“royal Flush”

Donald Byrd was at his peak as a straight-ahead hard bop band leader in the early '60s, turning a series of remarkably solid, enjoyable sessions for Blue Note. Royal Flush is no exception to the rule. Recorded in the fall of 1961, Royal Flush finds Byrd once again working with baritionist Pepper Adams, but adding bassist Butch Warren, drummer Billy Higgins, and, most importantly, a young pianist named Herbie Hancock. For the most part, the quintet plays a set of vital hard bop, swinging hard on the bluesy groove "Hush" and laying back on the pop standard "I'm a Fool to Want You." But what's really interesting is when they begin pushing the boundaries of bop. All three of Byrd's original pieces "Jorgie's," "Shangri-La," "6M's" are harmonically complex and have subtly shifting rhythms; all three are successful, but "Shangri-La" is particularly noteworthy.

AVID Jazz presents the latest release in our Four Classic Album series with a second re-mastered 2CD release from Donald Byrd, complete with original artwork, liner notes and personnel details.

Sonny Clark - Sonny Clark Quintets (1958) {Blue Note Japan TOCJ-1542 rel 1997}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 211 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 90 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 51 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1957-58, 1997 Blue Note / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-1542
Jazz / Hard Bop / Piano

Of interest to fans of the superb hard bop pianist, this recording combines material from two separate dates. "Royal Flush" and "Lover" are from the January 1958 Cool Struttin' session, and the other tunes, "Minor Meeting," "Eastern Incident," and "Little Sonny," were never released during Clark's tragically short life, so they're special for Clark's fans and they include guitarist Kenny Burrell. Clark rarely worked with a guitarist, although he recorded some wonderful material with Grant Green, Tal Farlow, and Jimmy Raney, three masterful players. His playing here never clashes harmonically or rhythmically with the guitar, a challenging feat for any jazz pianist. These three original tunes are also welcome additions to the consistently excellent body of work that Sonny Clark composed.

18 original albums on 10 CDs.
The early recordings of pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, as well as important publications by some eminent colleagues: Donald Byrd, Pepper Adams, Al Grey, George Coleman, Max Roach, Grant Green, Jimmy Heath, Miles Davis, Lee Morgan, Sonny Rollins, Wayne Shorter, Jackie McLean, Hank Mobley, Ron Carter, Eric Dolphy, and Kenny Dorham.

Recorded in 1958, this legendary date with the still-undersung Sonny Clark in the leader's chair also featured a young Jackie McLean on alto (playing with a smoother tone than he had before or ever did again), trumpeter Art Farmer, and the legendary rhythm section of bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Philly Joe Jones, both from the Miles Davis band. The set begins with one of the preeminent "swinging medium blues" pieces in jazz history: the title track with its leveraged fours and eights shoved smoothly up against the walking bass of Chambers and the backbeat shuffle of Jones. Clark's solo, with its grouped fifths and sevenths, is a wonder of both understatement and groove, while Chambers' arco solo turns the blues in on itself. While there isn't a weak note on this record, there are some other tracks that stand out, most notably Miles' "Sippin' at Bells," with its loping Latin rhythm…

Sonny Clark's conception of modern jazz is not far removed from his peer group of the late '50s, in that advanced melodic and harmonic ideas override the basic precepts of swing and simplicity. What sets Clark apart from other jazz pianists lies in his conception of democracy to allow his bandmates to steam straight ahead on compositions he has written with them in mind. Though the bulk of this session features the marvelous trumpet/tenor tandem of Donald Byrd and Hank Mobley, it is drummer Art Blakey whose demonstrative presence is heard in full force. He's kicking the band in his own distinctive, inimitable way, rambling through the opener "Junka," based on the changes of "You Go to My Head" with his brand of bomb drops, hard accents, and indefatigable swing…