Lee Morgan – Caramba!
In May 1968 when he entered Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey to record his album ¡Caramba!, trumpeter Lee Morgan was still two months shy of his 30th birthday, which makes the fact that this was his 23rd Blue Note recording all the more astounding. Having cut his first Blue Note date as a precocious 18-year-old hot shot, Morgan was by now a full-fledged master, his technical prowess on his horn matched equally by the expressiveness and emotional depth of his playing. He had also continued to grow as a composer who could conjure myriad different moods and styles with his writing, as this diverse 5-song set of his original compositions attests.
¡Caramba! opens with the irrepressible groove of the title track, a lengthy performance that finds the remarkable quintet stretching out on vamp with creative solo flights by Morgan, tenor saxophonist Bennie Maupin, and pianist Cedar Walton, each given buoyant support by bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Billy Higgins. The program keeps moving from there through the intricate post-bop lines of “Suicide City” and “Cunning Lee” to the joyful “Soulita” and finally to the easy mid-tempo swing of “Helen’s Ritual,” a dedication to Morgan’s wife Helen.
This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is stereo, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.
Buy the LP HERE
Check out the tracks HERE
Joe Henderson – Inner Urge
Joe Henderson (alongside Pharoah Sanders) picked up the mantle that John Coltrane established in the early sixties. Henderson’s style owes more than a nod to that of ‘Trane, yet through the combination of his own personality and extraordinary technique, he was able to forge his own unique take on the tenor sax. ‘Inner Urge’ is one of Joe Henderson’s most impressive Blue Note releases. The Coltrane comparison is not surprising as the presence of John Coltrane Quartet members Elvin Jones and McCoy Tyner emphasises. The gruff rawness of Henderson approach to the tenor is apparent especially on the self-penned tracks like ‘Inner Urge’ and ‘Isotope’. ‘El Barrio’ is an awesome cut on which the modal impressionism of ‘Trane is most audible. ‘You Know I Care’ written by Duke Pearson and Cole Porter’s ‘Night And Day’ show a softer side to Henderson on this session that was recorded on November 30 1964.
Reissued and remastered by Kevin Gray in stereo from the original analogue tapes, this 180g pressing of one of Henderson’s finest outings does the sound quality justice at an affordable price.
Buy the LP HERE
Listen to the tracks HERE
Check out all of our Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series Albums here – all at a very affordable price and some fantastic titles still available which have subsequently gone out of print. If you’ve missed any have a butchers at what we’ve still got left in stock.
