RAMSEY LEWIS - Goin' Latin
Ramsey Lewis has long straddled the boundary between bop-oriented jazz and later in the mid-1960s crossed over towards a pop-jazz music sound which attracted a large non-jazz audience. In 1956 he formed the Ramsey Lewis trio with bassist Eldee Young and drummer Red Holt, and from the start their records for Argo (and later Cadet) were popular, although in the early days they had a strong jazz content. This is the record that put the legendary Ramsey Lewis on the map. Lewis is known as an incredible stylist on piano, comfortably adapting almost any kind of music into his own jazz fusion vision. Film scores, pop, light classical hall fit comfortably into his music, and this album is an excellent example of his vision. But, it's not only Lewis alone. His absolutely fabulous rhythm section frame all of Ramsey's performances with funk and grace and a superior forward momentum. On this LP we hear: Hey, Mrs. Jones (4:01); Summer Samba (3:09); One, Two, Three (3:34); Free Again (2:57); Down by the Riverside (3:45); Blue Bongo (4:18); I'll Wait for You (3:15); Function at the Junction (Dozier/Holland/Long)-(3:04); Spanish Grease (Willie Bobo)-(3:09); Lara's Theme (Somewhere My Love)-(2:32); Cast Your Fate to the Wind (3:00). Recorded late December 1966, this is a Mono pressing on CADET RECORDS (LP-790), with the light blue labels with whitish bottom, and red & white Cadet logo. There is a tiny drill hole going through the center of the jacket & through the label area, indicating that this title was cut-out of the Cadet catalogue. Otherwise, the record jacket appears overall Mint, and the labels appear unplayed Mint. The playing surfaces also appear overall beautiful MINT!
