Personnel:

Sonny Red (as), Blue Mitchell (tp), Yusef Lateef, Clifford Jordan (ts), Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan, Ronnie Matthews, Cedar Walton (p), Grant Green (g), Bob Cranshaw, Art Davis, George Tucker (b), Albert 'Tootie' Heath, Elvin Jones, Jimmy Cobb (d)

 

Inspired by Charlie Parker and then Jackie McLean, the widely experienced, Detroit-born altoist Sonny Red, nee Sylvester Kyner (1932-1980) was an archetypal Motor City bopper, who, like many of his confreres there, also absorbed the blues-drenched lines of pianist Bud Powell. Forthright, direct, unpretentious, a skilled soloist with a strong feeling for the blues, he played and recorded with some of the finest jazzmen around.

 

The presence here of such luminous talents as, most notably, pianist Barry Harris, along with fellow pianist Tommy Flanagan, trumpeter Blue Mitchell, saxophonists Clifford Jordan and Yusef Lateef, and guitarist Grant Green left no doubt about his stature among them.

 

Despite this and the fact that he also worked with such marquee names as Art Blakey, Kenny Dorham, Donald Byrd, Curtis Fuller and Paul Quinichette, he never quite made the breakthrough his skills suggested he would and his recordings have been difficult to find.

 

This collection of quartet, quintet and sextet settings brings together four albums he made for the Jazzland label during one of the most productive spells of his career and shows why he was held in such esteem by his contemporaries.

 

—Jordi Pujol

 

TRACKLIST:

CD 1

01. Brother B (Sonny Red) 4:58

02. All I Do Is Dream of You (Freed-Brown) 4:01

03. The New Blues (Sonny Red) 5:30

04. Ditty (Sonny Red) 4:33

05. 'Teef (Sonny Red) 6:24

06. Breezin' (Sonny Red) 6:04

07. A Handful of Stars (Lawrence-Shapiro) 4:40

08. If There Is Someone Lovelier Than You (Dietz-Schwartz) 2:48

09. Cumberland Court (Clifford Jordan) 3:49

10. A Story Tale (Clifford Jordan) 4:48

11. You're Driving Me Crazy (Walter Donaldson) 5:38

12. Defiance (Sonny Red) 3:24

13. Prints (Sonny Red) 6:00

14. Hip Pockets (Red-Jordan) 5:00

15. They Say It's Wonderful (Irving Berlin) 5:13

16. If I Didn't Care (Jack Lawrence) 5:14

 

CD 2

01. I Like the Likes of You (Duke-Harburg) 4:20

02. Bye, Bye Blues (Hamm-Bennett-Lown-Gray) 4:32

03. Never, Never Land (Comden-Green-Styne) 6:29

04. Ko-kee (Sonny Red) 4:15

05. Images (Sonny Red) 6:30

06. Blues for Donna (Sonny Red) 4:46

07. Dodge City (Sonny Red) 5:19

08. Moon River (Mancini-Mercer) 6:10

09. Super-20 (Sonny Red) 5:35

10. The Mode (Sonny Red) 8:47

11. Blue Sonny (Sonny Red) 8:29

12. The Rhythm Thing (Sonny Red) 5:10

13. Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered (Rodgers-Hart) 5:43

 

Sources:

CD 1 - Tracks #1-8, from the album "Breezing" (Jazzland JLP 932)

CD 1 - Tracks #9-16, from the album "Clifford Jordan & Sonny Red

- A Story Tale" (Jazzland JLP 940)

CD 2 - Tracks #1-4 & #8-10, from the album "The Mode" (Jazzland JLP 959)

CD 2 - Tracks #5-7 & #11-13, from the album "Images" (Jazzland JLP 974)

 

Personnel on "Breezing":

Sonny Red Quartet & Sextet

Sonny Red (as), Barry Harris (p), Bob Cranshaw (b), Albert 'Tootie' Heath (d). Added on tracks #1,3,5 & 6: Blue Mitchell (tp), Yusef Lateef (ts).

Recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York City, November 3, 1960

 

Personnel on "A Story Tale":

Clifford Jordan & Sonny Red Quintet

Sonny Red (as), Clifford Jordan (ts), Tommy Flanagan (p), Art Davis (b), Elvin Jones (d). Ronnie Mathews, replaces Flanagan on #9, 10 & 16.

Recorded at Bell Sound Studios, New York City, February 14, 1961

 

Personnel on "The Mode" (CD 2, #1-4):

Sonny Red Quartet

Sonny Red (as), Cedar Walton (p), George Tucker (b), Jimmy Cobb (d).

Recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York City, May 29, 1961

 

Personnel on "Images" (CD 2, #5-7):

Sonny Red Quintet

Blue Mitchell (tp), Sonny Red (as), Barry Harris (p), George Tucker (b), Lex Humphries (d).

Recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York City, June 25, 1961

 

Personnel on "The Mode" (CD 2, #8-10) / "Images" (CD 2, #11-13)

Sonny Red Quintet

Sonny Red (as), Barry Harris (p), Grant Green (g, except #13),

George Tucker (b), Jimmy Cobb (d).

Recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York City, December 14, 1961

 

Engineers: Ray Fowler & Bill Stoddard (CD 1 #9-16)

Original cover designs by Ken Deardoff.

 

Original recordings produced by Orrin Keepnews.

This compilation produced for CD release by Jordi Pujol

 

Stereo · 24-Bit Digitally Remastered