For the past month I have been working on processing a rather large collection of jazz records as part of my day job. It has taught me a lot about the genre, both the music contained in the grooves as well as pressing details (label variations, cover variations, engineering variations, etc.). I’m no expert, but I have definitely amassed a wealth of knowledge that could be useful if I collected and/or sold jazz records. Unfortunately my own collection is relatively small, but I like to think it is well curated.
Although there were numerous amazing records issued by the Prestige, Impulse, Bethlehem, Cleff and Riverside labels, I (and I think most people who like jazz would agree) am most familiar with the Blue Note Records oeuvre. More specifically, the 1500 and 4000 series. Between those two series, pretty much all the best bop and hard-bop jazz musicians are accounted for, from Cannonball Adderley to Larry Young. With so many amazing compositions spread across 350+ titles, one would be hard pressed to pick the ten best of the bunch. But that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Because this is my blog and I can do whatever I want.
The Top Ten Blue Note Jazz Records
(Blue Note 1500 series and Blue Note 4000-4400 series)
10. Larry Young – Unity (BLP 4221) – Jazz organ? You bet. There’s a lot of experimentation here, which is probably the reason I came to love this record. It’s not free jazz but there’s enough weird shit here to attract fans of the genre. Featuring Woody Shaw on trumpet, Joe Henderson on saxophone, and Elvin Jones on drums. [Listen to “Beyond All Limits”]
09. Lou Donaldson – Blues Walk (BLP 1593) – According to the All Music Guide, this is his “undisputed masterpiece,” but I’m willing to bet that there are just as many people who dig ‘Lou Takes Off’ or the more soul-jazz stylings of ‘The Natural Soul’. Lou kind of had three distinct phases of his career. He was heavily influenced by Charlie Parker, he had his bebop phase, and then he turned into the soul-jazz dude. Obviously ‘Blues Walk’ is in the heart of the bop phase, which is probably why I enjoy it the most. His alto sax is backed here by Herman Foster on piano, Peck Morrison on bass, Dave Bailey on drums and Ray Barretto on congas. I know, congas…but still, check it out. You’ll like it.
08. Kenny Dorham – Round About Midnight At The Cafe Bohemia (BLP 1524) – A live album that has a really relaxed, maybe stoned vibe? I think that’s why I like it. Most of my favorite jazz records are ones I used to smoke pot and chill out to in college. This one, ‘Sketches of Spain,’ ‘Soul Station,’ Lee Morgan’s ‘The Cooker’ and Grant Green’s ‘Idle Moments’ come to mind. Dorham’s band here is pretty sick, and it includes some immense players. J.R. Monterose on tenor saxophone, Bobby Timmons on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Sam Jones on bass and Arthur Edgehill on drums.
07. Hank Mobley – Soul Station (BLP 4031) – From one chill groover to the next, Hank Mobley is probably my second favorite jazz musician (Miles is number one, I think…) but it varies depending on what I’m listening to. Longtime jazz critic Bob Blumenthal calls ‘Soul Station’ the equivalent of John Coltrane’s ‘Giant Steps’ or Sonny Rollins’ ‘Saxophone Colossus.’ That’s about how highly regarded it is. The band kicks some serious ass, too. Wyton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass (check out his brilliant ‘Whims of Chambers’ which barely missed making this list) and Art Blakey on drums. An amazing lineup for an amazing record. [Listen to “Remember”]
06. Donald Byrd – The Cat Walk (BLP 4075) – Donald Byrd with baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams was an incredible combination. The title track is supposed to capture the calm, cool gait of a tomcat on the prowl. It’s a little more uptempo than some of the other records here, but you can’t always listen to deep grooves. Sometimes you’ve got to stretch your legs and move. This record is a perfect counterbalance to some of the aforementioned “relaxed” bop records, which is probably why I enjoy it so much. Adams of course chips in on baritone sax, Duke Pearson on piano, Laymon Jackson on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. [Listen to “Cute”]
05. Sonny Clark – Cool Struttin’ (BLP 1588) – This record is so brilliant. I knew from the moment I heard the harmonizing sax and trumpet on the title track that I was in for a treat, and this album does not let up. The third track is a “cover” of Miles Davis’ “Sippin’ At Bells,” and it’s so perfectly fitting because two of the members of Davis’ band play on this album. What about the players, you ask? The lineup is downright absurd: Clark on piano, Jackie McLean on alto sax, Art Farmer on trumpet, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums.
04. Freddie Hubbard – Breaking Point! (BLP 4172) – Of all the cuts on all the albums listed here, the title track of Freddie Hubbard’s ‘Breaking Point’ might be my favorite. You could almost call this record an avant/free jazz record. It’s all over the place, but it’s also brilliant. His early records sound a lot like Lee Morgan, but this one is entirely unique, and I love that about it. His backing band includes James Spaulding on alto sax and flute, Ronnie Matthews on piano, Eddie Khan on bass and Joe Chambers on drums.
03. Hank Mobley – The Turnaround! (BLP 4186) – This was the product of two different recording sessions, and even though two cuts were recorded in ’63 and four were recorded in ’65, it still sounds cohesive. There’s a bit of a latin flavor on some of the songs that I really dig. On “Pat ‘n Chat” his trumpet is as warm as it ever sounded. The personnel on this record is insane. Mobley on tenor sax, Donald Byrd, Herbie Hancock Butch Warren, Philly Joe Jones, Freddie Hubbard, Barry Harris, Paul Chambers, and Billy Higgins all contribute. It’s just outstanding. [Listen to “My Sin”]
02. Lee Morgan – Lee Morgan Sextet (Vol. 2) (BLP 1541) – This was my introduction to Morgan (weird, I know) so even though I might listen to ‘Cornbread’ or ‘The Sidewinder’ more, this one will always be my favorite. This was just his second recording session as a band leader, but it is a powerful combination of songs. It doesn’t hurt that he’s backed on these tunes by Hank Mobley on tenor sax, Kenny Rogers on alto sax (no, not THAT Kenny Rogers), Horace Silver on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Charlie Persip on drums. If you’re interested in later Morgan, you can do no wrong checking out ‘The Rumproller,’ ‘City Lights,’ ‘The Cooker’ or ‘The Gigolo.’ Almost everything he recorded for Blue Note between 1956 and 1966 is great.
01. Eric Dolphy – Out To Lunch! (BLP 4163) – Considering this was Dolphy’s ONLY recording for Blue Note as a leader, it’s a phenomenal bop/avant-garde record. I always thought it was a bit of an experimental-leaning album, that would only attract a certain kind of audience, but the more I’ve read about it through the years the more I hear it referred to as the best album in the history of the Blue Note label. The Penguin Guide To Jazz said of ‘Out To Lunch!’, “If it is a masterpiece, then it is not so much a flawed as a slightly tentative masterpiece.” It was the first original Blue Note LP I ever purchased (for sixty dollars five years ago — and in the collection I just processed I priced a copy at $400) and it remains my favorite. Dolphy on bass clarinet is backed by Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Bobby Hutcherson on vibraphone, Richard Davis on bass and Tony Williams (credited as Anthony, he turned 18 years old just a few months before the recording session) on drums. Simply the best.
