Joe HENDERSON - Tetragon 1968

Joe HENDERSON - Tetragon 1968
MSP 9017

Jazz

Joe Henderson has been a driving force in the jazz community since the early 1960s. Indeed, his skill and conceptual approach to music helped to define contemporary jazz. Certainly, he greatly influenced the "young lions" of the 1980s, who in turn brought renewed integrity to straight-ahead jazz. This 1968 album sees the tenor saxophonist in fine form. His composition "The Bead Game" is decades ahead of its time; jazz simply doesn't get any more advanced than the soloing heard here by pianist Don Friedman and Henderson himself. Meanwhile, Jack DeJohnette's driving eighth notes on the ride cymbal also add great urgency and gusto to this tune. Elsewhere, Cole Porter's gentle "I've Got You Under My Skin" fits in surprisingly well alongside the solo-heavy originals; this is due, in large part, to the sophisticated harmonic language employed by pianist Kenny Barron. In general, all seven tracks illuminate the improvisational prowess of this band.
**
Bass- Ron Carter
Drums- Jack DeJohnette (tracks: A1 to A3, B2) , Louis Hayes (tracks: B1, B3, B4)
Piano- Don Friedman (tracks: A1 to A3, B2) , Kenny Barron (tracks: B1, B3, B4)
Tenor Sax- Joe Henderson
Recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York, New York on September 27, 1967 and May 16, 1968. Released on Milestone (9017)
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A1. Invitation 6:16 
A2. R. J. 5:37 
A3. The Bead Game 8:38 
B1. Tetragon 5:39 
B2. Waltz For Zweetie 4:25 
B3. First Trip 5:16 
B4. I've Got You Under My Skin 5:00
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Joe HENDERSON & Wynton KELLY - Trio Straight, No Chaser 1996

Joe HENDERSON & Wynton KELLY - Trio Straight, No Chaser 1996

Jazz

These magnificent renditions of jazz standards (plus few lesser known songs) are precisely what I have expected from such a great group.
Joe Henderson (together with Charles Mingus and very few others) often sounds as if jazz history exists only to give him fuel for his playing, whereas the powerhouse Wynton Kelly trio (Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb !), relatively fresh from the Miles Davis experiences (or at least influenced by Miles), shines brightly - although their more mellow side on "If you could see me now" is no match to their forceful interaction to good old Joe... Make no mistake, Henderson is the star of this album, with Kelly trio giving him the springboard for flights of musical fancy.

Recommended to all the fans of modern jazz and of Joe Henderson...
'Tis pity Kelly died too young to develop further (or at least to keep doing his thing for few decades more).
By Nikica Gilic.
**
Paul Chambers- Bass
Wynton Kelly- Piano
Jimmy Cobb- Drums
Joe Henderson- Tenor Saxophone
**
01.Straight, No Chaser 14.42
02.Days of Wine and Roses 8.20
03.What Is This Thing Called Love? 9.30
04.If You Could See Me Now    8.41
05.On a Clear Day (You Can See Forever) 11.53
06.Limehouse Blues 6.37
07.Pfrancin' 9.02
08.Theme 2.13
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Joe HENDERSON - Sunrise In Tokyo 1971

Joe HENDERSON - Sunrise In Tokyo 1971

Jazz

An excellent album and one of Joe's strongest sets from the early 70s! The record features Joe working with a hip group of young Japanese players that includes Terumasa Hino on trumpet and Masabumi Kikuchi on piano and electric piano and the sextet format of the session stretches way past Joe's other Japanese recording from the time, which was issued in the US on Milestone. This one features very long tracks, with tremendous intensity from both the group and Joe, who's got a real edginess to his playing here. Includes a version of "So What", plus the originals "Sunrise In Tokyo" and "Get Magic Again".
**
Recorded at the Tokyo Toshi Center Hall, Tokyo, Japan, on August 5, 1971, the day after Henderson's appearance with Hideo Ichikawa (ep), Kunimitsu Inaba (b), Motohiko Hino (d) at the Junk Club, Tokyo, for the recording of 'Joe Henderson In Japan' on the Milestone label. This was officially released in Japan by Fontana/Phonogram (PAT 1064) as 'Joe Henderson And Kikuchi, Hino In Concert' and later reproduced on the European Jazz Door label (JD 12120) as 'Joe Henderson - Sunrise In Tokyo'.
**
ABACHAN blog in 1971 to Henderson to visit Japan and ticket, will be played with Japanese musicians, we are excited, it is also worth noting that, even if I do, playing at the time of this album I think not.
It's ABACHAN "Biwako Balei piedmont" is playing, here is a sunrise in Tokyo, Akira Akira Hino non-Japanese member of the trumpet is so different.
**
1 and 2 songs are songs played live unique smooth and played three songs at the free approach by each player, and play back the rhythm and tone that is different from Shang SHANSHAN no, I called the free , or, rather prosaically, is playing such a style, it is difficult playing with a unique atmosphere.
However, playing time is 19 minutes is a marathon, I mean well, so that the tension of playing in a slow, feeling that there is no longer. Well, I have the most listeners in response.
The record is not bad, but I do not know what the label, but also what is the record of Lake Biwa.
**
Joe Henderson- Tenor saxophone
Terumasa Hino- Trumpet
Kousuke Mine- Alto and soprano saxophones
Masabumi Kikuchi- Piano
Yoshio Suzuki- Bass
Hiroshi Murakami, Yoshiyuki Nakamura- Drums
**
01. Sunrise In Tokyo - by Joe Henderson (12:28)
02. So What - by Miles Davis (11:28)
03. Get Magic Again - by Masabumi Kikuchi (19:53)
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Joe HENDERSON - Mode For Joe 1966 (REPOST)

Joe HENDERSON - Mode For Joe 1966 (REPOST)

Jazz

This is one of the many great and somewhat overlooked albums of the golden era that reached into the 60s--and arguably should be ranked among classics such as Miles' "Kind of Blue" and Oliver Nelson's "Blues and the Abstract Truth." The cast is an A-team (with the Leader are Lee Morgan, Curtis Fuller, Bobby Hutcherson, Cedar Walton, Ron Carter and Joe Chambers!) and the recording is sterling. Take a listen to the title track by Cedar Walton. It explains why music, and especially straight-ahead jazz, can be a gift! If you like tenor players as leaders, this music is for you.
By  Robert McFadden.
**
Given the date of this release and the band lineup, one might assume that this is a straight-up hard-bop album. However, this 1966 Joe Henderson record--featuring trumpeter Lee Morgan, trombonist Curtis Fuller, vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, ...    Full Descriptionpianist Cedar Walton, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Joe Chambers--is a great example of modern jazz at its best. MODE FOR JOE was recorded during a time of sweeping musical changes due to developments in free jazz, soul jazz, and even early experiments with fusion. It was a time when the bluesy and funky leanings of hard-boppers were giving way to more individualized contemporary approaches. One of the best examples of this shift, MODE FOR JOE sounds more like the experimental work of Branford Marsalis than the groovy musings of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers.

The last track on MODE FOR JOE, "Free Wheelin'," is the only dyed-in-the-wool hard-bop tune heard here. Other than that, this outing's mostly up-tempo songs serve as vehicles for solos. Henderson himself proves that the template for players such as Marsalis, Joe Lovano, and Joshua Redman was invented a generation earlier, as evidenced on "A Shade of Jade," "Black," and others, making this one of the sax legend's most intriguing albums
CD Universe.
**
Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson's fifth and final early Blue Note album is his only one with a group larger than a quintet. Henderson welcomes quite an all-star band (trumpeter Lee Morgan, trombonist Curtis Fuller, vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Joe Chambers) and together they perform originals by Henderson (including "A Shade of Jade"), Walton and Morgan ("Free Wheelin'"). The advanced music has plenty of exciting moments and all of the young talents play up to the level one could hope for.
[Originally released on LP in 1966, Mode for Joe has been reissued on CD several times over; the 2004 Blue Note reissue remastered by Rudy Van Gelder is recommended, although the difference in sound is minimal and the bonus version of "Black" has been placed at the bottom track list instead of as an alternate in the middle.]
By Scott Yanow. AMG. 
**
Joe Henderson- (Tenor Sax);
Lee Morgan- (Trumpet);
Curtis Fuller- (Trombone);
Bobby Hutcherson- (Vibraphone);
Cedar Walton- (Piano);
Ron Carter- (Bass);
Joe Chambers- (Drums)
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A1 A Shade of Jade   7:09
A2 Mode for Joe   8:04
A3 Black   6:53

B1 Carribean Fire Dance   6:43
B2 Granted   7:22
B3 Free Wheelin'   6:38
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Joe HENDERSON - Black Narcissus 1974

Joe HENDERSON - Black Narcissus 1974

Jazz

Inspirational, four-time Grammy-winner Joe Henderson influenced scores of jazz musicians with his smooth tenor saxophone tunes that would be recorded by a wide range of jazz musicians.
Born in Lima, OH, Henderson moved to Detroit in the late '50s to study music at Wayne State University, later moving to New York and recording on Blue Note, Milestone, and Verve labels. After working with such diverse acts as Miles Davis and Blood, Sweat & Tears through the 1960s, Henderson relocated to San Francisco in the mid-'70s and gained popularity on the West Coast as well.
In June of 2001, Henderson died in San Francisco of heart failure following a struggle with emphysema.
He was 64.
By Jason Buchanan, AMG.
**
The story here is pianist Joachim Kuhn, who not only plays acoustic piano in an age of Fenders, but whose playing almost rivals McCoy Tyner, as far as Henderson albums go. There are still a few synth patches (hence the wide ranging overdub dates) and some reverb and echo tricks, but the music mainly focuses on Henderson, Kuhn, and a couple of different bass/drum teams. Given the chemistry between the players, one imagines that an unadorned quartet album would have ranked up there with Joe’s Blue Note classics. However, weird mixes and spacy effects aside, it’s still a decent LP on its own. (At present, it’s only available in the complete Henderson Milestone box. It deserves a reissue by itself.)

For one thing, I think this is the definitive version of the title track, synth waves and all. Henderson moves all over the melody, from high, soft beams of light to lower caresses. The modernized “Good Morning Heartache” sounds great, too. The swinging head of “The Other Side of Right” paraphrases “In ‘n Out”, but for some reason, the reverberating mix dilutes the visceral sound the music undoubtedly had when it was played. Nevertheless, it’s interesting that half of the album is basically straight jazz with contemporary decoration.

The remaining tracks go in different directions. “Hindsight and Forethought” is two and a half minutes of free improv with keen Kuhn piano and a nice transition in the middle that may or may not have come from studio post-production. “Power to the People” updates the 1969 groove piece from the album of the same name. The synth throbs at the beginning are a little robotic, but keep listening, because the rhythm eventually flares up and Kuhn takes an outstanding piano solo. Last and probably least is “Amoeba”, nothing more than Henderson riffing on tenor over percussion and a Moog bass vamp. It sounds cool, though.

I’m split on the synths and studio effects. At times, they aid the music, and at other times, they water it down. It’s as if the basic quartet was about to open the door to the world, when the producer came running up and said, “You’re not going out without a coat on, are you?”
**
Bass- David Friesen (tracks: B2) , J.-F. Jenny-Clark (tracks: A1, A2, A3, B3)
Congas, Percussion- Bill Summers
Drums- Daniel Humair (tracks: A1, A2, A3, B3) , Jack DeJohnette (tracks: B1, B2)
Piano- Joachim Kühn (tracks: All except B1)
Producer- Joe Henderson , Orrin Keepnews
Saxophone [Tenor]- Joe Henderson
Synthesizer- Patrick Gleeson (tracks: A1, A2, A3, B2)
**
A1. Black Narcissus   5:07
A2. Hindsight and Foresight   2:39
A3. Power to People   12:31

B1. Amoeba   5:37
B2. Good Morning Heartache   6:56
B3. The Other Side of Right   7:16
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