Red Clay (1970)
Freddy HubbardBy the time Red Clay entered the listening room, something has already changed. Winter has deepened, the system has been adjusted and readjusted, and the ear is no longer anchored to hard bop as a stable home base. This record doesn’t arrive politely. It doesn’t even quite begin. It bursts in, as if Rudy Van Gelder hit “record” a moment too early and decided to keep what happened next. The opening crash might suggest …
Page One (1963)
Joe HendersonBy the time Page One enters the December constellation, the ears are calibrated. After the attitude of The Sidewinder, the drama of Moanin’, and the rhythmic expansion of Song for My Father, this album feels quieter, cooler, and more restrained—almost deliberately so. It doesn’t announce itself. It waits for you to come to it. Joe Henderson was young when Page One was recorded (1963), and unlike Lee Morgan—who …
Hard Bop Constellations
Various ArtistsAnnouncing a new approach my listening: a monthly playlist of related albums that I will listen to and write about, discussing cultural connections, impressions, and backgrounds: I’ll tag this series. It’ll provide me with a focus each month, so I’ll know what I’m listening to throughout half the month, anyway. I’ll begin this experiment with a modest-sized list, say around ten albums, and go from there. I figure a …
