Slim Gaillard had a strong cult following in the mid-1940s for his brand of swing, jive and eccentric comedy, which involved his own language. This set from Hep mostly consists of a live performance at
Billy Berg's in June 1946 with
Slim on piano and guitar, bassist
Bam Brown (who plays a comic foil for
Gaillard) and drummer
Leo Watson; in addition, there are the soundtracks from two soundies filmed around that era with Scat Man Carruthers on drums. This valuable set gives one a strong example of what it was like to see
Slim Gaillard perform live at his prime. Highlights include "Yep Roc Heresy," "Poppity Pop" and "Cement Mixer," but just hearing
Gaillard ad-lib makes it all worthwhile.
–
Scott Yanow, Rovi