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