Soul Station Feature: Charlie Ventura Sextet

C.V. Jump

The beginnings of bebop were from early 1944 forward. By the start of 1945, Dizzy Gillespie was making his own records. Soon Charlie Parker would as well. In many ways bop gathered creative energies that had been emerging in NYC, at jams, and at a club called Minton's. The cats out in LA, however, were not clueless. This great side from March of 1945 was under the name of Charlie Ventura (note that it is misspelled on the label) who had been in Gene Krupa's big band. He teamed (and would continue to do so in the future) with Howard McGhee, who had been with the bands of Andy Kirk and Charlie Barnet. They cut this very bopish track which also features fine piano from Arnold Ross and a very strong solo by Dave Barbour, who is best known, perhaps, for his relationship with Peggy Lee. So while Hollywood was hardly the incubator of bebop, it was there and in early 1945!

DJ Pi/Paul Yamada