Listening to Prestige 294: Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis - Shirley Scott

Listening to Prestige makes a great Christmas gift for the jazz fan on your list!

Talk about thematic! The kitchen has been tasty and nourishing for Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis and Shirley Scott, and since they can not only stand the heat, they can generate it, no reason for them to stay out of it.

The table du jour starts with "The Broilers," an item most famously on the menu of that knocked-out shack on the edge of Detroit, the House of Blue Lights. Of course, after the fryers, broilers and Detroit barbecue ribs, they served you the treat of the treats, those fine eight beats -- but growing up, with my mind already on food, I heard it as "they serve you all those fine baked beans."

From there Davis, Scott and Jerome Richardson give you a goose hanging high, like the one Scrooge ordered from the Victorian butcher shop in "A Christmas Carol," seasonal as they recorded it, seasonal as I write this nearly 59 years later to the day. They've got their skillets out, they're simmerin', they're ready to heat and serve. When they smoke this, it's a pork butt, not a reefer. And their jaws are ready for some chompin'. Even when they go to the standards, they bring a new gustatorial angle. "My Old Flame" is now a flame-broiled burger, and Randy Weston's "High-Fly"—still a new tune, but destined to become a jazz standard, has become “High Fry." Hey, the best cooks improvise on the original recipe, don’t they?

Only star-crossed lovers can eat stardust.

 But, we do know who's coming for Sunday dinner, don't we? The Rev.

This kitchen is definitely cooking up some soul food, and the presence of the Rev puts the official imprimatur on it: Soul Jazz is here. The door was opened for Shirley Scott by Jimmy Smith—and by Bill Doggett, although the jazz DJs and writers of the era might not have been inclined to have granted him membership in the club. Fans were tuning in to soul jazz, and to that churchy sound of the organ, but Scott was never content to take any easy paths with her playing. It’s also worth remembering that as huge a force as the organ would become in the sixties, in 1958 it was still a new phenomenon, and as innovative as some of Scott’s excursions may seem now, they were really innovative back then. And when she gets into a larger-than-trio setting, she finds different ways of making the organ work. In “Smoke This,” which begins with an extended organ solo, she concentrates on laying down a powerful groove that first Richardson and then Davis are able to build on. When Scott comes back to join Davis on a shared lead, with a powerful kick from Arthur Edgehill, the intensity is full-out. George Duvivier keeps it going with a bass solo before the ensemble finish.

Scott and Davis, with and without Richardson, had already solidly established themselves as important players in the new jazz sound that was developing. The cookbook motif may have been a little gimmicky, but it certainly helped establish Davis and Scott as a brand, and they were able to extend it as a menu du jour over a longer stretch than some trendy restaurants achieve. The Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis Cookbook, Volume 2 was the first release, mixing tasty dishes with some of the catchy standards the chefs might have been humming in the kitchen: “Skillet” and “The Broilers” were joined by “Stardust,” “I Surrender, Dear” and “Willow Weep for Me” (from the September session), with “The Rev” overseeing the mix. The standards, however, provided most of the jukebox fare, as “The Rev” / “I Surrender, Dear” and “Willow Weep for Me” / “Stardust” were the two 45 RPM releases from the session.

The third and final volume of the cookbook series came out the following year, with the cheery “I’m Just a Lucky So and So” and the boisterous “Strike Up The Band” from the September session, with “Heat and Serve,” “The Goose Hangs High,” “My Old Flame” and “Simmerin’” providing the flavor.

Smokin’, in 1964, had “High Fry,” “Smoke This” and “Jaws,” along with several cuts from the earlier date. Esmond Edwards produced, as he had in September.



Order Listening to Prestige Vol 2

Listening to Prestige Vol. 2, 1954-1956 is here! You can order your signed copy or copies through the link above.

Tad Richards will strike a nerve with all of us who were privileged to have lived thru the beginnings of bebop, and with those who have since fallen under the spell of this American phenomenon…a one-of-a-kind reference book, that will surely take its place in the history of this music.

                                                                                                                                                --Dave Grusin

An important reference book of all the Prestige recordings during the time period. Furthermore, Each song chosen is a brilliant representation of the artist which leaves the listener free to explore further. The stories behind the making of each track are incredibly informative and give a glimpse deeper into the artists at work.

                                                                                                                --Murali Coryell