Lester Young - Laughin' to Keep From Cryin' (Verve Acoustic Sounds Series)

Lester Young's Laughin' to Keep from Cryin' captures one of the great swing-era voices near the end of his recording life: it was recorded and released in 1958, a little over a year before Young's death. Produced by Norman Granz, the session brings Young together with Roy Eldridge and Harry "Sweets" Edison, turning a small-group date into a meeting of veterans who knew exactly how much feeling could be carried by understatement.

What stands out here is how lightly Young moves through the music. His tenor remains fluid and elastic, and on Salute to Benny and They Can't Take That Away from Me he also returns to clarinet, a rare late-career choice that adds a more intimate, woody color to the session. Rough Trade's note that Benny Goodman gave Young his first clarinet helps make Salute to Benny feel especially pointed rather than merely decorative.

The supporting band deepens that sense of conversation rather than competition: Eldridge brings a sharper edge, Edison a more relaxed blues inflection, while Hank Jones, Herb Ellis, George Duvivier, and Mickey Sheen keep everything poised and quietly swinging. For anyone exploring Young beyond the earlier classics, this album offers a concise late statement full of warmth, grace, and the kind of phrasing that explains why later saxophonists listened so closely.

Features

• Verve Acoustic Sounds Series reissue
• 180g vinyl
• Mastered by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab from the original analog master tape
• Pressed at Quality Record Pressings
• Deluxe gatefold, old-style tip-on jacket

Reviews

• the recorded results are excellent. - AllMusic.com

Genre: Jazz