Charlie Rouse - Quartet & Quintet / 2CD set

Despite a decade as an important member of Thelonious Monks high-profile quartet, Seattle-born Charlie Rouse (1924-1988) remained somewhat taken for granted. It was partly due to his consistency; as a soloist his work was wellordered, interesting and melodic. But it was also because, although influenced by Ben Webster and Charlie Parker, he was essentially a more understated player than either, though no less warm and, in his own way, just as individual.

His gifts were appreciated by leaders as disparate as Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Tadd Dameron and Count Basie, and when he came to make his debut as sole leader in 1960 with Takin Care of Business, it was clear why. A lovely ballad player, he was equally at home on the blues and uptempo pieces, characteristics also demonstrated on the quartet performances of Yeah! and We Paid Our Dues!, and on the live album, Getting Into Somethin with drummer Dave Baileys sextet. Regardless of tempo, he was always a rhythmically acute, swinging and thoughtful storyteller and the story he told was his own.

disc 1

1. You Dont Know What Love Is (Raye-DePaul) 6:26
2. Lil Rousin (Rouse) 5:01
3. Stella by Starlight (Young-Washington) 6:16
4. Billys Blues (Rouse) 8:43
5. Rouses Point (Rouse) 4:44
6. (There Is) No Greater Love (Symes-Jones) 6:21
7. When Sunny Gets Blue (Segal-Fisher) 5:50
8. Quarter Moon (Mahones) 5:49
9. I Should Care (Cahn-Stordahl) 7:09

disc 2

1. Blue Farouq (Mitchll) 7:24
2. 204 (Weston) 7:24
3. Upptankt (Rouse) 4:44
4. Weirdo (Drew) 6:00
5. Pretty Strange (Weston) 5:13
6. They Didnt Believe Me (Kern-Reynolds) 6:52
7. Slop Jah (Terry) 7:23
8. Little Old Mongoose (Terry) 5:47
9. Evad Smurd (Terry) 3:19
10. Blues for J.P. (Parlan) 16:47