Bobby Hutcherson

Lee Morgan - The Procrastinator (1967) {1998 Blue Note Japan Remaster, TOCJ-1629}
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© 1998 Blue Note Japan / Toshiba-EMI | TOCJ-1629
Jazz / Hard Bop / Trumpet

This is one of Lee Morgan's best records. The title track bounces along and is superbly memorable. It features Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and Herbie Hancock, three musicians who were working with Miles Davis at the time. "The Procrastinator" was recorded at the same time as Miles Davis' record "Nefertiti". Whilst I love Miles Davis' records of that time I feel that this is a more enjoyable album than "Nefertiti". Try it, I am sure that you will not regret it!

Trombonist Al Grey is joined by emerging young tenor saxophonist Billy Mitchell on this pair of 1962 sessions, which were originally issued as an Argo LP and finally reissued on a limited-edition CD by Verve in 2003. The first five tracks also feature trumpeter Dave Burns and obscure pianist Floyd Morris. "Nothing But the Truth" is smoldering up-tempo blues with a bit of a gospel flavor, while Morris gets into the groove of the mid-tempo "Three-Fourth Blues." Mitchell especially shines on Melba Liston's soulful ballad "Just Waiting." The three tracks from the earlier session feature Donald Byrd on trumpet and Herbie Hancock on piano. Also here is the slashing hard bop composition "Minor on Top." Another Liston piece, "African Lady," is complex and showcases Grey's sensitive solo.

John Coltrane and Archie Shepp - New Thing at Newport (1965) {2000 Impulse!}
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© 2000 UMG / Verve / Impulse! | 314 543 414-2
Jazz / Post Bop / Hard Bop / Avant-Garde Jazz

The classic John Coltrane Quartet made one of its final appearances at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1965. The tension among bandmembers is evident on the advanced versions of "One Down, One Up" and "My Favorite Things." Coltrane's performance is moving…yet weary. It's apparent the saxophonist wasn't getting the sound he wanted and by the end of the year he would take a different direction, hiring Pharoah Sanders and wife Alice Coltrane for the band. Tenor saxophonist Archie Shepp's earlier afternoon New Thing performance includes engaging versions of "Call Me by My Rightful Name" and "Gingerbread, Gingerbread Boy" (included as a bonus track on this package) with Bobby Hutcherson on vibes.

This languid, seductive gem may well be Grant Green's greatest moment on record. Right from the opening bars of the classic title cut, Idle Moments is immediately ingratiating and accessible, featuring some of Green's most stylish straight jazz playing. Allmusic *****

Donald Byrd - Ethiopian Knights (1971) {Blue Note}
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© 1998 Blue Note / Capitol | 7243 8 54328 2 8 | SBM
Jazz / Fusion / Jazz Funk / Trumpet

Right from the stop-start bass groove that opens "The Emperor," it's immediately clear that Ethiopian Knights is more indebted to funk – not just funky jazz, but the straight-up James Brown/Sly Stone variety – than any previous Donald Byrd project. And, like a true funk band, Byrd and his group work the same driving, polyrhythmic grooves over and over, making rhythm the focal point of the music. Although the musicians do improvise, their main objective is to keep the grooves pumping, using their solos more to create texture than harmonic complexity.

Gerald Wilson - The Complete Pacific Jazz Recordings of Gerald Wilson and His Orchestra (1961-69) [5CD] {2000 Mosaic Remaster}
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© 2000 Mosaic Records / EMI-Capitol | MD5-198
Jazz / Har Bop / Post Bop / Modern Big Band

These are among the finest of all large ensemble jazz recordings of the past 50 years, and Gerald Wilson is a great big-band composer/arranger/leader, although he has not received enough credit for a couple of major reasons. He came to the fore after the end of the big band era, and his outfits did not tour. Hopefully, this five-CD set will refocus attention on his major accomplishments.

On Beyond the Wall, the saxophonist and composer has continued his deep exploration of modal jazz. The album is dedicated to McCoy Tyner, the king and progenitor of modal pianists, and it sounds as if Garrett observed that tutelage well, though the music is unmistakably his own. The core band on the set features drummer Brian Blade, bassist Robert Hurst, and Mulgrew Miller on piano. Pharoah Sanders and Bobby Hutcherson appear on all but two of these nine cuts (Sanders appears on these, the pair on five).