“I can find out next to nothing on Tinderweb about Allen and his brother Jack Keller, apart from an occasional obituary for the latter. So I’ll just have to rely on the music itself and what’s in the sleeve notes. This is another of my grandfather’s records, released on Charlie Parker Records in 1963, though my copy is the British release via the budget jazz labels Egmont and Summit. . What first drew me to the record is the title: Allen Keller and Trombones. Not ‘the’ trombones, as if that was the name of a group, just ‘trombones’. It does indeed contain trombones, four of them. Who collectively bring their many years of experience playing with the likes of Benny Goodman, Miles Davis, Woody Herman, Thelonious Monk and many more. I’m quite partial to a trombone myself. Though often seen in popular culture as a whoops-a-daisy comedy instrument or an accompaniment to selling bread (the classic Ridley Scott Hovis ad) they have quite a beautiful soulful sound. I’ve always loved what Bruckner does with them in his Equales. . But I digress. Allen Keller sings in a smooth swing style, a sort of poor man’s Sinatra. He has a nice, if somewhat forgettable, voice and the songs are neat little compositions, nicely arranged, with some sophisticated bossa nova beats thrown in on a few tracks. It’s the sound of a band that you’d hear at a jazz club, really enjoy the musicianship and overall vibe, but wouldn’t be able to recall any of the tunes the next day. Still, it has trombones.” . FOR FULL REVIEW & PLAYLIST CLICK LINK IN BIO: . #allenkeller #jackkeller #charlieparkerrrecords #jazz #swing #vinyl #jazzrecords #recordcollection #nowplaying #nowlistening #randomrecordreview https://www.instagram.com/p/CDBoBI-JyQF/?igshid=j7wqz3wyc951
