Ramsey Lewis' 1965 hit "The 'In' Crowd" made him a major name in the pop world and resulted in some similar live sets that featured audience participation, singing and rhythmic handclapping. Actually,
Lewis had had previous success in the pop/jazz world, and two of the five live albums that were skimmed for this 1998 two-CD set (none of the dates are reissued completely) predate "The 'In' Crowd."
Lewis is teamed with bassist
Eldee Young and drummer
Red Holt for the first four dates; they are replaced by bassist
Cleveland Eaton and drummer
Maurice White on the last session. The music is taken from The Ramsey Lewis Trio In Chicago, At the Bohemian Caverns, The 'In' Crowd,
Hang on Ramsey and
Dancing In the Street, all originally Argo or Cadet LPs. Highlights include "Ole Devil Moon," "Carmen," "My Babe," "The 'In' Crowd," "Hang on Sloopy" and a "Black Orpheus Medley." A fine sampling of 1960s
Ramsey Lewis. ~ Scott Yanow