Lou Donaldson does attempt to loosen up a bit with Mr. Shing-A-Ling, but the whole affair is a bit stilted. Not quite the full-fledged electric funk workout that was becoming commonplace for old-guard soul-jazz musicians in the late ’60s, but not quite the bop-inflected soul-jazz of the early ’60s…

Alligator Bogaloo is one example of Lou Donaldson’s successful combinations of hard bop and soul-jazz. Of the six tunes, three are Donaldson originals, including the title hit. The excellent band, consisting of Melvin Lastin, Sr. on cornet, George Benson on guitar, Lonnie Smith on organ, and Leo Morris on…

Lou Donaldson’s undisputed masterpiece, Blues Walk, marks the point where the altoist began to decisively modify his heavy Charlie Parker influence and add a smoky, bluesy flavor of his own. The material is still firmly in the bebop vein, and the mellower moments aren’t as sleepy as some of…

The title of Say It Loud! is taken from James Brown’s anthem “Say It Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud,” the R&B/funk classic that Lou Donaldson covers on this album. Instead of providing a thematic and musical touchstone for the rest of the record, the song is an attempt…

Swing and Soul is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson recorded for the Blue Note label and performed by Donaldson’s Quintet with Herman Foster, Peck Morrison, Dave Bailey, and Ray Barretto. The album was awarded 3 stars by Allmusic reviewers.

In many ways, Blues Walk marked the culmination of Lou Donaldson’s prime period as a hard-driving, straight-ahead bop saxophonist. Until that point, he had been turning out intense, furious bop workouts — afterward, as its successor Light Foot shows, he began to slow down a bit. With Light Foot,…

The Time Is Right is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson recorded for the Blue Note label and performed by Donaldson with Blue Mitchell, Horace Parlan, Laymon Jackson,Dave Bailey, and Ray Barretto with Sam Jones and Al Harewood replacing Jackson and Bailey on one track. The album was awarded 3 stars in an Allmusic review.

Recorded in July of 1960, Midnight Sun sat unissued in Blue Note’s vaults until the early ’80s, when it was issued as part of their LT series. Like many of the previously unreleased albums in the series, it’s clear that the only reason this remained in the vaults was…

Since Quartet/Quintet/Sextet is Lou Donaldson’s first full-length album, it’s not surprising that it captures the alto saxophonist at the height of his Charlie Parker influence. Throughout the album — on CD, the collection features all the music on the 12″ LP, music from its 10″ incarnation, and three alternate…

Following a series of concert dates in Tokyo late in 1961 with his quintet, Horace Silver returned to the U.S. with his head full of the Japanese melodies he had heard during his visit, and using those as a springboard, he wrote four new pieces, which he then recorded…