The big band formed by trumpeter Thad Jones and drummer Mel Lewis was founded in 1965 and featured the finest studio musicians in New York City. They played every Monday night at the Village Vanguard for 12 years until Jones moved to Denmark. For the next 13 years they were known as the Mel Lewis Orchestra and continued their Monday night gig. Since Lewis passed away in 1990 the band has performed as the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.  But, on this date in 1969, they were in the studio recording the album “Central Park North” for Solid State Records. The record would receive a Grammy nomination for Best Instrumental Jazz Performance by a Large Group.

The record featured four compositions by Thad Jones including the title track, The Groove Merchant by band member Jerome Richardson and an arrangement of Nat Adderley’s Jive Samba. Along with Jones, Lewis and Richardson, the ensemble featured reedmen Joe Farrell and Eddie Daniels, Jimmy Knepper on trombone, Snooky Young on trumpet and Sir Roland Hanna at the piano.

The song Central Park North is an ambitious nine-minute opus that moves from a somewhat schizophrenic up-tempo intro to a boogaloo-ish theme, followed by a mellow ballad and a blues. The piece “captures the essence of life” north of 110th Street in New York City in the late 1960s.

Here is a link to Central Park North:

"CENTRAL PARK NORTH"