Army Times
Tom Scanlan : 07/06/1957

The Brubeck Club, which still has many members, will want to hear Dave’s latest called Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A. as will others who are only occasional members of the club. In many ways, this is one of the finest LPs Brubeck has ever made.

There is a mature musical mind here seldom encountered on previous Brubeck sides, and although Dave’s liner notes seem rather precious, the music, for the most part, jells.

Of the eight Brubeck compositions, Summer Song, Home at Last (a slow piano solo which should wear well) and Yonder for Two (featuring some excellent alto sax by Paul Desmond) seem particularly worthwhile.

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Audio
Charles A. Robertson : August, 1957

The eight impressions are the result of notebook scribblings made on tour with the Quartet, and were recorded in New York, Hollywood and the pianist-composer’s home in Oakland, California. The sketches range cross country from Broadway’s Curtain Time, to the piano-solo Home At Last. Plain Song, a description of a bus journey, and Ode to a Cowboy are westerns. Yonder for Two is an essay in New Orleans two-beat, and Summer Song is a cute vacation bit.

Joe Morello, former Marion McPartland drummer, is heard on record with the group for the first time. He is a compelling addition and makes Sounds of the Loop a percussionist’s holiday on the El train. Altoist Paul Desmond is his usual anemic self. Norman Bates plays bass.

A comparison with the Jimmy Giuffre 3 album is rewarding. Where one West Coaster finds his way back to origins, Brubeck seems to have stumbled across the pen of Ferde Grofe in his travels. The vicissitudes of the road are great, but hardly that hazardous. And it would be difficult to find a publicity man willing to write amore pretentious set of liner notes than penned by the composer. The juvenile History of a Boy Scout is billed as a bow in the direction of Stravinsky‘s Histoire Du Soldat. It is more on the level of Parade of the Wooden Soldiers. The sound ranges from good to a poor recording of the solo.

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Billboard : 05/20/1957
Spotlight on… selection

An extremely salable jazz package concerned with impressionistic Brubeckian sketches. Excellent soloing gives material’s descriptive qualities real delineation. The drumming of recently acquired Joe Morello gives the group a rhythmic solidity, unity and tastefulness, it never has enjoyed before. Jazz dealers can safely order in quantity.

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Cashbox : 05/18/1957

The latest Brubeck Quartet improvisations on Columbia once again affords dealer prime jazz merchandise. This time around its introspective view of the U.S.A. bringing in such original numbers (all composed by Brubeck) as Curtain Time, Ode To A Cowboy, and History Of A Boy Scout. Paul Desmond is brilliantly spotlighted several times on alto, and the rest of the crew take the happy visits in artful stride. Brubeck gets a warm Home-Sweeet-Home solo session with Home At Last. Excellent jazz attraction.

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Cincinnati Post
Dale Stevens : 06/29/1957

Day by day, album by album, jazz is becoming more and more a lyrical, harmonic offering that the general non-jazz public can appreciate.

There was a time in the jam session and bop era when the message just didn’t get across, except to the fellow musician. But now, thanks to the Modern Jazz Quartet, Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond, West Coasters such as Bud Shank and Jimmy Giuffre, jazz is becoming prettier, more humorous, and generally more understandable.

Jazz still is based upon rhythm and improvisation. But what was once a rowdy approach to jazz has become more thoughtful and somehow more melodic.

It seems strange, perhaps, that I should use the word melodic, and then review an album that uses nothing but original tunes. But the new Brubeck (one of three recent Brubeck packages) called Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A. for Columbia has a fine feeling of melody without sticking to tunes you can whistle.

I’m from the school which feels much of the success of the Brubeck quartet rides along on the pensive alto sax of Paul Desmond. It’s doubly true on this LP since Dave doesn’t go in for his usual emotion-building piano solos.

The title tells the story – Ode to a Cowboy, Sounds of the Loop, Plain Song, History of a Boy Scout, even Home at Last, and a look at Broadway in Curtain Time.

You can hear other effective Brubeck efforts in his Dave Brubeck and Jay and Kai Newport Jazz Festival recording for Columbia.

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Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Jack Butler : 05/26/1957

During a recent national tour, Brubeck jotted the background for this impressionistic modern jazz down in his notebook. When the group hit a place where the itinerary permitted, the notes were translated into the music you hear on this album. The quartet, of course, is Brubeck on piano, Paul Desmond on bass, Joe Morello on drums. To single one performer out on this album would be like taking one of the colors out of a four-color printing; each is just a part of a wonderful whole. Yet it’s hard not to mention Joe Morello’s drumming in Sounds of the Loop, a jazz portrait of Chicago. Brubeck, in his commentary, calls it remarkable melodic drumming. Judging from the commentary, Brubeck seemed particularly to like History of a Boy Scout – the title of which is a sly takeoff on Stravinsky‘s Historie du Soldat. But to me, Plain Song, with the plaintive alto and thumping bass, is a new highpoint even for Brubeck.

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Kansas City Star
R.K.S. : 06/02/1957

Dave Brubeck and his quartet have recorded a group of eight tunes based on ideas they collected on tour. The collection, in a Columbia album, is called Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A.. Other than a few railroad sounds and some obvious things like allusions to the lone prairie I can’t connect any of the music with a tour, but it’s pleasant stuff and that’s all right with me.

There is plenty of pretty Paul Desmond alto. A jazz beat is apparent most of the time, thanks to drummer Joe Morello. Morello actually has a lengthy drum solo on one tune and it is not dull. The album ends with a Brubeck solo which seems a little Ellingtonish. This in’t bad.

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Oakland Tribune
Russ Wilson : 05/26/1957

Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A. is, overall, the best album yet by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. It should win the group new friends and place it in a stronger position for contention in the jazz polls. The LP underscores the point made here months ago that the presence of drummer Joe Morello adds a degree of swing which the quartet never before attained and has brought a change in its combined sound. The eight selections, all based on themes composed by Brubeck during his group’s lengthy tours, are evocative of cowboys, New Orleans jazz musicians, the Broadway theater, the countryside in summer (Summer Song, an outstanding ballad); Chicago’s Loop during a rush hour, the Armed Forces, the Great Plains, and the peace warmth one feels on returning after a long absence. The latter is a piano solo which Dave recorded in his home here. The other numbers include excellent solos by altoist Paul Desmond, bassist Norman Bates, Morello, and Brubeck as well as some topdrawer interplay. Arnold Rother’s cover drawing will break you up. Brubeck’s liner notes are valuable.

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Portland Oregonian
John A. Armstrong : 07/21/1957

Mr. Brubeck and company are, I think, leading us jazz loves down the classical path. Apparently they’ve been doing it for some time now, but in such a subtle way that I, for one, have just awakened to it. And I like it. Many modern jazz musicians have tried, unsuccessfully, to weld jazz and classical approaches. Brubeck is, I feel, succeeding.

As the title points out these originals are impressions of the width and length of our country, as experienced and felt by Dave and his quartet (Paul Desmond, alto sax; Norman Bates, bass; Joe Morello, drums) while on the road. But this is more than just travel music.

Easily recognizable are the sights and sounds of the cities and countryside, but even more, the moods of the big cities and the wide-open spaces are here.

Plain Song is an exceptional composition recreating the monotony and bleakness of the lonely South Dakota expanses. Curtain Time has all the excitement of a New York play. Sounds of the Loop is outstanding for Joe Morello’s drum solos, some of the most phenomenal that I’ve heard.

The album ends with Dave playing alone in Home at Last, a tender, touching piece reflecting all of the warmth of a man’s feeling for his home and family as he returns from his travels.

All in all, I feel these are the greatest originals Brubeck has done to date. Musically they represent the new American music – the best of American jazz blended with the approach of the classicist. The jazz beat reinforces the classical form.

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San Francisco Chronicle
Ralph J. Gleason : 05/19/1957
The Importance of Brubeck May Be in His Own Compositions

In recent months the Dave Brubeck Quartet has been featuring, at its concerts and night club appearances, an increasing number of original compositions by the leader.

Brubeck has already recorded an album of original pianist solos – his latest Columbia LP, Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A., is a collection of Brubeckian compositions played by the Quartet. Many of these, I assume, will be played by the group when it appears here in concert May 26 at the Civic Auditorium with Louis Armstrong and others. (Brubeck is also appearing week ends this month at the Blackhawk.)

Jazz Impressions consists of eight selections, each specifically oriented to a particular aspect of the perpetual travel of a musical group on the road. There is an Ode to a Cowboy, a whimsical effort in a minor key which has echoes of the lone prairie and Joe Morello‘s drums conjuring up a creaking saddle and clopping horses’ hoofs with his sound effects; Summer Song, a particularly beautiful lyric ballad; Yonder for Two, a variation of Tea for Two which is “a tribute to the early New Orleans jazz musicians; History of a Boy Scout, a humorous composition with some neat tricks including a fife and drum corps introduction; Plain Song, a representation of the monotony of bus travel across the plains during which yells an appreciative “yeah” behind Paul Desmond‘s solo; Curtain Time, which represents the lights of Broadway and has a charming theme; Sounds of the Loop, an impression of the sounds of the downtown Chicago area brought to life by Morello’s drumming; and Home at Las, a piano solo, recorded by Brubeck at his Oakland home, and representing the peace and happiness of the return after a time on the road.

Brubeck’s real importance as a jazz artist may yet turn out to be in his own compositions. There has already been evidence of this with his In Your Own Sweet Way, a Brubeck composition which has attracted considerable attention among jazzmen and has been recorded by other musicians. In this album there is another Brubeck number, Summer Song, which is one of the prettiest jazz ballads I have ever heard and which will, I think, become a favorite of jazz musicians.

Incidentally, this is by far the most engaging Brubeck album I have heard. There are less of the features of the group which in the past I have found unappealing. Instead, the group has a brighter sound, a greater rhythmic swing than I have come to expect from it, and a mellowness I had not heard before. Morello is an exceptionally musical drummer and the difference I feel here may be caused by his presence. On the other hand, I may just be getting older.

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San Francisco Examiner
C.H. Garrigues : 06/16/1957

Whoever may be the King of Jazz elsewhere, there would seem to be little doubt on the basis of his record sales and his box office draw at the Blackhawk (where he is now appearing) that Dave Brubeck owns a very large mortgage on the throne so far as San Francisco is concerned.

Not only has he founded and maintained a cult among jazz fans (more among fans than among musicians, I suspect) but he has lately begun to attract attention among the longhairs who (unacquainted with jazz except in its more Turk Murphyish manifestations) have been astonished to find that modern jazz is often soft, quiet, beautiful, intricate, complete and (after you dig it) philosophically meaningful.

Brubeck’s newest Columbia LP, released simultaneously with the Blackhawk engagement, exemplifies all these qualities. Entitled Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A., it is Brubeck’s first excursion into representational music and so marks a departure from the intent of pure jazz (it being an unspoken tenet that jazz is “pure” rather than “programmatic,” “scenic” or “impressionistic.”)

At the same time, it gives the impression of being more tightly arranged, lacking almost entirely the quality of spontaneous surprise with which Brubeck’s early Columbia albums abounded. Lacking, too (at least on the first three or four hearings) is the often too subtle musical humor so frequently found in the earlier albums – for example, in the closing choruses of Balcony Rock (on Jazz Goes to College) where Brubeck comes in under Desmond‘s melody and takes it away so subtly that you think you are still listening to the alto until you hear Brubeck doing a contrapuntal figure against Desmond’s still repeated chorus.

Instead of devices like this there are instances such as the closing of Ode to a Cowboy, where drummer Morello unashamedly does a clippety clop on the blocks to indicate the cowboy riding away. This is humor (at least, I hope it is!) but it is literary, not musical, humor.

There are, however, notable tracks – particularly Plain Song, where Brubeck engages in a titular pun, but where bass and drums combine marvelously to beat out the monotony of a day’s journey across the plains to the comment (sometimes acid, sometimes resigned) of Desmond’s alto.

Notable, too, is the drum solo on Sounds of the Loop, where Morello manages to keep going three minutes and twenty seconds by the stop watch without losing your attention. (And if you think such stunts went out with Gene Krupa, you are right; but Morello is a much more sensitive drummer than Krupa, even if he cannot build the tensions of Max Roach or achieve the spatial form of Shelly Manne.)

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Saturday Review
Martin Williams : 07/13/1957

The Brubeck Quartet has a new drummer, Joe Morello, whose model seems to be the compulsive Buddy Rich. If Rich’s playing may be said to swing, then Morello’s does. There are times when he seems to encourage Brubeck into playing with his kind of beat, but neither an unquestionable swing nor Brubeck’s inventive talents make up for the shallowness of feeling in so much of this music. Altoist Paul Desmond continues to sound like a man in need of a better milieu.

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Tampa Times
Pat Chamburs : 05/24/1957

It was the college crowd that first adopted Dave Brubeck. They turned out en masse for his concerts at campuses across the United States, including stops here in Florida. The word apparently got around that here was something to listen to, for even mass culture media, such as Time magazine, has featured his story. The result is that his music has received the largest exposure of any jazz group.

Mrs. Brubeck, a San Francisco Bay Area piano teacher thought it a good idea that her three sons study music. One become a composer, conductor and teacher, one a musical educator and the youngest, Dave, is now the leader of his own group, a pianist, composer and teacher.

Brubeck organized a group known as “The 8” sometime in 1948. The nucleus of this group recorded under the name of The Dave Brubeck Trio. A fourth member was added; Paul Desmond, who has, to some, become more identified with Brubeck than any one person.

Brubeck’s new album for Columbia contains all his original compositions and is entitled Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A.

The only change in personnel since his last album is a new percussionist, Joe Morello, who follows in the footbeats of Herb Barman, Cal Tjader and Joe Dodge.

Jazz Impressions of the U.S.A. is a group of musical sketches. Ode to a Cowboy, a not too unkind satire of what seems to be Bury Me Not On The Lone Prairie, with Paul Desmond’s alto wailing as the voice of the plaintive cowpoke.

Summer Song is a theme from Brubeck’s memories of Summers away from the city, a lovely thing explored first by Dave, then Paul.

Yonder For Two is a tribute to early New Orleans Jazz evoking memories of an earlier happier time.

History of a Boy Scout begins with a marching snare drum effect, which soon is defeated as the scout advances from square knots to more intricate entanglements.

According to Brubeck’s notes, this actually is a unique interpretation of Historie Du Soldat.

Plain Song represents the relentless repetition of sound experience while traveling on a bus somewhere between Yankton, South Dakota, and Iowa City. Paul Desmond’s alto maons and cries in torment, followed by the heavy hand of Brubeck.

Curtain Time brings in bits of a few familiar tunes. Well, perhaps not so familiar. I identified only Thanks for the Memories.

Sounds of the Loop is of course dedicated to the Loop of Chicago and is a tour de force for Joe Morello.

Home at Last is the most beautiful thing I have heard Brubeck play. Columbia should release this as a single… but soon.

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Liner Notes by Dave Brubeck
January 1957

A music notebook is as important to the traveling musician, as a sketch pad is to the artist. When lulled by the sounds of travel, the drone of the plane, the rumble of the bus, the clack of the rails, or even the hiss of the radiator in a strange hotel room, themes suddenly spring into consciousness. If a sketchbook is handy, the elusive idea is captured to be developed, arranged or changed. “Jazz Impressions” is a group of compositions created in just such a manner, from notebook scribblings made while on tour. It was recorded on three different dates, in three different cities (New York, Hollywood and Oakland) as our itinerary permitted.

As many popular songs have been transformed by jazz into almost different tunes – different in emotional content, rhythmic conception, and melodic development – so these sketches by the Quartet vary according to the mood of the group and the individual interpretations of the soloist. The themes themselves, which are but the skeletal framework for improvisation, occasionally use musical devices which are typical of certain regions in the United States. Although these pieces have their moments of humor, at no time do we attempt to satirize the indigenous music which served as inspiration for these impressions. Much of the folk music of American has become integrated into jazz, and conversely, jazz has affected folk music itself, so that today we find endless cross-influences.

Ode to a Cowboy is an example of group creation, after the theme has been presented and the idea discussed. Paul Desmond‘s alto become the plaintive voice of a singing cowboy, and Norman Bates‘ bass, his guitar accompaniment. The tango rhythm was Norman’s invention, his contribution to the developed composition. Joe Morello‘s sensitive drumming suggests the presence of the cowboy’s sole companion. A typical cowboy chord progression is intrinsic in the melody.

Summer Song is a theme recalled from one of my own improvised choruses, which evoked memories of peaceful golden summers away from the city. The lyrics my wife and I wrote to the bridge of Summer Song suggest the picture the music hopes to convey.

“I hear laughter from the swimmin’ hole.
Kids are fishin’ with a willow pole.
Boats are driftin’ round the bend.
Why must summer ever end?”

Yonder for Two was conceived as a tribute to the early New Orleans jazz musicians. The written portion of this tune retains some of the two-beat flavor and is intended to express the happy, joyous feeling so typical of this era.

History of a Boy Scout (named by our own wit-master Paul Desmond with an elaborate salaam in the direction of Stravinsky and Histoire du Soldat) is more serious in intent than the title implies. It is a mixture of humor and reverence that is so typical of the American G.I. It contains some of the sky rocket spirits of a Fourth of July parade, but there is an undercurrent of hallowed respect for the men of Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Ardennes, Wake, the Bulge and Korea. Listen for the canon (by the piano) where the left hand answers the right, one measure behind and an octave below.

Plain Song was written while traveling on a bus somewhere between Yankton, South Dakota, and Iowa City. The insistent thump of the bass and the mechanical rhythm of the drums portray the monotonous revolution of wheels upon a journey which has no end. The openness of the piano evokes the bleak expanse of plains, broken only by the sight of an occasional farm house. The alto is again, a voice of loneliness.

Curtain Time is like a pencil sketch of Broadway, a mere suggestion of what the full-color painting should be with strings, brass and the full complement of a theatre orchestra. All we have here of the real pit band is the soft tinkle of the triangle in the opening bars. The rest of the orchestration is for you to paint as the four of us try to conjure some of the excitement and glamour of a Broadway musical at curtain time.

Sounds of the Loop introduces the remarkable melodic drumming of Joe Morello. His forceful, individual style of drumming has notably influenced the over-all “sound” of the quartet since he joined us in the fall of ’56. From the hoof beats and whinnys of Ode to a Cowboy to the military cadences of History of a Boy Scout, Joe has contributed mightily to these jazz impressions, but the Sounds of the Loop are strictly Morello’s – the clanging of the El train, the roar of the traffic, the hubbub of Chicago at the rush hour are all reproduced by this one-man battery.

Home at Last was actually recorded in my home at the completion of a tour. It attempts to convey my inner peace as I look again upon familiar landmarks – the calm of the Bay, the quiet of the hills, the warmth of the fireside, the love of the family – all felt with increased poignancy after my long absence. The wanderer has returned.