In September 1959, guitarist Jim Hall and alto saxophonist Paul Desmond teamed up to record the first in a series of six albums together. The first was called First Place Again (Warner Bros.). The duo was backed by bassist Percy Heath and drummer Connie Kay—two-thirds of the Modern Jazz Quartet.
When Desmond and Hall shifted to RCA, they released Desmond Blue (1962), Two of a Mind (1962) with Gerry Mulligan, Take Ten (1963), Bossa Antigua (1964) and Easy Living (1966). All are superb recordings, but the album in the series that was perfect in every way was Glad to Be Unhappy (1965), with Gene Cherico on bass and Kay on drums. For me, it's a very close call between this one and Bossa Antigua, but Glad has a special surging movement that gives it the edge.
As with all of their RCA albums, Glad to Be Unhappy was produced by George Avakian and has a flawless song list and sterling execution by Desmond and Hall. Desmond's high-register coolness is matched only by Hall's hip, ringing lines. I asked Jim about these albums when I interviewed him in 2010:
JazzWax: Whose idea was it for you and Paul to get together and record for the first time in 1959? Jim Hall: Paul’s. Despite all of his acclaim, Paul still gets overlooked in terms of his contribution to jazz. He was such a melodic player. Paul could play a line over a standard that was so much better than the song’s original melody line.
JW: You two clearly were in sync with each other creatively.
JH: The closeness comes through on recordings because we liked and admired each other so much.
JW: How did you and Desmond arrange the albums for RCA?
JH: We rehearsed at my place in Greenwich Village. Paul had such a fantastic melodic sense. Listen to his last phrase on Time After Time on First Place Again [1959]. The melodies Paul would come up with on songs were surprising and pleasing.
JW: Were you listening to each other during those sessions for enjoyment?
JH: Yes, we were. We were entertaining each other. A lot of what we did happened to be in the moment and fed off of what the other was doing. We were very comfortable with each other.
JazzWax clips: Here's Any Other Time...
Other posts in my “perfect album" series...
When Desmond and Hall shifted to RCA, they released Desmond Blue (1962), Two of a Mind (1962) with Gerry Mulligan, Take Ten (1963), Bossa Antigua (1964) and Easy Living (1966). All are superb recordings, but the album in the series that was perfect in every way was Glad to Be Unhappy (1965), with Gene Cherico on bass and Kay on drums. For me, it's a very close call between this one and Bossa Antigua, but Glad has a special surging movement that gives it the edge.
As with all of their RCA albums, Glad to Be Unhappy was produced by George Avakian and has a flawless song list and sterling execution by Desmond and Hall. Desmond's high-register coolness is matched only by Hall's hip, ringing lines. I asked Jim about these albums when I interviewed him in 2010:
JazzWax: Whose idea was it for you and Paul to get together and record for the first time in 1959? Jim Hall: Paul’s. Despite all of his acclaim, Paul still gets overlooked in terms of his contribution to jazz. He was such a melodic player. Paul could play a line over a standard that was so much better than the song’s original melody line.
JW: You two clearly were in sync with each other creatively.
JH: The closeness comes through on recordings because we liked and admired each other so much.
JW: How did you and Desmond arrange the albums for RCA?
JH: We rehearsed at my place in Greenwich Village. Paul had such a fantastic melodic sense. Listen to his last phrase on Time After Time on First Place Again [1959]. The melodies Paul would come up with on songs were surprising and pleasing.
JW: Were you listening to each other during those sessions for enjoyment?
JH: Yes, we were. We were entertaining each other. A lot of what we did happened to be in the moment and fed off of what the other was doing. We were very comfortable with each other.
JazzWax clips: Here's Any Other Time...
Other posts in my “perfect album" series...
- Johnny Richards — Somethings Else
- Maynard Ferguson — A Message From Newport
- Herb Pomeroy — Band in Boston
- Oscar Pettiford — Oscar Pettiford Orchestra in Hi-Fi, Vol 1.
- Horace Silver — Horace-Scope
This story appears courtesy of JazzWax by Marc Myers.
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