The Best of Word Jazz, Vol. 1

To those just finding Nordine's 50s recordings, his incredible voice will be surprisingly familiar. His work as a voice-over announcer over the past several decades has made his resonant baritone a fixture on TV and radio. What's really amazing is that the quirky presentation he uses in his commercials - the inflections and pacing - is equally, if not more, effective in this poetry/spoken word context.
Backed by the Fred Katz combo, Nordine tells spellbinding stories and recites beat-era oddities in a style that is unduplicatable. Whether it's the outsider tale of "Flibberty-Jib" (which was reused years later as the soundtrack to a groundbreaking animated commercial for Levi's), the social commentary of "The Vidiot," the Twilight Zone tale of "What Time is it?," or just the 'wonder wanderings' of "Adult Kindergarten" or "The Sound Museum," Nordine always has something interesting to offer.

Katz recorded a few very hard-to-find LPs of his own, as well as appearing (in the band) the film "Sweet Smell of Success." His combo backs Nordine with light jazz that supplements the 50s beatnik/downtown atmosphere.

This collection cherry-picks tracks from several volumes of Word Jazz recordings, all of which are tough finds on the collector's market. These are truly one-of-a-kind recordings that capture an artist's singular vision of spoken-word art.

Tracklisting:
1 My Baby (2:36)
Voice - Kevin Garth Nordine
2 Original Sin (2:57)
3 What Time Is It? (3:48)
4 Confessions Of 349-18-5171 (7:55)
5 Hunger Is From (3:47)
6 The Vidiot (5:30)
7 Reaching Into In (2:04)
8 Adult Kindergarten (1:58)
9 The Sound Museum (7:09)
Written-By - Cunningham*
10 Bury-It-Yourself Time Capsules (3:05)
Written-By - Marx*
11 Anytime, Anytime (2:20)
12 A Whistler (3:00)
13 Flibberty Jib (4:42)
14 Faces Of The Jazzmatazz (4:40)
Written-By - Marx*
15 I Used To Think My Right Hand Was Uglier Than My Left (2:15)
16 Looks Like It's Going To Rain (3:27)
17 Down The Drain (3:12)
18 You're Getting Better (2:08)

Label: Rhino Entertainment Company
Catalog#: R2 70773
Format: CD, Compilation, Remastered
Country: US
Released: 1990
Genre: Jazz, Non-Music
Style: Radioplay, Spoken Word, Cool Jazz
Credits: Artwork By [Art Direction] - Geoff Gans
Artwork By [Design] - Coco Shinomiya
Bass - Emmett Frazier (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18) , Jimmy Bond (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17) , John Frigo (tracks: 10, 12, 14)
Compilation Producer - James Austin
Drums - Bob Frazier (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18) , Forest Horn (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17) , Jerome Slosberg (tracks: 10, 12, 14)
Engineer - Jim Cunningham* (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17) , Mason Coppinger (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18)
Guitar - John Gray (2) (tracks: 10, 12, 14) , John Pisano (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17)
Leader, Cello - Fred Katz (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17)
Leader, Piano - Richard Marx (2) (tracks: 10, 12, 14)
Leader, Piano, Vibraphone - Richard Campbell (2) (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18)
Mastered By [Digital Remastering] - Bill Inglot , Ken Perry
Orchestra - Fred Katz Group, The (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17) , Richard Campbell & The Northern Jazz Quartet (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18) , Richard Marx & His Orchestra (tracks: 10, 12, 14)
Other [Liner Notes] - Irwin Chusid , Tom Waits
Photography - Ken Whitmore
Producer - Tom Mack
Saxophone, Flute - Victor Vallenari (tracks: 10, 12, 14)
Woodwind - Ken Soderbloom (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18) , Paul Horn (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 to 17)
Written-By - Katz* (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9, 11, 13, 15, 16, 17) , Campbell* (tracks: 2, 4, 7, 8, 18)
Written-by [Text], Narrator - Ken Nordine
Notes: Tracks 1, 3, 5, 6, 9, 13, 16 from the Dot Jazz Horizons LP Word Jazz #3075 recorded Spring 1957.
Tracks 11, 15, 17 from the Dot Jazz Horizons LP Son Word Jazz #3096 recorded Spring 1958.
Tracks 10, 12, 14 from the Dot LP Next! (Word Jazz) #3196 recorded Spring 1959.
Tracks 2, 4, 7, 8, 18 from the Dot LP Word Jazz Vol. II #3301 recorded Spring 1960.

Tracks 12-15-16 are bonus tracks.
Rhino Word Beat Series

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