Skillet Licker MP3- Willis Jackson

2/3/11

beeradvocate.com- A-

Samuel Smiths Oatmeal Stout- Euro Market, 31 St. Astoria, NY- Bomber into Belgium Beer Glass- 5.% ABV- Poured with a creamy, butterscotch 2 finger head. Receded at a medium pace, not a whole lot of lacing left on the class. Dark black with hints of red around the edges with no real light coming through the glass. Rich, roasted malts, though I don't really detect any "oatmeal". Nice medium body with a silky finish. Light to medium amount of carbonation. Very smooth, very drinkable. I have actually seen this beer many times. Its often in delis and supermarkets and I remember seeing it around way before craft beers started showing up on shelves in bodegas and supermarkets. The whole idea of an oatmeal stout kind of freaked me out but this is a quality beer. I have never seen it in a bar but would think that it would be a nice stout to try from a tap. I would definitely consider getting this again if I was in the mood for a stout.




On the turntable is Gator Tails- Willis Jackson- Recorded in NYC for Verve Records in 1964. I believe this is the first Verve Records post I have done but there will definitely be more! I chose this record because I recently read an interesting article about an arranger named Claus Ogerman in Wax Poetics magazine. It was a really good article and brought to my attention one of the key jazz arrangers of the 1960's and 1970's. I have had a soft spot for jazz arrangers and I find their role as composer in the world of music which is essentially based on improvisation a compelling one. A balanced musical framework is important to a composition and is an aid to the improvisatory elements of jazz. In the article they mentioned a number of artists Ogerman worked with (Jimmy, Smith, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Cal Tjader, etc.) and I have a couple of the albums mentioned but I could access this one easily at the moment. Willis Jackson made a name for himself as a session, r&b and jazz musician in the 50's through the 70's. His playing has an edge and economy which makes him at home in both ballads and gritty soul numbers. There are number of fine songs on this album. The classic public domain song Frankie and Johnny, the smokey drift of Early One Morning and a funky version of the classic pop tune On Broadway. I included the MP3 version of Skillet Licker a groovy little Latin influenced gem, alluded to in the liner notes as, specifically arranged by Mr. Ogerman. My one regret about this LP is that Verve failed to include the names of the other musicians playing on this LP in the liner notes.