A Concert of Cool Jazz
Overall (HWD) (sleeve): 10 1/4 × 10 1/8 in. (26.035 × 25.718 cm)
A Concert of Cool Jazz is the only full-length LP ever released by the Cecil Young Quartet. Although the record does feature some Jazz standards, such as “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” it is primarily composed of original songs written by band leader Cecil Young or band member Gerald Brashear.
Jazz pianist Cecil Young (b. unknown) arrived in Seattle, Washington from New Haven, Connecticut around 1950. He had studied for two years at Yale’s School of Music and played with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker early in his career, before he joined the vaudeville group which would bring him to Seattle’s Palomar Theatre. After he decided to stay in Seattle, Young formed the Cecil Young Quartet with Gerald Brashear (b. unknown), Jimmie Rodgers (b. unknown) and Traff Hubert (1926-2001). The quartet featured an eclectic mix of skills and musical backgrounds: Young, in addition to playing the piano, could tap-dance and scat sing; Brashear was brought into the group for his tenor saxophone, but had also learned to play the conga in a Cuban style; Hubert, the bassist, was largely self-taught; and Young and Brashear complimented their musical performances with comedic acts. The Cecil Young Quartet released one LP with King Records in 1951, but it never gained national traction and the group disbanded soon after.
10” phonograph record with maroon label. A Side text reads: “King / A Concert of Cool Jazz / Cecil Young Quartet / Cecil Young, Piano; Gerald Brashear, Tenor Sax; Trafford Hubert, Bass; Jimmie Rodgers, Drums / 295-1 / Side 1 / (KLP-1) / 1. Race Horse (Theme) (Cecil Young) / 2. Stompin’ at the Savoy (Goodman-Sampson-Webb-Razaf) / 3. The Campbells Are Coming (Arranged by Cecil Young) / 4. Formula X-9 (Cecil Young) / Long Playing / 33 1/3” B Side text reads: “King / A Concert of Cool Jazz / Cecil Young Quartet / Cecil Young, Piano; Gerald Brashear, Tenor Sax; Trafford Hubert, Bass; Jimmie Rodgers, Drums / 295-1 / Side 2 / (KLP-2) / 1. Rushin’ On Home (Cecil Young) / 2. Deep Purple (Peter De Rose) / 3. Cecil’s House Party Blues (Young-Brashear) / 4. Tribute to Al Benson (Cecil Young) / Long Playing / 33 1/3”
Blue and white album sleeve. Text on front reads: “Concert of Cool Jazz / by / Cecil Young Quartet / featuring: / Cecil Young – Piano / Gerald Brashear – Tenor Sax / Trafford Hubert – Bass / Jimmie Rodgers – Drums / Race Horse / Stompin at the Savoy / The Campbells Are Coming / Formula X-9 / Rushin’ On Home / Deep Purple / Cecil’s House Party Blues / Tribute to Al Benson / King Records Inc. / Cecil Young Quartet / LP 295-1 / Concert of Cool Jazz” Text on back reads: “Concert of Cool Jazz / by Cecil Young Quartet / One-Fold Pat. Pending King Records, Inc. / The Cecil Young Quartet is a comparatively new group, having been organized only a little over a year. Led by Cecil Young, the pianist, the unit includes Trafford Hubert, bass, Gerald Brashear, tenor sax and bongos, and Jimmie Rodgers, drums. It has evoked glowing words of praise from the various jazz publications, such as DOWNBEAT and many of the leading jazz figures who have heard the group. / Cecil Young was born in the West Indies, but was raised in Connecticut. In addition to regular work at Virginia and North Carolina colleges, he spent two years at Yale’s School of Music. In the early 40’s he lived in New York and spent a lot of time jamming with such people as Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and the other moderns of that period, while working at various clubs and theaters. In 1946, he teamed with a dancer, Eddie Alston, and after a cross-country tour, they joined the USO for overseas appearances. When the team broke up, Cecil was in Seattle, and did a solo job. Then he started looking around for some local musicians who would fit in with his modern piano style, and the quartet was born. / Trafford Hubert, the soft-spoken bassist, rose through local Seattle jobs to a territory band in the Middle West and then returned to the west coast. DOWNBEAT says of him, “Traff’s playing is not distinguished by many embellishments; all he plays is four beats every bar, but they are always driving and always constitute an original bass line. Sometimes the tenor and the piano lay out entirely while Traff and the drums drive things along with no letdown whatever.” / Cecil found Gerald Brashear working in a small, noisy cafe in Seattle. His subtle tenor so impressed Cecil that he soon was playing regularly with Cecil and Traff. / Jimmie Rodgers, a native of Detroit who has been a drummer since 1943, was the fourth man to be added to the group, but he fits the unit perfectly. / The quartet works in a fairly restrained manner, but always with a great deal of feeling. It is a modern music, yet it is not bop. King Cole says, “The swingiest bop I’ve ever head.” Elliot Lawrence says, “Real cool Jazz.” This collection is composed of excerpts from their jazz concert of June 10th, 1951, for the benefit of the Cerebral Palsy Fund. / King Records, Inc.”
