to perform in New York was suspended after a drug conviction, composed the album's next three songs—Mirror Mind Rose; One Second, Please; and Sims A-Plenty. The first is a mournful ballad, the second is a hard-bop twister and the third is a quick spirited, jagged song that showcases Hope's piano chops and Bolton's trumpet. [Photo above of Elmo Hope by Francis Wolff (c)Mosaic Images]
This album is also important for its inclusion of Bolton, one of jazz's least known and barely recorded bright lights. Bolton was among those extraordinary artists who had the misfortune of being incarcerated for extended periods of their adult lives for crimes related to drug addiction. [Photo above of Harold Land, left, and Dupree Bolton by Bob Skeetz]
Bolton appeared on The Fox after being released from Terminal Island Correctional Institution in L.A. Soon after the album was recorded, Bolton was re-arrested and sent to San Quentin State Prison. He would record only one other studio album, Katanga, led by saxophonist Curtis Amy. [Photo above of Dupree Bolton]
Land's Little Chris is a pretty composition with a Horace Silver feel and was written for Land's then 9-year-old son, who went on to become a jazz pianist. One Down by Hope is a smart hard-bop anthem. Dig Butler's drum solo toward the end. [Photo above of Frank Butler]
Said Land of Hope in conversation with Feather: "Elmo was equally talented as a soloist and composer but with a difference. He expresses things in his writing you don't hear in his playing. In his solos, he's loose and free, while in his writing there's a sense of form. His lines are involved, yet never lost continuity. Elmo truly had a touch of genius. I was in awe of him."
While the individual players here are special, the biggest reward is the sound of all of them together, from Land's darting saxophone and Bolton's Clifford Brown-inspired horn to Frank Butler's dancing drum figures, Hope's leathery bop and Lewis' rolling bass lines. The sound is akin to listening to a casino dealer shuffle cards. The tight unity is something else. Kudos to the late producer David Axelrod.
Best of all, The Fox is newly available on 180-gram vinyl from Craft Recordings, a division of Concord, complete with its 1969 cover and Feather's liner notes on the back. Bernie Grundman handled the updated mastering. You'll find the LP here.
Must read: Ted Gioia's two-part essay and interview with Dupree Bolton here
JazzWax tracks: You'll find Harold Land's The Fox (Craft) remastered as a digital download here.
It also can be found on major streaming platforms.
JazzWax clips: Here's Little Chris...
And here's One Down...
Bonus: Here's Dupree Bolton playing Laura on TV's Frankly Jazz in Los Angeles in the early 1960s...
