Ironia bogaloo: Sweet Lou Poppa
I piedi battono. Gli sguardi girano. Fuori fa freddo ma le pareti si scaldano e i corpi vibrano leggeri. Le mani si cercano e ballare è facile mentre Sweet Lou Poppa suona. La musica spinge i più riottosi ad alzarsi. Si balla. Si balla. Si balla... Il jazz è semplice, fluido, uniforme e caldo e le note del sax spingono verso un viaggio che parte dal sud degli states, attraversa la grande mela, vira verso Capoverde e torna su, caricandosi di suoni, ritmi ed atmosfere. È un suono dolce, la ritmica è ripetitiva e leggera, e i piedi non riescono a stare fermi. C’è groove. C’è soul. C’è funky. C’è tutto quello che si vorrebbe ascoltare e, soprattutto, che fa ballare…
Sassofonista per caso, iniziò come clarinettista autodidatta nella nativa Badin, e giocatore di baseball mancato - furono un infortunio a un dito e la concreta impossibilità, negli anni 30 e 40, per l’ostracismo razziale nei confronti dei giocatori neri con il divieto di entrare a far parte come giocatori di squadre di baseball a consigliargli di dedicarsi alla musica –, Lou Donaldson entra di buon diritto tra i più grandi contraltisti della storia del jazz a far tempo dal 1953 ( 9 giugno) quando con Clifford Brown, Elmo Hope, Percy Heath e Philly Joe Jones, entra in sala di registrazione per la Blue Note per “Carvin The Rock” che risultò essere il primo disco di Hard Bop. È qui che troviamo, per la prima volta, tromba e sassofono “giocare” all’unisono sostenuti da una ritmica costante and fluctuating, as opposed to the dictates of boppismo of Charlie Parker in which the tools were spears lonely in the night. The issue is still controversial for many, the first album Hard Bop is "Walking" by Miles Davis, but the first track recorded in that Hope is Bellarosa June 9, 1953, a hard bop anthem. In 1954, with Clifford and Art Blakey records what is considered the greatest live jazz history - "A Night at Birdland" - in which the blues sound of the ensemble is the turning point of the entire evolution of the hard bop . From this record will come out the Jazz Messengers, Art Blakey, with whom, in the period with Horace Silver on piano, works.
Between 1953 and 1957 Lou Donaldson is around the States, far from New York (during the New Yorkers took part in several recording sessions, including those with Telonius Monk) and is a little 'cut off from the session of the great jazz era (Miles Davis, for example). The stigma against it will be attributed to the dirty sound of his sax, even when the Donaldson declare that the real problem was the lack of drug addiction that distinguished him differently from other musicians of the time. "... For Miles - say - it was very easy handle a mass of drug addicts: they pay for themselves with heroin and kept the proceeds of the evening ... " . Recorded some albums in the history of hard bop as Blues Walk and Lou Takes Off, both on Blue Note, published some years after their registration.
In turn across the country - on the road - and moving from one club to another (making good earnings loss of visibility ...) hear sounds far from reality when he returns to New York and in 1957, is another leap in the history of musica. Con Jimmy Smith - organo, Eddie McFarland – chitarra e Donald Baley – batteria, registra, per la Blue Note, “Jimmy Smith Trio with Lou Donaldson”. La formazione, il cui modello nasce per caso (in una seduta in uno dei tanti locali girati negli States, mancò il bassista e John Patton lavorò con i piedi sui pedali bassi dell’hammond) è quella che caratterizzerà l’evoluzione funk - soul del jazz e il suono del disco è pulito ed essenziale, senza orpelli e sbavature ( in ciò si sente l’impostazione da clarinettista). Era il suono che Donaldson aveva ipotizzato ragionando sulla difficoltà di ascolto di un brano bop: “… nessuno riesce a canticchiarne il motivo. Non c’è melodia...” .
La risposta del pubblico fu eccitata. Alla contrapposizione tra jazz della west coast ( swingante e caldo con ampie note di cool) e jazz della east cost ( freddo e aggressivo) si inserì il soul jazz funkeggiante con i suoni dell’hammond di Donaldson e Smith. Una nuova strada che molti avrebbero esplorato e che altri avrebbero contrastato con tutti i mezzi possibili vedendo nell’hammond uno strumento da chiesa e non da session jazz.
Le case discografiche, però, fiutarono l’affare and although the sound was not as clean and decided the cool, bop, modal jazz and hard, "invested" in the beginning to make records sound characterized by hot and dirty the coupling product contralto Hammond. The sound of "dirty" and "groove" inherent in the structure of training allowed the simplification of delivery, all'orecchiabilità track of the listener. Donaldson was what he wanted. "... I used the public's reaction. The blues is just a groove where I come from - Badin, North Carolina - and I have not done anything but put together the sound I ever heard and what I have seen him dancing ... nothing purism, just music. If you're not dancing with your music, you do ...? and Jimmy was immediately understood. He is a great pianist and he played the Hammond like a top and the groove was all there ... " .
It produced, again for Blue Note albums like Lou Donaldson with Three Sound, The - LD +3, and songs such as The Natural Soul Watusi Jump where the sound is still half way between hard bop and Bogaloo. These discs influenced other products - the example is The Sidewinder by Lee Morgan - were opened and, specifically, the way evolution Bogaloo soul jazz of the late 60's.
was a music that signaled the crushing of any pre-existing jazz language, starting from the structure of training until you get the sound, enhancing the cleaning of the soul sound and approach and I'm like Lou balladeur Getting Sentimental Over You "by Jimmy Smith Trio with Lou Donaldson and the Dog Walk and albums Gravy Train (1961). All disks that contain alcohol and that note of dirty funk groove and attract public attention and urge to dance like with Good Gracious, alongside Big John Patton and Grant Greeen, which is taken Caracas groove by providing a unique and fascinating.
After a little bracket for the Cadet / Argo Records, the album Signifyin (1963), Possum Head (1964) and At His Best (1966), Donaldson returned to Blue Note in 1967, and care of its production is entrusted to Alfred Lion, first, and Fred Wolf, then. First product of this collaboration was recorded at Alligator Boogaloo Rudy Van Gelder Studio April 17, 1967 by Sweet Lou Stern with: Last-trumpet and Melvin filicorno, Lonnie Smith - Hammond, George Benson - guitar and Leo Morris (aka Idris Muhammad) - drums.
Bogaloo Alligator is one of the most loved and listened to records like that. With last, Benson Smith and accompanying Donaldson on a journey into the roots of soul, funk, bop and blues, holding out his hand toward the future and new horizons to be explored by others. One Clynder is the exact intersection of all jazz until then experimented with a look necessary and proper to the listener. The disc name derives from a curious event: playing golf, Donaldson threw the ball into a pond in Florida while he was going to pick it up and heard the screams dell'inserviente field shouting "Alligator! Alligator! "And was intrigued by the play of sounds assumed that the word combination with "Bogaloo. Even the cover is a must: a white woman who dances in the background of his own face. A tribute to psychedelic ...
After Alligator Bogaloo rode the wave with Lou Donaldson Mr. Shing-A-Ling, another stellar hit, and Hot Dog in 1969 with Shadow Of Your Smile, according to Parker on a languid pace that smells of bossa nova, and the wonderful Peppin and The Kidd with the rhythmic groove of Idris Muhammad proud protagonist. The guitar is eminently blues and the good vibes start from the be-bop alto sax in the key of Lou. Here too, the cover is a must for incredible graphics that plays on a black background and the shadow who sees herself in a position dancing.
followed Midnight Creeper (1968) and Say It Loud (1969) first Hot Dog (1969) whose five tracks are the complete line of jazz as understood by Donaldson, that of a music that knows communicate and engage with immediacy, featuring swing, blues, soul and a constant symbiosis between the rhythm section and soloists.
The entire production of this period is characterized by light and sound scratchy, the deep groove and Bogaloo more heated and pushed. In all the tracks of sax Poppa Lou is ironic and captivating and testimony di ciò sono le copertine di presentazione dei dischi che consiglierei di vedere.
Con Hot Dog, Everything I Play Is Funky e Sassy Soul Strut il jazz di Sweet Poppa Lou ha scalato le classifiche discografiche del ghetto, affiancandosi agli Lp dei maestri del soul, mentre le sue composizioni melodiche e ritmiche, come Blues Walk e Midnight Creeper, sono diventate standard nel più popolare repertorio del jazz nero.
Lou non ha mai definito funky, la sua musica, ma swinging bebop: “…il funk è James Brown ed Heart Wind and Fire…” yet, many of its tracks are under assault from the samples and the current hip hop. "Today we are much richer than before. I do not need to go around. It does my music and I pay for every pass. I enter the royalties ... ".
Sweet Lou continues, at the age of 82, playing around, with that tramp of music that is proper, and to produce records.
Lush Life is Beautiful (1986) with the orchestra of Duke Person to hold il viaggio di Lou e bellissime sono le sue produzioni degli anni 70. Ma il segno lasciato nella storia del jazz dalla produzione del periodo 67/73 non ha eguali.
Buona musica.
Marco Assanti
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