Red Nichols: Buddy's Habits

The sanitized Hollywood biopic aside, Red Nichols was a tremendously gifted trumpeter and bandleader. There were usually more than five Pennies, but this great early edition with Miff Mole, Eddie Lang and Jimmy Dorsey was spot-on. No tuba or string bass in this lineup. Buddys Habits typifies Nichols brand of hot jazz. This is one of the jauntiest, most danceable melodies in the Pennies book, with fine solos all around. Dorsey turns in two of them, on spicy clarinet and warm alto. Langs guitar is exceptionally audible, and listen to his firm command of blues inflection.