One side of this album is staffed with five men, the other withonly three. The quintet is actually the Don Bagley Trio (Bagley, Rowles, and Manne) augmented by two more fine jazz artists, neither of whom finds it absolutely necessary to screech, caterwaul, bellow, or shout in order to express himself excitingly and with meaning on his instru- ment. One of these addenda is Paul Horn, the woodwind virtuoso whose Dot albums have established him as a major figure in jazz. Here Paul confines his efforts to the flute, alto flute, and piccolo, with restraint to fit the album's mood. The other newcomer is making his debut on major recordings. Tommy Loy of Dallas, Texas, his right fist stuffed in the bell of a French Horn, coaxes a whole panoply of musical colors from that vener- able instrument, ranging from its traditional, spongy sostenuto to the virile, fluent, swinging style displayed in the opening selection. If you liKe your music to continue uninterrupted by the usual four second wait between numbers, side one of this album will suit you especially. Each selection segues into the next, but there is a visible separation between compositions, accomplished by means of a wider spiral cut. This enables the listener to select individual tunes if he wishes, or let them flow together. The second side, however, is presented in the conventional manner. Take your choice — itls all part of giving you your listening experience the easy way, via The Soft Sell.
(From the booklet)
Don Bagley
The Soft Sell
Tracks
1 The Soft Sell (Bagley) 8:05
2 Maniyou (Grieg, adap. RRowles) 2:55
3 Dot-Cats (Rowles) 2:41
4 For Heaven's Sake (Meyer, Bretton, Edwards) 3:20
5 It's Cooler Inside (Bagley) 3:34
6 Paul's Blues (Rowles) 4:48
7 The Boy Next Door (Martin, Blane) 3:50
8 Never Let Me Go (Livingston, Evans) 3:26
9 Pitchin' Easy (Bagley) 3:28
10 Say Si Si (Lecuona, Stillman) 3:35
*
Personnel
Tommy Loy - fr hrn
Paul Horn - wdwn
Jimmy Rowles - p
Don Bagley - b
Shelly Manne - dr
Recorded in Los Angeles ; February 26 & March 26, 1956