Art+blakey

Holiday for Skins is not totally unique in drummer Art Blakey's output, as the drummer was most famous for some of the greatest hard bop era records ever made with his Jazz Messengers. Though not a Jazz Messengers recording, this original double volume definitely has Blakey's strong personal, percussive stamp. The cover states this is "a message from Blakey and that message is mostly about rhythm and the vast expressive possibilities of the drum sets, congas, bongos, timbales and other percussion instruments. ~ AllAboutJazz

Is it possible for a band to be both legendary and underrated? The Jazz Messengers at the Café Bohemia makes that case. Jazz fans know The Jazz Messengers is the definitive, go-to band for straight-ahead hard bop. Art Blakey was both master drummer and master talent scout—the man who co-founded and sustained the celebrated group. For all his talents as a trailblazing harp bop drummer, Blakey's probably better known for discovering and nurturing several generations of jazz in the Messengers. It's a long, impressive list. Fans may debate which incarnation of the Jazz Messengers was the best, but this 1955 ensemble is arguably both the best and the most underrated.

Art Blakey & Jazz Messengers - Art's Break! (1972) {2014 Japan Studio Songs Remaster YZSO Series}
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© 1972, 2014 Studio Songs Japan | YZSO-10048 | Mono
Jazz / Hard Bop

Art's Break! captured the legendary drummer and bandleader Art Blakey and his Messengers in Oslo and Tunis in 1969. This version of the Jazz Messengers consisted of Bill Hardman on trumpet, David Schnitter on tenor sax, Mickey Tucker on piano and Cameron Brown on bass. At least that's the information provided by Joker, the original European label who released this material. However, there are some questions regarding the accuracy of this information. The Japanese annotator for this release notes that if the listed personnel is correct these performances must have been recorded in the mid 1970s. Some also claim that the trumpeter is Woody Shaw and the (soprano) sax player is Carter Jefferson.

John Coltrane with Art Blakey - The Complete Lee Kraft Sessions (1957) {Lone Hill Jazz LHJ10154 rel 2004}
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© 1957, 2004 Lone Hill Jazz | LHJ10154
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone / Drums

Previously available only on a limited Japanese edition. These two sessions were produced by Lee Kraft in 1957 featuring the inimitable tenor saxophonist John Coltrane in two different formats; a quintet with Donald Byrd, Walter Bishop, Jr., Wendell Marshall and Art Blakey, and a 15-piece big band organized by Blakey. Coltrane was featured prominently in both settings and played exceptionally throughout. While the other soloists were all top-notch musicians, Coltranes compositions and performance clearly stole the show. His solos were powerful and confident, ripping out sequences of 16th note lines that soared over the full range of the horn with complete command.

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - At the Cafe Bohemia Vol.1 (1955) {Blue Note Japan, CP32-5242, Early Press}
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© 1955, 1986 Blue Note / Toshiba EMI Japan | CP32-5242 | Mono
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Drums

This is Art Blakey's early period Jazz Messengers featuring trumpeter Kenny Dorham, saxophonist Hank Mobley, bassist Doug Watkins, and pianist Horace Silver. This first volume of live performance from the Cafe Bohemia in New York City circa late 1955 is a rousing set of hard bop by the masters who signified its sound, and expanded on the language of modern jazz.

Recorded live in Strasbourg on April 1st, 1982, this newly unearthed performance captures Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers in full flight during a fertile period for the group. Featuring the young talents of Donald Harrison, Terence Blanchard, Johnny O’Neal, Billy Pierce, and Charles Fambrough, the concert is a powerful document of Blakey’s ongoing mission to showcase rising stars in hard bop. Released for the first time, Strasbourg 82 presents an inspired set that blends Messengers classics like “Moanin’” and “Blues March” with standards and contemporary originals.

Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers - Moanin' (1958) {2009 Analogue Productions DSD Remaster}
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© 2009 Blue Note / Analogue Productions / EMI | CBNJ 84003 SA
Jazz / Hard Bop

Art Blakey's most successful album gave us Bobby Timmons' "Moanin'" and Benny Golson's "Along Came Betty" and "Blues March," tunes so powerful that Blakey played them almost every night for the next 30 years. This beautifully performed and recorded session made the Jazz Messengers a jazz institution and put Golson, Timmons and Morgan to the forefront of jazz.