Backgrounder: Grant Green, Gooden's Corner

If you're new to Grant Green and want to really get a sense of why the guitarist was so special, this week's Backgrounder is for you. Recorded in December 1961, Gooden's Corner was among a bunch of Blue Note albums by Green that weren't released soon after they were recorded. In this album's case, the album didn't come out until 1980. I'm guessing the move had to do with the overdose death of Sonny Clark in January 1963, at age 31, though the reason could also have been too many albums in the Blue Note pipeline on which Green appeared. 

On Gooden's Corner, Green was paired with pianist Clark, bassist Sam Jones and drummer Louis Hayes. What makes this album special, along with all of Green's quartet recordings with Clark, is how the two musicians complemented each other. They both had a typewriter sound on their attack and could work themselves into a tasty groove.

The tracks are On Green Dolphin Street, Shadrack, What Is This Thing Called Love?, Moon River, Gooden's Corner and Two for One.

JazzWax note: Curious about Grant Green's song title that was also used for the album, I reached out to Mosaic producer and former Blue Note producer Michael Cuscuna last night: “Gooden's Corner was a club in St. Louis where Green played regularly. The owner was Leo Gooden, who managed Green when he was a local artist." For more on Leo Gooden, go here. 

Here's Grant Green's Gooden's Corner without ad interruptions...