Boogie-Woogie String Along for Real
Encyclopedia
Boogie-Woogie String Along for Real is the final album recorded by jazz multi-instrumentalist Rahsaan Roland Kirk
featuring performances by Kirk with string section and orchestra. It was recorded in 1977 following a stroke
which left him partially paralysed.
The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek states "The final album Rahsaan Roland Kirk ever recorded remains one of his finest. Post-stroke, Kirk struggled with his conception of the music he was trying to make. Boogie-Woogie String Along for Real is the payoff... The all-inclusive vision Kirk has of a music embraces all emotions and attitudes and leaves no one outside the door. This is Kirk's Black Classical Music, and it is fully realized on this final track and album".
Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who played tenor saxophone, flute and many other instruments...
featuring performances by Kirk with string section and orchestra. It was recorded in 1977 following a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
which left him partially paralysed.
The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek states "The final album Rahsaan Roland Kirk ever recorded remains one of his finest. Post-stroke, Kirk struggled with his conception of the music he was trying to make. Boogie-Woogie String Along for Real is the payoff... The all-inclusive vision Kirk has of a music embraces all emotions and attitudes and leaves no one outside the door. This is Kirk's Black Classical Music, and it is fully realized on this final track and album".
Track listing
- All compositions by Rahsaan Roland Kirk except as indicated
- "Boogie Woogie String Along for Real" - 8:52
- "I Loves You, Porgy" (George GershwinGeorge GershwinGeorge Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
, Ira GershwinIra GershwinIra Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
, Dubose HeywardDuBose HeywardEdwin DuBose Heyward was a white American author best known for his 1925 novel Porgy. This novel was the basis for the play by the same name and, in turn, the opera Porgy and Bess with music by George Gershwin.-Life and career:Heyward was born in 1885 in Charleston, South Carolina and was a...
) - 1:51 - "Make Me a Pallet on the FloorMake Me a Pallet on the Floor"Make Me a Pallet on the Floor" is a blues/jazz/folk song now considered as a standard. The song's origins are somewhat nebulous and can be traced back to the 19th century. Various versions of the lyrics were first published in 1911 in an academic journal of ethnomusicology...
" (Traditional) - 7:14 - "Hey Babebips" - 5:10
- "In a Mellow ToneIn a Mellow Tone"In a Mellow Tone", also known as "In a Mellotone", is a 1939 jazz standard composed by Duke Ellington, with lyrics written by Milt Gabler. The song was based on the 1917 standard "Rose Room" by Art Hickman and Harry Williams...
" (Duke EllingtonDuke EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
, Milt GablerMilt GablerMilton Gabler was an American record producer, responsible for many innovations in the recording industry of the 20th century.-Early life:...
) - 6:15 - "SummertimeSummertime (song)"Summertime" is an aria composed by George Gershwin for the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. The lyrics are by DuBose Heyward, the author of the novel Porgy on which the opera was based, although the song is also co-credited to Ira Gershwin by ASCAP....
" (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward) - 1:40 - "Dorthaan's Walk" - 7:08
- "Watergate Blues" (Percy HeathPercy HeathPercy Heath was an American jazz bassist, brother to tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975...
) - 6:35- Recorded at Regent Sound Studios, NYC, 1977
Personnel
- Roland Kirk: tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
, harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, electric kalimba, clarinetClarinetThe clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, vocals - Steve TurreSteve TurreSteve Turre is a trombonist, recording artist, arranger, and educator. In 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2006 he won the Down Beat Reader's Poll for best trombonist....
: tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
(tracks (1, 4, 7 & 8) - Hilton RuizHilton RuizHilton Ruiz was a Puerto Rican American jazz pianist in the Afro-Cuban jazz mold, but was also a talented bebop player....
: keyboards (tracks 4, 7 & 8) - Phil BowlerPhil BowlerPhillip Charles Bowler is an American jazz double-bassist.Bowler attended the University of Hartford, where he took a Bachelor's degree in music in 1972...
: bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
(tracks 1, 4, 7 & 8) - Sonny Brown: drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(tracks 1, 4, 7 & 8) - Percy HeathPercy HeathPercy Heath was an American jazz bassist, brother to tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975...
: celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
(tracks 4 & 8) - Sammy PriceSammy PriceSammy Price was an American jazz, boogie-woogie and jump blues pianist and bandleader. He was born Samuel Blythe Price, in Honey Grove, Texas, United States. Price was most noteworthy for his work on Decca Records with his own band, known as the Texas Bluesicians, that included fellow musicians...
: pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
(tracks 1-3, 5 & 6) - Tiny GrimesTiny GrimesLloyd "Tiny" Grimes was an American jazz and R&B guitarist. He was a member of the Art Tatum Trio from 1943 to 1944, was a backing musician on recording sessions, and later led his own bands, including a recording session with Charlie Parker...
: guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(tracks 2, 3, 5 & 6) - Arvell ShawArvell ShawArvell Shaw was an American jazz double-bassist, best known for his work with Louis Armstrong....
: bass (tracks 2, 3, 5 & 6) - Gifford McDonald: drums (tracks 2, 3, 5 & 6)
- William S. Fischer: arranger, electric pianoElectric pianoAn electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
(track 1) - Eddie PrestonEddie PrestonEddie Preston was an American jazz trumpeter.He was born in Dallas, Texas and died in Palm Coast, Florida.Preston began playing in big bands after World War II, and did stints with Lionel Hampton , Ray Charles , Louis Jordan , Duke Ellington , and Count Basie...
: trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
(track 1) - Jimmy Buffington: french horn (track 1)
- Harold Kohon, Sanford Allen, Kathryn Kienke, Regis Iandiorio, Tony Posk, Yoko Matsuo, Doreen Callender: violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
(track 1) - Selwart Clarke, Linda Lawrence, Julien Barber: violaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
(track 1) - Eugene Moye, Jonathan Abramowitz, Charles FambroughCharles FambroughCharles Fambrough was a Jazz bassist, composer and record producer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Fambrough was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers during the early 1980s...
: cello (track 1)