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Stephen Riley: Hart-beat
by Greg Simmons
The tenor saxophone trio is one of the great, if somewhat underutilized lineups in jazz. Stephen Riley has made a study of the format and delivers a fine addition to a limited canon with Hart-beat. Eschewing piano and leaving the horn to carry the musical weight all by itself is an idea that was ...
George Cables: My Muse
by Greg Simmons
Pianist George Cables' relationship with the late Helen Wray must have been one joyous romance. Contrary to the expectations of an album dedicated to a departed loved one, My Muse is a collection of uplifting and, frankly, happy-sounding originals and standards. Take away the personal context and you'd swear Cables and company were just enjoying the ...
Harold Mabern: Mr. Lucky
by Greg Simmons
Pianist Harold Mabern's Mr. Lucky is a bon-bon: all sugar, with no protein or vitamins. For a veteran like Mabern, who's made some great jazz records over the years, and who can play fine blues with real grit, this one is confusing. Sure, making homage to Sammy Davis Jr. sounds like a good idea, but did ...
Lee Konitz / Bill Frisell / Gary Peacock / Joey Baron: Enfants Terribles: Live at the Blue Note
by Greg Simmons
At almost 85 years old Lee Konitz can play whatever he damn well pleases on his alto saxophone, and it's a good thing he does. He may currently be making some of the most interesting music of his long career. Enfants Terribles: Live at the Blue Note teams Konitz with three first-rate musicians--all jazz stars in ...
Herbie Hancock: Inventions and Dimensions
by Greg Simmons
Recorded in August of 1963, pianist Herbie Hancock's Inventions and Dimensions puts pulsing, grooving rhythms at the center of the music, with Latin percussive elements and--in the best jazz tradition of the times--lots of blues. This isn't Hancock's most well-known date from his tenure at Blue Note, but it's an important recording for both its structural ...
Ravi Coltrane: Spirit Fiction
by Greg Simmons
It's easy to imagine the double-takes that must have occurred when introductions were being made around New York in the early 1990s. “What'd you say your last name is, son?" Let's face it, if you're walking around with the name of a God, your last name is Coltrane and your first name is not John, and ...
Music Matters and the Blue Note Oddballs
by Greg Simmons
In its heyday, Blue Note records had a relatively stable roster of musicians. Leaders including saxophonist Hank Mobley, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, pianist Horace Silver and saxophonist Lou Donaldson all released lengthy strings of records during recording relationships that were measured in years. Some players, like bassist Paul Chambers, became de facto house musicians for the label, ...
Herbie Hancock: Empyrean Isles
by Greg Simmons
As a member of Miles Davis' second quintet during the 1960s, pianist Herbie Hancock rarely performed live under his own leadership, but he did take the time to record. Hancock's 1964 effort, Empyrean Isles, remains one of the most diverse and often challenging records of the pianist's tenure with Blue Note Records. It's a rare jazz ...
Eric Dolphy: Out To Lunch
by Greg Simmons
Recorded just four months before his tragic demise, Eric Dolphy's Out To Lunch (Blue Note, 1964) represents a pinnacle moment in avant-garde jazz of the 1960s. Together with Andrew Hill's Point of Departure on the same label and from the same year, Out To Lunch is among the most challenging albums in the Blue Note catalog--one ...
Larry Young: Unity
by Greg Simmons
Larry Young's best known record, Unity (Blue Note, 1966), addresses the Hammond B3's more challenging sonic tendencies first by good management of the instrument--blending volumes and stops to add subtlety and variation to the electrified sound--and then by adding some of the best sidemen available. Now reissued by Music Matters on 45 RPM vinyl, ...
