''It's Morrissey, Man!'' is an album by saxophonist

Dick Morrissey Richard Edwin Morrissey (9 May 1940 – 8 November 2000) was a British jazz musician and composer. He played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and flute. Biography Background He was born in Horley, Surrey, England. Dick Morrissey emerg ...

. It was recorded on 27 April 1961. It was Morrissey's first album as a leader. The liner notes were written by Benny Green. In 1998,

Polygram PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...

's Redial division, run by Richard Cook, reissued the album as a CD.

Reception

A contemporaneous ''

Jazz Journal ''Jazz Journal'' is a British jazz magazine established in 1946 by Sinclair Traill (1904–1981). It was first published in London under the title ''Pick Up'', which Traill founded as a locus for serious jazz criticism in Britain.Roberta Freund Sc ...

'' review commented: "Morrissey is well able to sustain interest over several choruses, and builds his solos excellently. Jones n pianois far less impressive, and his solos are almost invariably an anticlimax. Cecil and Barnes ass and drumswork together well, and provide a driving beat." Four decades later, a ''

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

'' writer stated that the album had "caused a great stir among musicians and jazz insiders but failed to register greatly with the wider jazz public".

Track listing

#" St. Thomas" (

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a ...

) 3:54 #"Cherry Blue" (

Bill Le Sage William A. Le Sage (20 January 1927 – 31 October 2001) was a British pianist, vibraphonist, arranger, composer and bandleader. Early life Le Sage was born in London on 20 January 1927. His father, William (1899-1951) was a drummer and his two ...

) 3:13 #"A Bench in the Park" (

Milton Ager Milton Ager (October 6, 1893 – May 6, 1979) was an American composer, regarded as one of the top songwriters of the 1920s and 1930s. His most lasting compositions include "Ain't She Sweet?” and “Happy Days Are Here Again”. Biography Ag ...

Jack Yellen Jack Selig Yellen (Jacek Jeleń; July 6, 1892 – April 17, 1991) was an American lyricist and screenwriter. He is best remembered for writing the lyrics to the songs "Happy Days Are Here Again", which was used by Franklin Roosevelt as the theme ...

) 3:06 #"Sancticity" (

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 p ...

) 3:27 #"Mildew" (

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

) 3:00 #"Puffing Billy" (Stan Jones) 4:23 #"Gurney Was Here (Or Blue Waltz)" (Jones) 2:48 #"Happy Feet" (Ager, Yellen) 3:07 #"

Where Is Love? "Where is Love?" is a song from the Tony Award-winning British musical '' Oliver!'' and the 1968 film of the same name, based on the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. The musical was written by Lionel Bart and was first staged in ...

" (

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical '' Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...

) 3:57 #" Dancing in the Dark" (

Arthur Schwartz Arthur Schwartz (November 25, 1900 – September 3, 1984) was an American composer and film producer, widely noted for his songwriting collaborations with Howard Dietz. Biography Early life Schwartz was born in Brooklyn, New York City, on Novem ...

Howard Dietz Howard Dietz (September 8, 1896 – July 30, 1983) was an American publicist, lyricist, and librettist, best remembered for his songwriting collaboration with Arthur Schwartz. Biography Dietz was born in New York City. He attended Columbia Colle ...

) 3:37 #"

Willow Weep for Me "Willow Weep for Me" is a popular song composed in 1932 by Ann Ronell, who also wrote the lyrics. The song form is AABA, written in time,Zimmers, Tighe, E. (2009). ''Tin Pan Alley Girl: A Biography of Ann Ronell''. McFarland. pp. 19-22. altho ...

" (

Ann Ronell Ann Ronell (née Rosenblatt; December 25, 1905 — December 25, 1993) was an American composer and lyricist. She was best known for the standards "Willow Weep for Me" (1932) and "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf" (1933). Early life Ronell was bor ...

) 4:50 #"Jellyroll" (

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

) 2:59

Personnel

- tenor saxophone * Stan Jones - piano *

Malcolm Cecil Malcolm Cecil (9 January 193728 March 2021) was a British jazz bassist, record producer, engineer and electronic musician. He was a founding member of a leading UK jazz quintet of the late 1950s, the Jazz Couriers,

- bass * Colin Barnes - drums

References

1961 debut albums Dick Morrissey albums Fontana Records albums {{1960s-jazz-album-stub