Porgy & Bess Revisited


Porgy & Bess Revisited, subtitled Played by a Very Unusual Cast, is an album of jazz interpretations of songs from the George Gershwin opera Porgy and Bess performed by cornetist Rex Stewart and trumpeter Cootie Williams, with saxophonists Hilton Jefferson and Pinky Williams and trombonist Lawrence Brown, that was recorded in late 1958 and released on the Warner Bros. label.

Reception

Scott Yanow of AllMusic states, "The two lead characters are played instrumentally by swing all-stars. Cornetist Rex Stewart portrays Sportin' Life, trumpeter Cootie Williams is Porgy, altoist Hilton Jefferson is Bess and trombonist Lawrence Brown is both Serena and Clara. Somehow it all works. Jim Timmens' arrangements for the big band keeps the momentum going, making this a surprisingly successful effort".

Track listing

All compositions by George Gershwin
  1. "It Ain't Necessarily So" - 3:58
  2. "Bess, You Is My Woman" - 4:33
  3. "I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'" - 2:23
  4. "My Man's Gone Now" - 3:09
  5. "There's a Boat Dat's Leavin 'Soon for New York" - 3:24
  6. "Summertime" - 4:05
  7. "A Red-Headed Woman" - 3:03
  8. "Oh Bess, Oh Where's My Bess" - 3:27
  9. "A Woman Is a Sometime Thing" - 3:49
  10. "Oh Lawd, I'm on My Way" - 3:58

Personnel