Basie & Zoot

Basie & Zoot is a studio album by the jazz pianist Count Basie and the saxophonist Zoot Sims, released in 1976 by Pablo Records. It was recorded on April 9, 1975, during a session organized by Norman Granz, the head of the label. Granz decided against using the Count Basie Orchestra, instead inviting Sims, who played with Basie a few years prior. Basie & Zoot is a jazz album consisting of five standards and three original compositions. The songs vary in tempo, with some being uptempo and others being slow blues. The complexity of melodies played by Basie also varies between tracks. He performs the majority of the songs on a piano, only switching to an organ for the last track. The album was reviewed generally positively, both at the time of its release and retrospectively, with some reviewers considering it one of the best jazz albums of the year. Critics highlighted the synergy between Basie and Sims, while also commending the bassist John Heard and the drummer Louie Bellson. The album appeared on several best albums lists and won the 1977 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance. From Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basie_&...) under Creative Commons Attribution CC-BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...)