Herbie Hancock Archives - JAZZ IMPRESSIONS

Routes: A Jazz Impressions Podcast – Episode 7

What links the ambient jazz of Bennie Maupin’s ‘Past + Present = Future’ and the dusty grooves of DJ Krush’s ‘Dig This Vibe’? What is the best soundtrack to getting probed by aliens? And what is the French version of the Mafia? Find out all this and more in this abstract episode of the podcast – along with more of Ollie’s flawless impersonations of instrumental jazz.

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Tracklists below (SPOILERS!)

Cannonball Adderley – The Black Messiah

The year before pianist George Duke featured on Frank Zappa’s The Grand Wazoo, he recorded two solo albums and spent the best part of the year playing in the Cannonball Adderley Quintet. If Zappa was Duke’s mentor in all things rock, Cannonball was his teacher in jazz and soul. Joining Adderley’s Quintet gave the young Duke an opportunity to develop not only as a performer, but also as a composer and arranger. In the summer of 1971, Cannonball and his band recorded a live album at The Troubadour club in West Hollywood, Los Angeles. The album was named after its title track, a composition by Duke, and was released later that year as a double album on Capitol Records.

Andrew Hill – MC

Idris Muhammad only recorded one date with the great pianist/composer/teacher Andrew Hill (last heard from on Jazz Impressions on Bobby Hutcherson’s Dialogue (1965)) and it nearly never saw the light of day. Many of Hill’s 1960s Blue Note recordings were shelved by the commercially-minded Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff, and although 1968’s Grass Roots was released at the time, a “first draft” recorded 4 months earlier sat in the vaults until the CD release in 2000. The quality of these unissued sessions tells you as much about Blue Note as the albums they actually released, if not more.

Freddie Hubbard – Red Clay

Holding the world record for the most recording sessions of any jazz bassist in history (2,221 as of 2015), Ron Carter has provided some of the world’s greatest bass lines: Joe Henderson’s ‘Power to the People’ (1969), Alice Coltrane’s ‘Blue Nile’ (1970) and Freddie Hubbard’s ‘Red Clay’ (1970).

Joe Henderson – Power To The People

From two great tenor sax players to another, today’s post focusses on Joe Henderson’s politically titled track ‘Power To The People’ from his album of the same name, released on Milestone in 1969. Mainly compromised of Henderson originals, this album was the first in a string of political albums Henderson released in the late 60s and early 70s which were inspired by an increased awareness of black issues and the Black Power movement which reached its peak at the beginning of the 70s.

Miles Davis – Black Satin

Following on from Herbie Hancock’s jazz-robotics on ‘Rain Dance‘, we turn to another album that was Miles ahead of its time, and features three of the musicians who would go on to appear on Sextant: Herbie Hancock (keys), Bennie Maupin (bass clarinet) and Billy Hart (drums).

Herbie Hancock – Rain Dance

Happy International Jazz Day 2020! After a spell of beautiful spring sunshine, the British weather has gone back to its usual rainy habits. What better way therefore to celebrate with another Herbie track released a couple of years prior to his funky ‘Hang Up Your Hang Ups’.

Herbie Hancock – Hang Up Your Hang Ups

In terms of musical revolutions, Herbie Hancock going electric rivals Bob Dylan at Newport and Rebecca Black’s ‘Friday’ for the title of most controversial industry moment.

Devadip Carlos Santana – Love Theme From “Spartacus”

Our last post focussed on Santana’s heady fusion offering ‘Going Home’. Now we fast-forward eight years to an underrated gem of the Santana catalogue, his version of Alex North’s ‘Love Theme From “Spartacus”‘ from his 1980 album The Swing Of Delight.

The Ahmad Jamal Trio – Dolphin Dance

Five years after Herbie Hancock set sail with his 1965 masterpiece Maiden Voyage, another great pianist released a masterpiece of his own. That pianist was the influential Ahmad Jamal and the album is The Awakening, released in 1970 on Impulse!, which contains a beautiful version of Hancock’s track ‘Dolphin Dance’.