BACKGROUND
Having made his reputation as a Tenor soloist with the Gene Krupa band, and the Trio
within the band, Ventura was thought of by many has an exhibitionist player. His raucous
style with Krupa was encouraged for commercial reasons. This CD shows another side of his
playing. He swings with sensitivity. His ballads are soulful, and he was comfortable
playing with Boppers, which most swing musicians of his era were not.
Ventura had his own nightclub, the Open House, in his hometown of Philadelphia, PA.
After leaving the Krupa band, Ventura formed his own band in 1946, first as a small group,
then increasing its size to feature be-bop. His Bop For The People band included Conte
Condoli, Kai Winding, Bennie Green, and the singers Jackie Cain and Roy Krall. The group
eventually disbanded in 1951.
Charlie Ventura continued playing into the 70s and 80s, delighting audiences with his
swinging performances. He died of lung cancer in 1992. |
| THE MUSICIANS: |
| REEDS |
Charlie Ventura--Alto,
Tenor, and Baritone Saxes |
| BASS |
Richard Davis--Gave up
his position as lead bassist with the Chicago Symphony to play jazz in New York. He played
with many major jazz musicians and eventually became one of the top studio bassists in New
York. |
| GUITAR |
Billie Bean--Was 18
years old when this album was made. An extremely talented youngster, he gave up a
brilliant future by returning to his home town of Boston, and to musical obscurity. |
| DRUMS |
Mousie Alexander--A
veteran drummer who played with a who's who of jazz musicians. |
| PIANO |
Dave Hildinger--Was in
his 20s when this album was made. A brilliant arranger at home with both bebop and
modern jazz. He eventually went to Germany to become the musical director for one of that
country's major radio stations. One of his responsibilities was arranging for and
conducting the radio station's jazz orchestra. He spent the rest of his career there. |
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