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"Jazz is truly the music of democratic America," says producer Norman Granz (1918-2001) in Tad Hershorn's liner notes to The Complete Norman Granz Jam Sessions (Verve). "As in genuine democracy, only performance counts."
Granz's quotes are from an interview with the NAACP's monthly publication The Crisis, and refer to his pairing of white and black musicians for extended jams during the 19403 and 19505. The five-CD set documents nine such recorded all-star jams that took place between 1952 and 1954, which prove that Granz had more in mind than erasing the stylistic line between swing and bebop.
"Granz was motivated to articulate his faith in racial justice," writes Hershorn, "and transform the ideal into a viable vehicle for challenging segregation, presenting good music, and making money."
Like democracy itself, the results worked - most of the time.
First and foremost, the personnel are fascinating. They include alto saxophonists Charlie Parker, Benny Carter, and Johnny Hodges; tenor-sax players Stan Getz, Ben Webster, Illinois Jacquet, and Flip Phillips; trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie and Roy Eldridge; pianists Oscar Peterson and Count Basie; drummers Buddy Rich, Louie Bellson, and J.C. Heard; bassist Ray Brown, vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and clarinetist Buddy DeFranco. Their collective strengths counteract this collection's inherent weaknesses.
Granz saw the jams as competitive "cutting contests" and went overboard in finding common ground between swing and bop. The result is often long, formulaic mid-tempo blues jams or slow ballad medleys of jazz standards.
"It was fun and it was a chance to hear good music. But it also determined my attitude about music and, particularly, about musicians for the rest of my life," Granz says in Hershorn's liner notes. "You had to prove that you could play better than the other person. It was a marvelous crucible for young musicians to work in."
Parker is the star of Disc One, outsoloing Phillips, Carter, Webster, and Hodges on the 15-minute opener, "Jam Blues." Solos by "Bird," Peterson, and guitarist Barney Kessel highlight a ballad medley including "All the Things You Are" and "Someone To Watch Over...