Zoot Sims - 5658

Side A recorded In Hollywood 1956; side two recorded in Stockholm 1958 plus one cut recorded in Manchester's Free Trade Hall in 1958.

The world celebrates whenever previously unreleased recordings of Zoot Sims come to light, and this vinyl release, lovingly prepared by Mr. Mitsuo Johfu of Marshmallow Records, is indeed one of them, or, three of them, to be precise.

This special compilation, which became possible by permission of Zoot's widow, Louise Sims, contains three private recordings from three live performances.

The first session (Tracks 1-6) was recorded circa Spring of 1956 in Los Angeles, with Jack Sheldon on trumpet, Joe Maini on alto sax, Kenny Drew on piano and others. The second session (Tracks 7 & 8) was recorded in Stockholm in September 1958, with Red Garland, Oscar Pettiford and Kenny Clarke. The third (Track 9) was with the same personnel and recorded in the same month in Manchester, England.

Due to the nature of private recording, the sound quality is far from optimal, and there are significant tape hiss and other noise due to the conditions of the analog tapes. Some of the tunes are incomplete with fade-ins and fade-outs but all solos by Sims are recorded in their entirety. Despite some flaws, this very special LP is undoubtedly a priceless collector's item for the ardent fans of Zoot Sims!

Marshmallow pressed only 1,000 copies of this special limited-edition picture LP, and each copy is individually numbered.