Gene Ammons
Gene Ammons, who had a huge and immediately recognizable tone on tenor, was a very flexible player who could play bebop with the best (always battling his friend Sonny Stitt to a tie) yet was an influence on the R&B world. Some of his ballad renditions became hits and, despite two unfortunate interruptions in his career, Ammons remained a popular attraction for 25 years.
Son of the great boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons (who was nicknamed "Jug") left Chicago at age 18 to work with King Kolax's band. He originally came to fame as a key soloist with Billy Eckstine's orchestra during 1944-1947, trading off with Dexter Gordon on the famous Eckstine record Blowing the Blues Away. Other than a notable stint with Woody Herman's Third Herd in 1949 and an attempt at co-leading a two tenor group in the early '50s with Sonny Stitt, Ammons worked as a single throughout his career, recording frequently (most notably for Prestige) in settings ranging from quartets and organ combos to all-star jam sessions. Drug problems kept him in prison during much of 1958-1960 and, due to a particularly stiff sentence, 1962-1969. When Ammons returned to the scene in 1969, he opened up his style a bit, including some of the emotional cries of the avant-garde while utilizing funky rhythm sections, but he was still able to battle Sonny Stitt on his own terms. Ironically the last song that he ever recorded (just a short time before he was diagnosed with terminal cancer) was "Goodbye."
© Scott Yanow /TiVo
Discography
818 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Boss Tenor
Jazz - Released by Prestige on 16 jun. 1960
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Boss Tenor (Remastered)
Jazz - Released by Avid Entertainment on 16 jun. 1960
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Boss Tenor
Jazz - Released by Firefly Entertainment on 16 jun. 1960
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Boss Tenor (RVG Remasters / Remastered 2006)
Jazz - Released by Prestige on 16 jun. 1960
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Boss Tenor
Jazz - Released by Firefly Entertainment on 16 jun. 1960
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Got My Own (Remastered 2023)
Jazz - Released by Craft Recordings on 1 jan. 1973
Available in24-Bit/192 kHz Stereo -
Up Tight! (Remastered)
Moderne jazz - Released by RevOla on 4 nov. 2022
Available in24-Bit/96 kHz Stereo -
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Bad Bossa Nova (Remastered)
Moderne jazz - Released by RevOla on 4 nov. 2022
Available in24-Bit/96 kHz Stereo -
Twisting the Jug (Remastered Edition)
Soul - Released by Little Starlight Records on 1 jan. 1962
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Bai Ji (From "Unni Ikki")
Pop - Released by Geet Mp3 on 31 jul. 2024
Available in24-Bit/48 kHz Stereo -
Boss Tenors: Straight Ahead From Chicago August 1961
Jazz - Released by Verve on 1 jan. 1961
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Twisting the Jug
Gene Ammons, Joe Newman, Jack McDuff
Jazz - Released by Music Manager on 6 feb. 2023
Available in24-Bit/48 kHz Stereo -
Got My Own (Remastered 2023)
Jazz - Released by Craft Recordings on 1 jan. 1973
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
The Gene Ammons Story: Gentle Jug
Jazz - Released by Prestige on 1 jan. 1977
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo