Johnny Otis - Harlem Nocturne download mp3

The Otis version is a REAL Standard,,,has the feeling and punch,,,Love It !!!

C in cool S in style.....Otis rules...

If you like jazz, you may know the jazz standard, “Harlem Nocturne.” Johnny Otis’s band made it a big hit in the 1940s, featuring a plaintive lead by 18-year-old alto sax player René Bloch. Bloch went on to play with big band leaders Charlie Barnet, Harry James and Perez Prado, known as the King of the Mambo. Bloch recorded the number one hits “Cherry Pink and Blossom White” and “Patricia” with Prado’s band.But Bloch’s life took a major turn in mid-life. He ended up as a rabbi of a Messianic congregation—a position he still holds today at age 90! How does something like that happen? Well, as Rabbi Bloch explains, “This is God. It couldn’t have happened any other way.”

Visualizing Cyd Charisse & Fred Astaire doing a Film Noir dance number to this.

He became known for his choice to live his professional and personal life as a member of the African-American community.[5][6][7] He wrote, "As a kid I decided that if our society dictated that one had to be black or white, I would be black."[8]

Johnny Otis is the man. A great version of a true jazz/blues standard.

In 1954-1955 I was living in Lynwood, California, across the alley from a small family-owned market. The family lived above the market and, every afternoon, the teen-aged son would come home from school and practice playing his tenor sax. All he ever played was "Harlem Nocturne," over and over and over, again. He was damned good at it, and I enjoyed listening to that beautiful song, for about an hour, each day. I never grew tired of hearing it.

Rene Bloch sounds great on the alto saxophone with a touch of Benny Carter and Johnny Hodge.

He was Greek... I wonder if he was a criminal instead of a famous musician would he be considered as an American? Or Greek?

Excellent, elegant and mysterious...

Wow, the first melody is belong to a Vietnamese musician in his song called "Ha trang" His name is Trinh Cong Son, his was born in 1941