Louis Hayes and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band Live at Cory Weeds' Jazz Club

Louis Hayes and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band
Live at Cory Weeds' Jazz Club
Cellar Live Records

As many know, drummer Louis Hayes was a cornerstone of the Cannonball Adderley Band for several years. In honor of the great saxophonist, he has led a Cannonball Adderly Legacy Band. This live recording from Cory Weeds' Vancouver, BC club has him joined by Dezron Douglas on bass, Rick Germanson on piano, Vincent Herring on alto sax, and Jeremy Pelt on trumpet. Cory Weeds adds tenor sax on one selection.

Not much to say, but this quintet captures the blues-drenched hard bop soul that characterized Adderley's great band. Indeed, things get off to a terrific start with "Exodus." The performances throughout are outstanding with the rendition of "Dat Here," with a superb Germanson solo being a specific highlight. Hayes and Douglas drive the hot grooves here while Herring and Pelt are characteristically exceptional. The closing notes of "Sack Of Woe" conclude a superb performance.

This recording is available as a download from Bandcamp, https://louishayes.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-cory-weeds-jazz-club.

I purchased this download. This review appeared in the March-April 2020 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 389). Here is the Louis Hayes and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band performing at Cory Weeds' Jazz Club in 2013.

Woody Shaw - Louis Hayes The Tour Volume One

Woody Shaw - Louis Hayes
The Tour Volume One
High Note

Word of a release of a previously unissued recording by the Louis Hayes-Junior Cook Quintet from a 1976 tour was the cause of great anticipation. Released under trumpeter Woody Shaw's name, that reflects the fact that the late Shaw became subsequently one of the most brilliant trumpeters, composers and band-leaders of the seventies and eighties. Not long after this European tour, saxophonist Cook left and Shaw took over as co-leader with Rene McLean (Jackie's son) replacing him, but with the same rhythm section of the highly under-appreciated pianist, Ronnie Matthews, Stafford James on bass and Louis Hayes on drum making for one of the most formidable rhythm sections of that times. I saw the Hayes-Shaw band at the original downstairs Tralfamadore Cafe in Buffalo in winter 1976-1977 and there is a live recording of the Hayes-Shaw group from Lausanne Switzerland from 1977 available.

That 1977 recording is very good indeed, but this March 19676 recording simply has become my favorite Shaw recording, opening with "Moontrane," which Shaw wrote when he was 18 and had recorded with organist Larry Young. Explosive is an understatement of this performance with Matthews really playing a such a high level, and then listening to James under the Shaw's solo while Hayes pushes things along. Things don't cool at all on Larry Young's "Obsequious," which features Cook's hot playing followed by Shaw along with the astounding rhythm section. Things cool down just so slightly on a terrific rendition of Walter Booker's up-tempo bossa/samba, "Book's Bossa," before the band takes flight again on pianist Matthews' burner "Ichi-ban" (the title track of a studio album the group made). This stellar recording closes with a standard by Bronislaw Kaper, "Invitation," which gets a very personalized interpretation by this group.

Listening to Shaw here one cannot help but be astonished by his ability to compose his ideas at such a fast tempo, the brilliant execution, articulation of his playing and the warmth of his tone. It is why such major trumpeters of today as Brian Lynch and Terrence Blanchard regard Shaw and his legacy so highly. Of course when you add the more than impressive playing of Cook, and the superb rhythm section that characterized what was, in it somewhat brief existence, one of the great jazz groups of seventies. Woody Shaw III, Woody's son contributes the liner notes in the accompanying booklet for this CD release which is available as a pdf file on the iTunes download of this CD (which is where I purchased this). I do not know if the liner notes accompany downloads from other sites. With the superb music here, one hopes that Volume 2 will be coming out shortly, as this music here is that good.

This was an iTunes purchase as mentioned in the review. This review originally appeared in the September-October 2016 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 368). Here is a video of this group with Joe Henderson in place of Junior Cook from 1976.

Rick Germanson's solid piano not simply off the cuff

Pianist Rick Germanson may be best known as a member of drummer Louis Hayes’ Cannonball Legacy Band, and with Hayes and bassist Gerald Cannon, has a new album, Off the Cuff (Owl Studios), that is a swinging session that ranges from hard driving post bop to lyrical ballad playing.


One can hear a definite McCoy Tyner influence in some of the playing, but he tosses in his own twist in some of the compositions such as the opening Quagmire with Hayes’ employing some nice brushwork on the interesting theme. Jill’s Song, dedicated to his late sister, opens with his thoughtful solo piano before segueing into a genial waltz time with some nice playing. Daytona, another number displaying a Tyner-ish tinge, features some strong bass from Cannon.


A lovely ballad performance,Up Jumped Spring, serves as a tribute to its composer, Freddie Hubbard, with some nice brushwork from Hayes adding to Germanson’s thoughtful playing. The tempo quickens along with a hint of Latin rhythms on the Arlen/ Mercer standard, This Time The Dream’s On Me, which is followed by Burt Bacharach’s Wives and Lovers, which allows Cannon to take a nice solo.


The Way of Water, is a reflective and evocative solo followed by Autumn in New York, again with Hayes shining on brushes and Cannon exploring the low-end on his improvisation. Bill Milkowski notes, in the accompanying booklet, that Brick hints at Horace Silver’s Cooking at the Continental, and likewise is a burner, which also provides a solo showcase for Hayes.


In all, Off the Cuff is a solid showcase for pianist Germanson and is available from at Rick’s website, http://www.rickgermanson.net/disco.html, amazon, itunes, and other sources.

My review copy was provided by a publicist for the release. The review appeared originally in the August 2009 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 319). I have changed the website on how to buy this because the link in published review no longer works.

Jazz Incorporated's Hard Bop at Smalls.

Among the latest batch of Smalls Live recordings from Smalls Jazz Club in Greenwich Village is one by Jazz Incorporated, “Live at Smalls. Jazz Incorporated is a quartet comprised of Jeremy Pelt on trumpet, Louis Hayes on drums, Anthony Wonsey on piano and Dezron Douglas on bass. Pelt and Wonsey have been associated with Hayes as part of the Cannonball Legacy Band while the Connecticut-born Douglas is new to these ears. This recording dates from August 2010 and is presented in the the attractive packaging Smalls Live employs, centered on striking black and white photographs.

There are six lengthy performances here with nearly an hour of hard bop with four vintage compositions mixed with a couple of originals. Art Farmer’s Punsu opens up and includes strong piano from Wonsey along with Pelt’s trumpet in the Clifford Brown-Lee Morgan vein. Hayes drives the group along while Douglas provides a solid anchor. Among other performances here is a sizzling rendition of Woody ‘N You, taken at warp-drive speed with Wonsey’s crisp and clean playing not fazed by the tempo, followed by some blistering playing by Pelt and a taut drum solo from Hayes. A nice contrast is presented by the Rogers and Hammerstein ballad We Kiss in the Shadow, with considerable warmth displayed by Pelt and lovely, restrained piano from Wonsey. Wonsey’s Hey Jimmy has a nice brisk walking tempo with a bouncy melodic line.

This is a live recording by a group whose familiarity with each other contributes to the strong, cohesive performances here. For more information on this check out www.smallslive.com. It can be downloaded or one can purchase as a CD which includes the ability to download it as well.

This was a purchase.

Cannonball Legacy Band Honor's Sax Great's Legacy

The following review was written for Jazz & Blues Report in October 2006 and appeared in the January -February 2007 issue (# 290).

Its been sometime since Julian ‘Cannonball’ Adderly passed away and a few since his brother Nat passed away. Louis Hayes, drummer for Adderly forty years ago has been leading a tribute band to the legendary saxophonist and the terrific band Hayes was such a part of. This writer had the pleasure to catch Louis Hayes and the Cannonball Legacy Band at the 2005 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and enjoyed their set that brought to life some of the classics the Adderly Brothers were remembered for. Savant has just issued Maximum Firepower from Hayes and the Cannonball Legacy Band that showcases there fine music. In addition to Hayes, the Legacy Band includes Vincent Herring on alto sax, Jeremy Pelt on trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn, and Richard Goods on bass. Anthony Wonsey and Rick Germanson hare the piano chair.

This is a nice overview of the Adderly Brothers’ repertoire although it omits a couple of the best known songs (Mercy, Mercy, Mercy and Work Song). There is a pretty varied group of writers represented here including Quincy Jones (Jessica’s Birthday), Bobby Timmons (This Here), Nat Adderly (Little Boy With the Sad Eyes), Charles Lloyd (Sweet Georgia Bright), Victor Feldman (New Delhi), Cannonball (Sack ‘o Woe), and Sam Jones (Unit 7) with one original from Jeremy Pelt (The Two of Them), and the performances are consistently focused and strong. Herring and Pelt play strong heads as well as solos (check out the beginning of This Here), and the band plays this strong hard bop set with plenty of heat and swing. Hayes himself remains a wonderful drummer near five decades later and the Rudy Van Gelder recording wonderfully captures his playing as well as the entire group. This is a marvelous set which will appeal to the same sort of gritty hard bop that the Adderly’s provided decades ago.

For FTC regulations, I received this to review from the publication this review originally appeared in.