75:51 ****1/2:
(With special guests: Benny Golson, Randy Brecker, and Lew Tabackin)
70-year–old Philly pianist extraordinaire Jimmy Amadie is a relatively unknown piano stalwart. Beginning in the 1950s backing Charlie Ventura, Red Rodney, the Woody Herman band, and during the 1960s, vocalist Mel Torme, Amadie then dropped off the recording scene for many years due to chronic hand, wrist, and forearm conditions. During the time period of the surgeries and extensive painful rehab, Jimmy became a jazz educator at Villanova University and part-time for the famed Berklee College of Music.
Lately, Amadie has returned with a vengeance, recording collaborations with Phil Woods, in tributes to Mel Torme and Tony Bennett. A recent tribute to Frank Sinatra, In a Trio Setting, featured the services of Phil Woods’ long time rhythm section, bassist Steve Gilmore and drummer, Bill Goodwin. Steve and Bill are back again on this new release.
For The Philadelphia Story, Amadie had the distinction of recording with Philly jazz titans Benny Golson, Randy Brecker, and Lew Tabackin. It’s a match made in heaven as Amadie recorded four tunes with each artist – one standard with three originals. The originals are all warm tributes, written with the attributes of each Philly jazz superstar in mind. Picking out favorite tracks is an exercise in futility as they all shine.
Pick up this CD and you will not be disappointed. It can be found through cdbaby.com. amazon.com, and at Amadie’s website, www.jimmyamadie.com. The swing of Jimmy’s piano work and his evident love for his guests shine through on each track.
– Jeff Krow
