Mess of Blues (Johnny Hodges and Wild Bill Davis album)

Mess of Blues is an album recorded by American jazz saxophonist Johnny Hodges and organist Wild Bill Davis featuring performances recorded in 1963 and released on the Verve label.[1][2]

Mess of Blues
Studio album by Johnny Hodges and Wild Bill Davis
Released	1964
Recorded	September 3 & 4, 1963 NYC
Genre	Jazz
Label	Verve V/V6 8570
Producer	Creed Taylor
Johnny Hodges chronology
Sandy's Gone (1963) Mess of Blues (1964) Everybody Knows Johnny Hodges (1964)
Wild Bill Davis chronology
Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Bill Davis (1963) Mess of Blues (1963) Blue Rabbit (1964)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[3]

The Allmusic site awarded the album 3 stars stating "Hodges plays typically beautifully on such numbers as "I Cried for You," "Lost in Meditation" and "Stolen Sweets" and, although no real surprises occur (and the playing time at around a half-hour is quite brief), the performances are up to par".[3] Of the seven studio albums recorded by Hodges and Wild Bill Davis from 1961 to 1966, Mess of Blues is the only album that does not utilize a bass player (though the live session Wild Bill Davis & Johnny Hodges in Atlantic City similarly forgoes a bass player).

Track listing

1. "Jones" (Duke Ellington, Pauline Reddon) - 4:43
2. "I Cried for You" (Arthur Freed, Abe Lyman, Gus Arnheim) - 3:02
3. "Love You Madly" (Duke Ellington) - 3:51
4. "Little John, Little John" (Johnny Hodges) - 4:03
5. "Stolen Sweets" (Wild Bill Davis) - 3:14
6. "A&R Blues" (Hodges) - 6:07
7. "Lost in Meditation" (Ellington, Irving Mills, Juan Tizol, Lou Singer) - 3:17

Personnel

• Johnny Hodges - alto saxophone
• Wild Bill Davis - organ
• Kenny Burrell - guitar
• Ed Shaughnessy - drums

References

1. Verve Records Catalog: 8500 series accessed February 11, 2016
2. Discography of the Verve, Clef and Norgran labels accessed February 11, 2016
3. Yanow, Scott. Mess of Blues – Review at AllMusic. Retrieved February 12, 2016.