– L.A. Four – Live at Jazz d’Antibes Festival – Juan-les-Pins, France – July 18, 1979 – Radio France –
Heading across the Atlantic to hear some local talent this week. The L.A. Four, which consisted of Bud Shank, also – Laurindo Almeida, guitar, Ray Brown, bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums, kicking up some dust at the Jazz d’Antibes Festivl at Juan-les-Pins, France, one sultry July 18th in 1979.
The L.A. Four formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1974, that performed until 1982.
Its members were guitarist Laurindo Almeida, saxophonist and flutist Bud Shank, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer Shelly Manne, replaced by Jeff Hamilton after 1977. They performed a mixture of straight-ahead jazz on the “cool” side, influenced by European Classical music, and bossa nova and samba (Almeida was born in Brazil). They recorded ten albums before disbanding. Chuck Flores was the group’s original drummer but did not record with them.
Each was a highly respected Jazz soloist in their own right. Putting it together as a Supergroup only seemed natural, considering Rock didn’t necessarily have the corner on Supergroups during this time. They all brought distinctly different points of view and a whole lot of history as individuals to the mix. The end result was wildly popular during the time they were together, and their collaborative energy and sheer virtuosity gave this gig ample proof the L.A. Four were no idle jest.
Dive in and tune the outside world out for the next fifty-plus minutes.
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