Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Les DeMerle: Once in a Lifetime

Les DeMerle: Once in a Lifetime

By Jack Bowers
May 16, 2023
View read count

Drummer

Les DeMerle

drums
b.1946

" data-original-title="" title="">Les DeMerle recorded his first album, Once in a Lifetime, when he was a twenty-year-old prodigy in 1967. However, as is sometimes true in the music business, the album was lost in the shuffle at Atlantic Records and sat gathering dust until someone had the good sense to retrieve and release it some fifty-six years later. As the saying goes, better late than never.

To share the front line on this dynamic (mostly) studio date, DeMerle recruited such "young lions" as trumpeter

Randy Brecker

trumpet
b.1945

" data-original-title="" title="">Randy Brecker, alto saxophonists

Lanny Morgan

saxophone
b.1934

" data-original-title="" title="">Lanny Morgan (three tracks) and

Alan Gauvin

saxophone, alto

" data-original-title="" title="">Alan Gauvin (six) to enhance a spirited program which is weakened only by the inclusion of three run-of-the-mill vocals by Genya Ravan (who fared much better in the rock world as "Goldie"). She sings modestly on "Alfie," "On a Clear Day" and "That's Life."

There is one more vocal, on the final track, but that one does more to enhance the album than impede it, as

Rosemary Clooney

vocals
1928 - 2002

" data-original-title="" title="">Rosemary Clooney (not at her best but good enough) guests with DeMerle and the Mike Douglas TV Show band on the enduring standard, "Taking a Chance on Love." The penultimate track, Leslie Bricusse & Anthony Newley's "Once in a Lifetime," was also recorded live on the Mike Douglas show. The album opens in high gear as DeMerle's quintet sprints through a high-powered reading of Burton Lane & Alan Jay Lerner's "Come Back to Me." No solos are needed, as DeMerle drives the ensemble relentlessly onward in a manner reminiscent of his role model, the incomparable

Buddy Rich

drums
1917 - 1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Buddy Rich.

Another Bricusse & Newley theme, "Feelin' Good," is slower, but only moderately so, its Latin cadence lending itself well to an earnest declamation by Gauvin (Brecker was so youthful he had not yet earned his solo stripes). The other instrumentals are

Frank Foster

saxophone
1928 - 2011

" data-original-title="" title="">Frank Foster's shuffling "Raunchy Rita,"

Joe Zawinul

keyboards
1932 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Zawinul's forceful "Sticks" (on which Brecker does solo with Gauvin, pianist

Danny Sandridge

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Danny Sandridge and bassist

Terry Plumeri

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Terry Plumeri) and DeMerle's gospel-flavored "Signifyin.'"

In sum, a generally bright and pleasing session hampered to a degree by Ravan's indifferent vocals and a concise thirty-nine-minute playing time. Most persuasive as an early example of young Les DeMerle's remarkable proficiency at the drum set.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Come Back to Me; Feelin' Good; On a Clear Day; Raunchy Rita; Signifyin'; Alfie; Sticks; That's Life; Once in a Lifetime; Taking a Chance on Love.

Personnel

Les DeMerle

drums

Randy Brecker

trumpet

Alan Gauvin

saxophone, alto

Danny Sandridge

piano

Terry Plumeri

bass, acoustic

Additional Instrumentation

Lanny Morgan: alto sax, flute; Mel Olman: piano; Jack Greg: bass; Genya Ravan: vocals; Rosemary Clooney: vocals; Mike Douglas TV Show Band: ensemble

Album information

Title: Once in a Lifetime | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Origin Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Look Inside
< Previous

Cyro Baptista, Felipe Salles, Gianlu...
Next >

Les DeMerle Concerts

Sep 28 Sun

Amelia Island Jazz Festival-free Community Kick-off...

Atlantic Recreation Center
Fernandina Beach, FL

Sep 29 Mon

Amelia Island Jazz Festival- Sponsor Party

Courtyard Amelia Island Springhill Suites
Fernandina Beach, FL

Sep 30 Tue

Amelia Island Jazz Festival-jazz & Wine Tasting

The Decantery
Fernandina Beach, FL

Sep 30 Tue

Amelia Island Jazz Festival-jazz & Wine Tasting

The Decantery
Fernandina Beach, FL

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.