his month's Drum Soloist features one of the hardest-Swingin'
drummers of all time, the late, great Art Blakey. On "Arabia" (from
The Jazz Messengers'
Mosaic album, recorded 1961) Blakey is a powerhouse. He lays
down such aphat pocket that soloists Freddie Hubbard (trumpet),
Wayne Shorter (tenor sax),and Curtis Fuller (trombone) can't help
but deliver spectacular spots.
When Blakey takes his turn, he kicks off with a driving floor
tom accent pat-tern that eventually moves to the snare. No matter
how far he stretches, the time is solid and swinging.(Although not
indicated, Art plays a strong 2 and 4 on his hi-hat
throughout.)
While listening to Blakey's performance here, it's hard to
believe that this track was recorded almostforty years ago. Some of
the licks Art pulls off sound amazingly fresh.
