''2-3-4'' is an album by American jazz drummer

Shelly Manne Sheldon "Shelly" Manne (June 11, 1920 – September 26, 1984) was an American jazz drummer. Most frequently associated with West Coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, ...

featuring performances recorded in 1962 for the

Impulse! Impulse! Records (occasionally styled as "¡mpulse! Records" and "¡!") is an American jazz record label established by Creed Taylor in 1960. John Coltrane was among Impulse!'s earliest signings. Thanks to consistent sales and positive critiques ...

label.Impulse! Records discography
accessed March 17, 2011

Background

''2-3-4'' was not a typical album for Manne. Primarily associated with

West Coast jazz West Coast jazz refers to styles of jazz that developed in Los Angeles and San Francisco during the 1950s. West Coast jazz is often seen as a subgenre of cool jazz, which consisted of a calmer style than bebop or hard bop. The music relied rel ...

, he flew from Los Angeles to New York City on February 5, 1962, by arrangement with producer

Bob Thiele Robert "Bob" Thiele (July 27, 1922 – January 30, 1996) was an American record producer who worked on numerous classic jazz albums and record labels. Early life and career Bob Thiele was born in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York, United Sta ...

, to be reunited with pioneering

tenor saxophonist The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

Coleman Hawkins Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first ...

and pianist

Hank Jones Henry Jones Jr. (July 31, 1918 – May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians have described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable. In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts h ...

, with both of whom he had recorded at different times in the 1940s. In an unusual session lasting through the wee hours of the morning, he ended by recording one tune as a duet with Hawkins, who for the first time in his career was recorded also playing the piano.Yanow, S
AllMusic Review
accessed March 17, 2011 The album includes a second recording session at the same studio a few days later. Bassist

George Duvivier George Duvivier (August 17, 1920 – July 11, 1985) was an American jazz double-bassist. Biography Duvivier was born in New York City, the son of Leon V. Duvivier and Ismay Blakely Duvivier. He attended the Conservatory of Music and Art, where ...

stayed on with Manne, and they were joined by

Eddie Costa Edwin James Costa (August 14, 1930 – July 28, 1962) was an American jazz pianist, vibraphonist, composer and arranger. In 1957, he was chosen as ''DownBeat'' jazz critics' new star on piano and vibes – the first time that one artist won two ...

for two trio tracks. "The Sicks of Us" has Costa on vibes for "a largely spontaneous trio number"; on "Lean on Me", Costa switches to piano.Morgan, Alun. In McCarthy, Albert; Morgan, Alun; Oliver, Paul; and Harrison, Max (1968) ''Jazz on record: a critical guide to the first 50 years: 1917–1967'', p. 55. Hanover Books. The name of the album is derived from its inclusion of a duet ("2"), two trio performances ("3"), and three tunes played by a quartet ("4"). Unusually, the standards "

Take the "A" Train "Take the 'A' Train" is a jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn that was the signature tune of the Duke Ellington orchestra. In 1976, the 1941 recording by Duke Ellington on Victor Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. History The u ...

" and "

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

" were played in two tempos simultaneously, with Manne playing in double time consistently throughout "Cherokee". A fourth tune recorded by the quartet at the first session, "

Avalon Avalon () is an island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appeared in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' as a place of magic where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was made and later where Arthur was taken to recove ...

", was released at first only in the Impulse! collection ''The Definitive Jazz Scene, Volume 1''.Impulse! Records discography
accessed March 31, 2011 Some thirty years later, it was included on the first CD reissue of ''2-3-4'' as a bonus track.

Reception

The

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

review by

Scott Yanow Scott Yanow (born 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author. Life and career Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles. Beginning in 1974, Yanow was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles and was the jazz e ...

described the album as "a very interesting set with more than its share of surprises".

Track listing

*Recorded by George Piros at Fine Recording Ballroom Studio A in New York City on February 5 (tracks 1, 3, 5, 6 & 8), and February 8 (tracks 2, 4 & 7), 1962 :: Note that tracks 7 & 8 do not appear on the same CD reissues.

Personnel

–

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...

(tracks 1, 3, 5, 6 & 8) *

–

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

(tracks 1, 3, 5 & 8) *

– piano, vibes (tracks 2, 4 & 7) *

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

(tracks 1–5, 7 & 8) *

–

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

References

{{Authority control 1962 albums Impulse! Records albums Shelly Manne albums Albums produced by Bob Thiele