Art Blakey - The Jazz Messengers (2LP)
ORDER LIMITED TO ONE ITEM PER CUSTOMER
Art Blakey (drums) [Click here to see more vinyl featuring Art Blakey]
Donald Byrd (trumpet) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Donald Byrd]
Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Hank Mobley]
Horace Silver (piano) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Horace Silver]
Doug Watkins (bass) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Doug Watkins]
2 LPs, gatefold sleeve
Limited edition
Original analog Master tape : YES
Heavy Press : 180g
Record color : black
Speed : 33 RPM
Size : 12'’
Stereo
Studio
Record Press : Pallas
Label : Pure Pleasure
Original Label : Columbia
Recorded at Columbia 30th Street Studio, New York City on April 6 and May 4, 1956 by Tony Janick
Produced by George Avakian
Remastered by Ray Staff at Air Mastering, Lyndhurst Hall, London
Originally released in 1956
Reissued in March 2011
Tracks:
Side A :
2. Nica's Dream
3. It's You Or No One
Side B :
2. Carol's Interlude
3. The End Of A Love Affair
4. Hank's Symphony
Side C :
2. Ill Wind
3. Late Sho
Side D :
2. Carol's Interlude (alt take)
Reviews:
"Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers is a vital part of jazz history. The sound has the rawness of the mono recordings of this period. Liner notes by George Avakian (1956) and Kenny Washington (1997) are informative and precise. Audiophiles and jazz enthusiasts should welcome this album to their collection." Robbie Gerson, Audiophile Audition
« The very first edition of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers was unfortunately short-lived, and as excellent as they were collectively, it was the beginning of a trend for the members of this group to come and go. Unbeknown to Blakey at the time, he would become a champion for bringing talent from the high minor leagues to full-blown jazz-star status, starting with this band featuring Detroit trumpeter Donald Byrd, East coast tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley, and pianist Horace Silver, a jazz legend ever after. It's evident that although there is much cohesion in the group, Byrd's star was on the rise the fastest, and he would leave shortly, replaced briefly by Clifford Brown, then Kenny Dorham. What is most remarkable in this first recording for the band is how several of these selections have become classic hard bop vehicles, revered and replayed by thousands of bands worldwide. "Nica's Dream" is the best known of them all, typical of the calypso beats Blakey favored at the time, with a singsong, hummable melody led by Byrd that is pure soul personified and drenched in unrequited blues. Their take of "The End of a Love Affair" is one of those arrangements that would be hard to top, filled with deft rhythm changes and a distinctive group signature sound identified by the Mobley-Byrd tandem. "Ecaroh" ("Horace" spelled backwards) keeps the Latin beat but puts in a breezier context, a simple beauty of a tune only the pianist and Blakey could have conceived, and called their own at the time. "Infra Rae" is a quintessential hard bop workout, and "Hank's Symphony," while not a classic, is innovative in that it uses an Asian-inspired introduction, an Afro-Cuban base, and a force like a wild hurricane via Blakey's fast, inspired, cut-loose drumming. In retrospect, the Jazz Messengers could easily be tagged the eighth wonder of the world, starting with this finely crafted first effort that definitely stands the test of time. » AllMusic Review by Michael G. Nastos
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4 / 5 , Discogs : 4.55 / 5 , Audio Beat : 4.5/5 Music, 4/5 Sound