Sidney Bechet - Olympia Concert, Paris 1954, Vol. 2

All Music Guide

This CD, on the prestigious Blue Note label, captures Sidney Bechet in a live performance in Paris in 1954. Bechet was among many notable African American jazz musicians who took up residence in Europe in search of a life free of the prejudice and institutionalized racism that he experienced in his native land. The expatriate settled in Paris, which embraced the saxophone player body and soul. His music spoke the language of the heart, and the French adored him and the music he brought from his hometown of New Orleans. Bechet appears with Benny Vasseur on trombone, Roland Bianchini on bass, Pierre Derveux on trumpet, Claude Luter on clarinet, and Claude Philippe on banjo. Bechet leads this cast of European musicians on a journey into the music that made New Orleans famous. But first he pays tribute to his adoptive land with "Montmartre Boogie Woogie," creating a happy mood for what follows. The musicians then get their instruments around the Dixieland sound with "When the Saints Go Mar...ching In" and "Muskrat Ramble" with a live audience that appreciates every sweet and hot note. Sidney Bechet in post-World War II Paris. - Rose of Sharon Witmer, All Music Guide Read more Less