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Between 1964-1967 the legendary saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter created a treasured and deeply influential body of work within the acoustic jazz tradition with classic albums such as Night Dreamer, JuJu, Speak No Evil, and Adam’s Apple that presented Shorter’s brilliant and distinctive original compositions performed by... -
Johnny Griffin had been kicking around in R&B bands for years before his Blue Note debut in 1956 And what was "introduced" was a tenor saxophonist with a fresh sound, a warm, soulful style and the fastest technique in jazz He moves from lyrical ballads to blistering tempos with ease Within two years, Griff would become one of...
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Drummer and composer Tony Williams' adventurous 1965 album Spring - his second as a leader for Blue Note - found him convening a stellar line-up with saxophonists Wayne Shorter and Sam Rivers, pianist Herbie Hancock, and bassist Gary Peacock The five Williams originals presented here offer the musicians spacious realms in...
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The intrepid free jazz pianist Cecil Taylor made his Blue Note debut with the explosive 1966 album Unit Structures featuring trumpeter Eddie Gale, saxophonists Jimmy Lyons and Ken McIntyre, bassists Henry Grimes and Alan Silva, and drummer Andrew Cyrille The four extended pieces performed here scale the pinnacle of the mid-1960s...
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Duke Pearson’s 1967 album The Right Touch is perhaps the finest of his career and a showcase for the breadth of his talents as a pianist, composer, and arranger 6 memorable originals are performed by a dynamic 8-piece band including Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turrentine, and James Spaulding This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was...
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Lee Morgan’s Infinity, which was recorded in 1965 but not released until 1981, finds the great trumpeter leading a robust quintet featuring saxophonist Jackie McLean, pianist Larry Willis, bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Billy Higgins to the far reaches of the hard bop tradition and beyond This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition...
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There may not be a more apropos album title in all of recorded music than tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec’s 1961 classic Heavy Soul The session marked a comeback for a crucial player in Blue Note history Quebec had recorded a series of 78s for Alfred Lion in the 1940s and also served as a talent scout who encouraged Lion to record...
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One of the funkiest and most creative organists of all time, Dr Lonnie Smith was first brought into the Blue Note fold by alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson who featured the B3 virtuoso on late-1960s soul jazz classics including Alligator Bogaloo, Mr Shing-a-Ling, and Midnight Creeper Smith went on to sign with Blue Note and lead his...
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The supremely swinging pianist Sonny Clark hit the Blue Note scene in 1957 with a burst of creativity recording three albums in three months including the sublime Sonny Clark Trio, a 6-song set of bebop themes and standards featuring bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Philly Joe Jones This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was...
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Tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley had been recording for Blue Note for a decade when he made his excellent 1965 album A Caddy for Daddy featuring a first-class sextet with Lee Morgan on trumpet, Curtis Fuller on trombone, McCoy Tyner on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was...
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Robert Glasper’s 2005 Blue Note debut Canvas signaled the arrival of a singular new voice in jazz and his 2007 follow-up In My Element solidified his status as a rising star who was taking the music someplace new Featuring bassist Vicente Archer & drummer Damion Reid, the album expanded the possibilities of where a modern...
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The sound of Blue Note had been embedded in hip hop through sampling and remixes since its early days, but Madlib raised the bar when the DJ/producer/rapper/musician invaded their vaults for his 2003 masterpiece, Shades of Blue - a visionary album featuring remixes/reimaginations of classics by Donald Byrd, Bobbi Humphrey, Ronnie...
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Chick’s brilliant trio album from 1968, Now He Sings, Now He Sobs is held in the same kind of rarefied esteem as the classic Bill Evans trio sessions One listen will tell you why … the exquisite interplay between Chick, Czech bassist Miroslav Vitous and drum master Roy Haynes make it abundantly clear why this album has...
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One of the enduring mysteries of Blue Note history is that superb sessions such as Dexter Gordon’s Clubhouse (recorded in 1965) remained unreleased in the vault until the late 1970s Recorded during the middle of Gordon’s “golden period” career renaissance after he signed with Blue Note in 1961, the tenor saxophone legend...
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Grant Green’s Nigeria is an under-recognized gem in the guitarist’s remarkable Blue Note catalog Recorded in 1962, but not first released until 1980, the album features a top-shelf band with Sonny Clark on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and, in one of his only appearances with Green, Art Blakey on drums The groove is deep and wide...
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On his 3rd Blue Note album pianist McCoy Tyner assembled a quartet with vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, bassist Herbie Lewis & drummer Freddie Waits for an album rich in ethereal textures that delivers visceral performances of 3 expansive Tyner originals and 3 radically reinvented standards This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition...
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Donald Byrd’s 1967 album Slow Drag was one of the last pure hard bop records the trumpeter would make before his music began evolving towards fusion Byrd flies high on this gratifying set featuring alto saxophonist Sonny Red, pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Walter Booker & drummer Billy Higgins This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl...
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Legendary trumpeter Miles Davis was still near the start of his storied career when he cut the three sessions that comprise his Blue Note recordings in 1952, 1953, and 1954 In 1955, Blue Note compiled the tracks into two 12” LPs as part of the 1500 series The music presents all the hallmarks of his early style from blazing...
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The prodigiously talented trumpeter Fats Navarro was a bebop innovator whose career was cut tragically short when he died in 1950 at age 26 As part of the 1500 series Blue Note later compiled this 12” LP with selections from various dates Fats had featured on from 1947-49 with the Tadd Dameron Sextet, Bud Powell Quintet,...
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The brilliant arranger Gil Evans had already collaborated with Miles Davis on Birth of the Cool and Miles Ahead when he made his 2 excellent albums for World Pacific—New Bottle Old Wine (1958) and Great Jazz Standards (1959)—the latter featuring Johnny Coles, Steve Lacy, Budd Johnson, Elvin Jones & more This stereo Tone...
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The prodigious trumpeter Freddie Hubbard debuted on Blue Note in 1960 and produced an astounding run of recordings over the first half of the decade that culminated with Blue Spirits, which was the last of his 1960s studio albums for the label This bluesy and spirited album presented five evocative Hubbard originals, each of which...
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Jamaican-born trumpeter Dizzy Reece was a fixture of the London jazz scene before moving to New York City in 1959 where he recorded his excellent album Star Bright, a hidden gem in the Blue Note catalog featuring a first-rate hard bop quintet with Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone, Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass &...
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Under-recognized trumpeter Johnny Coles recorded only one album for Blue Note but 1963’s Little Johnny C is a little-known treasure of the catalog featuring Coles at the helm of a dynamic sextet with tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, alto saxophonist Leo Wright, pianist Duke Pearson, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummers Walter...
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Following the success of Chet Baker’s much-loved vocal debut Chet Baker Sings on Pacific Jazz in 1954, producer Richard Bock brought the rising star trumpeter back into Capitol Studios the next year for the sequel Chet Baker Sings and Plays which showcased both sides of Baker’s artistry Backing him on the date were both...
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Though it wouldn’t first be released until 1980 as part of the LT Series, Stanley Turrentine’s Mr Natural is a standout recording in the soulful tenor saxophonist’s immense 1960s Blue Note catalog Turrentine had already led 12 dates for the label from his hard bop debut Look Out! in 1960 to the soul jazz workout Hustlin’...
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Empyrean Isles from 1964 is the best of Hancock's Blue Note albums and an outstanding example of modal jazz But beyond that, it's simply one of the finest pure jazz albums ever made, right up there with Kind of Blue and Love Supreme What helps makes it so great is not just the phenomenal musicians and the flawless performance, but...
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A saxophonist of striking originality, Sam Rivers arrived fully formed on his debut album Fuchsia Swing Song recorded for Blue Note in 1964 Though a strong avant-garde undercurrent flowed through his music, Rivers kept a foot planted firmly in post-bop and the blues on this impressive set of originals including his stunning ballad...
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The brilliant pianist and composer Andrew Hill debuted on Blue Note in 1963 with a flurry of creativity and maintained a prolific recording output through the end of the decade that left several stunning sessions unreleased in the vaults Recorded in 1968, but not released until 1980, Dance With Death was Hill’s 10th Blue Note...
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Kansas City born trumpeter Carmell Jones signed to Pacific Jazz soon after his arrival in Los Angeles in 1960 and began what seemed sure to be a promising recording career with his accurately titled 1961 debut The Remarkable Carmell Jones featuring Harold Land, Frank Strazzeri, Gary Peacock, and Leon Pettis This stereo Tone Poet...
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Like Django Reinhardt, Horace Parlan did the impossible and turned a disability into an advantage Stricken with polio as a youth that left him with a partially paralyzed right hand Parlan became a major jazz pianist who developed a highly original rhythmic style By the time he recorded the classic Speakin' My Piece in 1960, he had...
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Jackie McLean's slightly acidic tone on alto can be instantly identified He perfectly symbolizes the intensity, passion, excitement and urgency of New York in the 1960s Born in 1932 and part of the musical generation that matured in the shadow of Charlie Parker, McLean served his apprenticeship at the very top, recording with the...
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Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing in gatefold jacket In November 1960, trumpeter Donald Byrd brought his quintet into the Half Not Cafe in New York City to record this soulful, swinging and highly enjoyable live set of hard cop featuring Pepper Adams (baritone saxophone), Duke Pearson (piano), Laymon Jackson (bass) and Lex Humphries...
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ScoLoHoFo—the supergroup made up of guitarist John Scofield, saxophonist Joe Lovano, bassist Dave Holland, and drummer Al Foster—first played together as a band in 1999, but the musicians’ associations stretched back decades and this masterful 2002 album of originals brims with comradery This 2LP stereo Tone Poet Vinyl...
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San Francisco is the perfect introductory album to American jazz vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson Featuring his right-hand man Harold Land on reeds, the duo’s style takes a step forward from their previous post-bop and hard bop sound that didn’t sweep records off the shelves, into more commercial jazz fusion territory, without...
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Guitarist Grant Green was prolific on Blue Note through the early-60s recording more than 20 hard bop and soul jazz sessions as a leader forthe label between1961-1965 By the time Green returned to the label in 1969 his musical style had evolved to wholly embrace jazz-funk as first heard on his album Carryin’ On As the decade...
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Newly-remastered for vinyl as part of an overall Blue Note 75th anniversary vinyl reissue campaign spearheaded by current Blue Note Records President, Don Was Belonging in every jazz collection, volume one of Thelonious Monk's 1947 10" Genius of Modern Music features the first sessions Monk recorded as a leader In 1956 Blue...
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Trombonist J J Johnson took the language of bebop and adapted it to his instrument winning the admiration of Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker After playing on Miles Davis’ first Blue Note session, Johnson led several dates in 1953–54 that were compiled on the 12” LP The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson, Vol 1 featuring...
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Donald Byrd’s dynamic 1973 live recording Live: Cookin’ with Blue Note at Montreux gets its first-ever official release today on what would have been the legendary trumpeter’s 90th birthday In July 1973, Blue Note Records headed to Montreux, Switzerland to showcase several of the label’s stars at the Montreux Jazz Festival...
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Grachan Moncur III's Evolution is a Blue Note essential Recorded in 1963, the album was the first by the trombonist and released on the Blue Note label Moncur is joined by Lee Morgan, Jackie McLean, Bobby Hutcherson, Bob Cranshaw, and Anthony Williams Newly remastered for vinyl as part of an overall Blue Note 75th anniversary...
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Saxophonist and composer Charles Lloyd has been a free spirit, master musician, and visionary At 84, he remains at the height of his powers and as prolific as ever As a sound seeker, Lloyd has perhaps found no greater manifestation than on his Trio of Trios project, which encompasses three albums in different trio settings The...
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Trumpeter Blue Mitchell had been a sideman on Blue Note sessions led by Lou Donaldson, Jimmy Smith, Jackie McLean, and appeared on numerous classics as a member of the Horace Silver Quintet before he began recording his own leader albums for the label Following The Thing to Do and Down With It, Mitchell headed back into Rudy Van...
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Having teamed up on two prior Pacific Jazz recordings, trumpeter Chet Baker & alto saxophonist Art Pepper continued their fruitful collaboration with the supremely swinging 1956 album Picture of Heath (which was originally released as Playboys until Hugh Hefner objected) The sextet for the session was brimming with top talent...
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In Andrew Hill, Alfred Lion believed he had found another pianist and composer who had as unique and important a voice as Thelonious Monk Hill debuted on Blue Note in 1963 with a staggering burst of creativity that produced four classic albums—Black Fire, Smoke Stack, Judgment!, and his masterpiece Point of Departure—over a...
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Revival: Live at Pookie's Pub is a thrilling previously unissued live recording of Elvin Jones’ quartet that captures the legendary drummer’s emergence as a bandleader at a little-known club in New York City where he had a weekly residency after leaving John Coltrane's band in the late 1960s Featuring Joe Farrell on tenor...
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10 years ago in 2012, Robert Glasper changed the game After several acclaimed Blue Note albums with his acoustic trio (Canvas, In My Element) that solidified his Jazz cred while hinting at his Hip-Hop leanings, the visionary pianist went all in with Black Radio, an album that laid out a new paradigm for creative music, reaching...
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Vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson had a profound influence over the sound of Blue Note Records in the 1960s, with his distinctive vibes elevating a wide range of all-time classics from Grant Green Idle Moments to Eric Dolphy Out To Lunch His fifth Blue Note session as a leader, 1966’s album Stick-Up! found Hutcherson in the company...
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Tenor saxophonist Harold Vick was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina and played with R&B bands coming up before working as a sideman with soul jazz organ greats including Jack McDuff and Big John Patton Vick made his first Blue Note appearance in April 1963 on Patton’s Along Came John, and a month later Alfred Lion brought...
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The second installment of Charles Lloyd’s Blue Note trio series is here, pairing up the legendary saxophonist with a regular collaborator, pianist Gerald Clayton, and a new associate, guitarist Anthony Wilson Although Trios: Ocean doesn’t pack a wallop like the inaugural chapter did (Trios: Chapel features guitarist Bill...
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