Jazz Articles about Jackie McLean

Worktime, One Step Beyond and Questions

by Marc Cohn
June 21, 2019

Charenee Wade starts us off offering wisdom, followed by questions posed by Jimmy Raney, Danny Grissett, Kenny Werner, John Ellis & Tal Farlow. Then, a major Sonny Rollins celebration with tracks from his monumental Worktime recording. We've also got a Jazz Times 'Top 50 of all time' alto sax session from Jackie McLean. More? Of course: Cassandra Wilson & The Fat Babies (doing Hoagy Carmichael), Brad Mehldau, J.J. Johnson & Ferenc Snétberger. Do enjoy the show! Thanks to ...

Jackie McLean: New Soil

by Greg Simmons
March 2, 2011

Jackie McLean's New Soil, is not the most acclaimed album in the classic Blue Note catalogue, but this 1959 release deserves more attention that it gets, being supremely well-played, well-written and--within the limitations of its time--well-recorded. This vinyl reissue, remastered from the original tapes by the good folks at Acous-Tech, is part of a series of albums--fifty titles in all, so far--that includes some of the most well-known Blue Note recordings from the 1950s and '60s, and may well represent ...

Jackie McLean: 4, 5 and 6 (RVG) & New Wine in Old Bottles

by Graham L. Flanagan
May 4, 2008

Jackie McLean 4, 5 and 6 (RVG) Prestige-Concord 2007 Jackie McLean New Wine In Old Bottles East Wind-Test of Time 2007

Although the late Jackie McLean might be best remembered for his more adventurous, improv-based recordings such as Destination Out!, Right Now!, Vertigo, etc., he made a major mark in the ...

Jackie McLean: 4, 5 and 6

by James Taylor
March 31, 2007

Not to discredit the ability, output or creative drive of any musician who has contributed to the pantheon of documented jazz in the past fifty years, but there are definitely tiers of jazz players, at least with regards to who receives credit and recognition in the eyes of the lay jazz fan. Your first tier is your Miles Davis', John Coltrane's and Thelonious Monk's (the sort of guys who go by one name only, if you will). If you're new ...

Jackie McLean: 4, 5 & 6

by John Barron
March 8, 2007

When you listen to Jackie McLean on 4, 5 & 6, his third releae as a leader, you hear a young, passionate, hungry artist in search of a musical identity. The influence of Charlie Parker on his sound is obvious. The seemingly indelible marks left by Bird are present throughout all of McLean's '50s sessions for Prestige.

4, 5, & 6 is a strong outing for the legendary alto saxophonist and his swinging rhythm section of pianist Mal Waldron, bassist ...

Jackie McLean: Demon's Dance

by Hrayr Attarian
January 17, 2007

Sometimes a work of art is best known because it ends a period in its creator's career. If, in addition to its historic importance, it has immense artistic value, then it becomes a masterpiece. Such is the case of Demon's Dance, the last recording from Jackie McLean's Blue Note period, during which he discovered his unique voice both as a composer and as a performer over the span of 21 albums.

The essence of all those records is distilled and ...

Jackie McLean: It's Time; Consequence

by Francis Lo Kee
December 16, 2006

Jackie McLean, one of jazz' most painful losses this past year, had an unmistakable sound: a slightly-sharp-of-center intonation, percussive phrasing and a boundless, thoughtful energy to lift you up out of any depressive state. These are two CDs of a period when he was at the height of his powers, previously issued on the Mosaic box set, but until now out of print. It's Time (1964) opens with “Cancellation , a quintessential McLean piece, though written by ...