Lindy Friendly: Live at the South Florida Lindy Exchange 2002
Lindy Friendly: Live at the South Florida Lindy Exchange 2002
The Abbe Samuels Band is:
Abbey
Samuels – vocals; Valerio Cantori – piano; Michael Suman – trumpet;
Julienne Purifoy – alto sax; Dave Miller – tenor sax; Mike Zinna – guitar;
Sam Chiodo – acoustic bass; Brian Horta – drums.
This CD was recorded live at the South
Florida Lindy Exchange on January 12, 2002. The
reason I mention this is because this band was hired to play especially for dancers. That means every song on this CD is focused on
great Lindy Hop tempos.
I think you will really like this CD
and will especially like the selections the band chose to cover. The track list is a veritable “Greatest
Hits” of great swing songs. You’ll
find Route 66, Nice Work if You Can Get It, My Baby Just Cares for Me,
Duke’s Place (C Jam Blues), Sent for You Yesterday and a more recent
popular tune Shoo Fly Pie. You may
also recognize C.C. Rider, Yeah Yeah Baby and This Bitter Earth.
About the only song that really
isn’t a Lindy song would be Backwater Blues.
This is a straight blues tune. It’s
a great tune and I’m sure Lindy Hoppers will like it and dance to it anyway.
Samuels does a good job singing and
has a pleasant voice that blends well with the band.
The band is good but sometimes are a little loose. I’m sure if they did a studio CD it would
have been tighter but I remind you this was a live recording and you only get one shot at
it.
My favorite tunes on here are Shoo
Fly Pie, C.C. Rider, and This Bitter Earth. They are all nicely done and are great, danceable
tempos.
If you are an avid Lindy Hopper,
especially the “Modern Savoy” hoppers, you are going to love this CD. If you enjoy faster tempos that lend themselves
better to East Coast Swing, Shag and Balboa, you may want to pass on this one. The fastest song on this CD is 187 beats per
minute.
Overall, I’m pleased with it and you’ll be hearing plenty of cuts at Late Night Swing.
Bottom Line: To buy or not to buy….. BUY THIS ONE! If you do, here’s how: abbes12@aol.com.