VA - The Blue Note Years, 1939-1999 (1998)

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

There
have been many jazz labels as diverse and musically satisfying as Blue
Note, but few have carried the same mystique as Alfred Lion's label,
since they not only had the sound, they had the style. Like any label,
it had its up and downs, but decades after its inception, the label
remains beloved by almost all jazz aficionados. So, when the label's
60th anniversary rolled around in 1998/1999, it made sense that they
decided to celebrate in grand style. Not only did they reissue many of
their classic albums with gloriously remastered sound and restored
artwork, they compiled the gargantuan box set The Blue Note Years:
1939-1999, which contained no less than seven separate double-disc sets
spotlighting different genres and eras in Blue Note's history (with the
noticeable omission of anything recorded between 1968-1974, when Alfred
Lion left the label and the new owners instigated pop-jazz, funk,
groove, and fusion recordings). Certainly, a 14-disc box set isn't for
casual fans, but anyone curious about digging deep into the label's past
will be thrilled with the set. Each volume -- for the record, they are
Boogie, Blues & Bop, The Jazz Message, Organ and Soul, Hard Bop and
Beyond, Avant Garde, New Era, and Blue Note Now as Then -- stands as its
own little mini-history, covering the major players with representative
songs. Sometimes the choices are familiar, sometimes they're not, but
they're almost always revelatory, especially when taken in conjunction
with the songs that surround them. True,
the box is a lot to digest at once (perhaps that's why Blue Note later
released all seven volumes individually), but anyone willing to devote
the time and money to this set will be richly rewarded.

The Blue Note Years 1939-99
Packaged
in a deep-blue LP-size box, this 14-CD megaset is a wide-angle
retrospective on Blue Note Records, from its 1939 birth to the label's
most recent artists. The bonuses are myriad but begin inarguably with
the accompanying booklet, filled by label cofounder Francis Wolff's
in-studio photographs, all taken during the 1950s and 1960s and
conveying a palpable musicality.

Boogie, Blues & Bop: 1939-1955
Most
listeners forget Blue Note's earliest sides, the meat of their
founding. Here you get Albert Ammons's "Boogie Woogie Stomp" and Sidney
Bechet's dramatic read of "Summertime." The surprises are many, from
Babs Gonzales's Three Bips and a Bop to Ike Quebec offering great
swing-time work as well as his more hard-bop persona. Then there are the
categorical greats, Thelonious Monk, J.J. Johnson, Herbie Nichols, and
Miles Davis, each of whom cut limited Blue Note sessions. This is the
seeding ground, the place from which Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff grew
their label into a standard-bearer for all varieties of jazz in the
1950s and 1960s.

The Jazz Message: 1955-1960
These two CDs
might pose the greatest number of names to single out. Where to begin?
Horace Silver? Hank Mobley? Cannonball Adderley's session with Miles? Do
we praise tracks by Bud Powell and Jackie McLean at the exclusion of a
Sonny Rollins or a Lou Donaldson tune? Simply put, there are no weak
moments here. This set opens, appropriately enough, with a hard-charging
Jazz Messengers track, "Minor's Holiday," featuring the instantly
recognizable thunder of Art Blakey. More than two hours later, Dexter
Gordon concludes "The Jazz Message" with an ineffably swinging "Society
Red." In between are the gloriously proud, gleaming moments of
fundamental Blue Note: classy, distinguished and locked onto ideas with
an amazing concentration and, yes, grace. Thrilling.

Organ & Soul: 1965-1967
While
organ jazz is often described as funky or bluesy, at its essence, it is
vividly impressionistic. Why, in the hands of masters like Jimmy Smith
or Baby Face Willette, a Hammond B3 organ can evoke a myriad of specific
times, places, and emotions is one of the true and glorious mysteries
of jazz. On this set, Blue Note's organ men take their bows followed by
the likes of the label's down 'n' dirty squadron of funk and soul
players like Lou Donaldson, Lee Morgan, and Grant Green. Organ and Soul
is an indispensable collection of one of Blue Note's more
underappreciated periods. It's also absolutely required for any
late-night listening session.

Hard Bop and Beyond: 1963-1967
This
bustling set is led by names like Dexter Gordon, Herbie Hancock, Hank
Mobley, and Lee Morgan--musical voices synonymous with lean, economical
jazz and no-nonsense straight bop. Short of the Pete LaRoca track, "Lazy
Afternoon," there are few surprises on this set, but what is included
is, of course, exceptional. Not only is this set an excellent
illustration of Blue Note's Middle Ages, it also shows how incredibly
deep the label's roster was at this time. Hard Bop and Beyond, if not a
powerful creative statement, does make the case for rock-solid
consistency.

The Avant Garde: 1963-1967
While Blue Note is
certainly not known for its dedication to avant-garde or free jazz, this
set proves they certainly had some rather substantial moments. Yes,
Larry Young's "Moontrane" could have been slotted on the Organ and Soul
set, but contributions from Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, and Cecil
Taylor (all represented here) helped set the table for the next
generation of jazz. A quibble: Why only one selection each from Cherry
and Taylor, both musicians continually cited by contemporary players
across all genres?

Blue Note Now as Then
Capitalizing on the
legacy of Blue Note's canon of peerless tunes, these two CDs use current
and recent artists from the label to look at timeworn classics. It's a
true portrait of the 1950s and 1960s, with Fareed Haque's sextet with
Jerry Dodgion and Erik Friedlander taking on Horace Silver's emotive
"Song for My Father," which gave the world a fetching glimpse of Joe
Henderson's saxophone brilliance. There are nods to Kenny Dorham and
Ornette Coleman, among others, and the tunes show an inarguable
contemporary interpretive depth, a world away from the stoic realm of
jazz's "young lions."

The New Era 1975-1998
There was a period
in the 1970s and 1980s when Blue Note Records seemed absent, or at
least in disarray. Maybe it was the rise of commercial fusion, maybe
not. In any case, this last pair of CDs addresses the fusion craze with
some of its highpoints, including Ronnie Laws's "Agelina" and Stanley
Jordan's "Lady in My Life." But the set expands into a full-fledged
abridgement, cueing up the fantastic (and underaccorded) co-op quartet
fronted by Don Pullen and George Adams on "Song from the Old Country."
From slinking grooves to hot-chop blasts, this is the aural equivalent
of a multipaneled map of the label's best post-1970s work.
S. Duda & Andrew Bartlett, Amazon.com

Track Listings

Disc: 1
1. Boogie Woogie Stomp - Albert Ammons
2. Chicago Flyer - Meade Lux Lewis
3. Reminiscing At Blue Note - Earl Hines
4. Summertime - Sidney Bechet
5. Profoundly Blue - Edmond Hall's Celeste Quartet
6. After You've Gone - James P. Johnson's Blue Note Jazzmen
7. Old Stack O'Lee Blues - The Bechet/Nicholas Blue Five
8. Blues For Clarinets - Jimmy Hamilton And The Duke's Men
9. Topsy - The Ike Quebec Swing Seven
10. Blue Harlem - The Ike Quebec Quintet
11. Tiny's Boogie Woogie - The Tiny Grimes Swingtet
12. Lop-Pow - Babs' Three Bips And A Bop
13. Oop-Pop-A-Da - Babs' Three Bips And A Bop
14. Our Delight - Tadd Dameron
15. Lady Bird - Tadd Dameron
16. Boperation - McGhee-Navarro Boptet
17. Tin Tin Deo - James Moody's Modernists
18. Moody's All Frantic - James Moody's Modernists

Disc: 2
1. Well, You Needn't - Thelonious Monk
2. Round Midnight - Thelonious Monk
3. Criss Cross - Thelonious Monk
4. Bouncing With Bud - Bud Powell
5. A Night In Tunisia - Bud Powell
6. Glass Enclosure - Bud Powell
7. Born To Be Blue - Wynton Kelly
8. Bag's Groove - Milt Jackson
9. Tempus Fugit - Miles Davis
10. Safari - Horace Silver
11. Carvin' The Rock - Lou Donaldson/Clifford Brown Quintet
12. Get Happy - J.J. Johnson
13. Easy Living - Clifford Brown
14. Timepiece - Gil Melle
15. Message From Kenya - Art Blakey And Sabu
16. The Gig - Herbie Nichols
17. Lady Sings The Blues - Herbie Nichols
18. Quicksilver - The Art Blakey Quintet

Disc: 3
1. Minor's Holiday - The Jazz Messengers
2. The Preacher - Horace Silver
3. Hymn Of The Orient - Clifford Brown
4. Senor Blues - Horace Silver
5. Funk In Deep Freeze - Hank Mobley
6. Decision - Sonny Rollins
7. Mil Dew - Johnny Griffin
8. Blue Train - John Coltrane
9. Autumn Leaves - Cannonball Adderley/M. Davis

Disc: 4
1. Cool Struttin' - Sonny Clark
2. John's Abbey - Bud Powell
3. I Remember Clifford - Lee Morgan
4. Blues Walk - Lou Donaldson
5. Appointment In Ghana - Jackie McLean
6. Moanin' - Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers
7. Little Sheri - Stanley Turrentine
8. Open Sesame - Freddie Hubbard
9. Society Red - Dexter Gordon

Disc: 5
1. The Sermon - Jimmy Smith
2. Something Strange - Baby Face Willette
3. Southern Exposure - Fred Jackson
4. Sweet Cakes - Don Wilkerson
5. Easy - Ike Quebec
6. I.Q. Blues - Freddie Roach
7. Let 'Em Roll - John Patton
8. Blues In Maude's Flat - Grant Green

Disc: 6
1. Midnight Blue - Kenny Burrell
2. Hog Maw - Lou Donaldson
3. Christo Redentor - Donald Byrd
4. River's Invitation - Stanley Turrentine
5. The Sidewinder - Lee Morgan
6. Adam's Apple - Wayne Shorter
7. The Turnaround - Hank Mobley
8. Slow Drag - Donald Byrd
9. Alligator Boogaloo - Lou Donaldson

Disc: 7
1. Cheese Cake - Dexter Gordon
2. Blue Bossa - Joe Henderson
3. Cantaloupe Island - Herbie Hancock
4. Fungii Mama - Blue Mitchell
5. Song For My Father - Horace Silver
6. Lazy Afternoon - Pete LaRoca
7. Footprints - Wayne Shorter
8. Una Mas - Kenny Dorham

Disc: 8
1. Maiden Voyage - Herbie Hancock
2. Mode For Joe - Joe Henderson
3. Speak No Evil - Wayne Shorter
4. Hub-Tones - Freddie Hubbard
5. No Room For Squares - Hank Mobley
6. Mosaic - Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers
7. Speedball - Lee Morgan
8. West 22nd Street Theme - Bobby Hutcherson
9. Passion Dance - McCoy Tyner

Disc: 9
1. The Moontrane - Larry Young
2. Black Fire - Andrew Hill
3. Siete Ocho - Andrew Hill
4. Frankenstein - Jackie McLean
5. Kahlil The Prophet - Jackie McLean
6. Tomorrow Afternoon - Tony Williams
7. Luminous Monolith - Sam Rivers
8. Thandiwa - Grachan Moncur III

Disc: 10
1. Hat And Beard - Eric Dolphy
2. Monk In Wonderland - Grachan Moncur III
3. New Monastery - Andrew Hill
4. Out To Lunch - Eric Dolphy
5. Dawn - Ornette Coleman
6. Broad Way Blues - Ornette Coleman
7. There Is The Bomb - Don Cherry
8. Steps - Cecil Taylor

Disc: 11
1. (Falling Like) Dominoes - Donald Byrd
2. Angelina - Earl Klugh
3. Always There - Ronnie Laws
4. Freedom Is A Voice - Bobby McFerrin
5. Lady In My Life - Stanley Jordan
6. Never Said - Dianne Reeves
7. The Time Is Now - Eliane Elias
8. You Don't Know What Love Is - Rachelle Ferrell
9. I'll Take Les - John Scofield
10. I Can't Stand The Rain - Cassandra Wilson
11. Fistful Of Haggis - Charlie Hunter
12. Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia) - Us3

Disc: 12
1. Beatrice - Joe Henderson
2. Nostrand And Fulton - Freddie Hubbard/Woddy Shaw
3. Lonnie's Lament - McCoy Tyner
4. Red Mask - Tony Williams
5. Song From The Old Country - Don Pullen/George Adams
6. Bish Bash - Benny Green
7. Lines & Spaces - Joe Lovano
8. Well, You Needn't - Gonzalo Rubalcaba
9. Not Yet - Javon Jackson
10. I Love Paris - Jacky Terrasson
11. Miss D'Meena - Greg Osby

Disc: 13
1. Maiden Voyage - Dianne Reeves/Geri Allen
2. Un Poco Loco - Jacky Terrasson Trio
3. Tom Thumb - John Scofield
4. Joshua Fit the Battle Ob Jerico - Cassandra Wilson
5. Siete Ocho - Bob Belden/Tim Hagans
6. You've Changed - Marcus Printup
7. Hum Drum Blues - Holly Cole
8. 2300 Skidoo - Geoff Keezer
9. Song For My Father - Renee Rosnes
10. Tanganyika Dance - Kurt Elling
11. Soul Lament - Fareed Haque
12. Evidence - Ron Carter/T.S. Monk
13. Una Mas - Eliane Elias

Disc: 14
1. Little B's Poem - Kevin Eubanks
2. Recado Bossa Nova - Gonzalo Rubalcaba
3. Omega - New Stars
4. Cristo Redentor - Bobby Watson/Jack Walrath
5. Inner Urge - Kevin Hays Trio
6. Love Bug - Reuben Wilson
7. Good Old Days - Joe Lovano/Wallace Roney/Geri Allen
8. Spellbound - Detroit Generation
9. Move Your Hand - Lonnie Smith/Us3 Horns