Black Hawk Nights

Black Hawk Nights

Vibraphonist Cal Tjader was a pioneer in mating the cool textures of West Coast jazz with Afro-Cuban and Latin beats, creating effervescent music with percussion in the foreground. This CD combines two LPs recorded live at San Francisco's Black Hawk in 1958 and 1959. The earlier session has a band loaded with future stars, including pianist Vince Guaraldi and a superb rhythm section, with the big-toned bassist Al McKibbon and the percussion duo of Willie Bobo on drums and Mongo Santamaría on congas. Little-known Cuban tenor player José "Chumbo" Silva is a key presence as well, with a sound that suggests Stan Getz and a taut rhythmic edge. Guaraldi, Bobo, and Santamaría turn "I Love Paris" into a riveting tempest of percussion, while "Night in Tunisia" is an extended flight into Afro-Cuban bop. The later set focuses more on Tjader's lyrical side with a straight-ahead quartet and a program emphasizing standards. His shimmering sound and liquid phrasing are well matched with the boppish pianist Lonnie Hewitt. <i>--Stuart Broomer</i>