004 Les McCann - Doin' That Thing

groove jazz trio... piano, bass, drums = happiness

The original of this track is on the album Much Les released in 1969. That version has a nice string arrangement. However, I first fell in love with this track from a reissue compilation called 32 Gems from 32 Jazz. And this has been mixed by Mocean Worker from a 1999 release called Groove Jammy 2.

I’ve tried to track this down - where did this particular version come from? Is it just that track from 1969 with the string arrangement removed and the bass boosted a bit? Or is there a different recording from the 70’s?

I’m not sure. And it doesn’t really matter.

What matters… is this track is awesome. Sets a mood and atmosphere. Three musicians locked in one heck of a lovely groove. All three flow over that groove so well. Hearing Les really lean into the moaning and groaning.

Truly a favorite. Even if you’re not super into jazz… give it a while to settle in and see if it settles over your ears. I can only find this version on YouTube:

Version with the strings on spotify:

And a bonus track…. here’s Les McCann and Eddie Harris doing Compared to What? Which is totally different from the groove above. But also worth your time. :-)