CD1
1. I Was Doing All Right
2. You've Changed
3. Society Red
4. Landslide
5. Modal Mood
6. I Want More
7. The End of a Love Affair
8. You Said It
9. Blue Gardenia
10. Soul Sister
CD2
1. Where Are You?
2. Cheese Cake
3. Love For Sale
4. The Backbone
5. Soy Califa
6. Our Love Is Here to Stay
7. Stairway to the Stars
8. A Night in Tunisia
9. Tanya
CD3
1. Kong Neptune
2. Hanky Panky
3. Devilette
4. Jodi
5. Lady Iris B
6. Le Coiffeur
7. Flick of a Trick
8. Shiny Stockings
9. Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)?
Dexter Gordon - Tenor sax
Freddie Hubbard - Trumpet (tracks I/1-3, III/2-5)
Horace Parlan - Piano (tracks I/1-3)
George Tucker - Bass (tracks I/1-3)
Al Harewood - Drums (tracks I/1-3)
Kenny Drew - Piano (tracks I/4-7, II/9, III/1)
Paul Chambers - Bass (tracks I/4-7)
Philly Joe Jones - Drums (tracks I/4-7, 9)
Tommy Turrentine - Trumpet (track I/8)
Sir Charles Thompson - Piano (track I/8)
Al Lucas - Bass (track I/8)
Willie Bobo - Drums (track I/8)
Dave Burns - trumpet (track I/9)
Sonny Clark - Piano (tracks I/9, II/1-5)
Ron Carter - Bass (track I/9)
Sonny Stitt - Tenor sax (track I/10)
Don Patterson - Organ (track I/10)?
Paul Weeden - Guitar (track I/10)
Billy James - Drums (track I/10)
Butch Warren- Bass (tracks II/1-5)
Billy Higgins - Drums (tracks II/1-5, III/2-10)
Bud Powell - Piano (tracks II/6-8)
Pierre Michelot - Bass (tracks II/6-8)
Kenny Clarke - Drums (tracks II/6-8)
Donald Byrd - Trumpet (tracks II/9, III/1)
Niels-Henning
Orsted Pedersen - Bass (tracks II/9, III/1)
Art Taylor - Drums (tracks II/9, III/1)
Barry Harris - Piano (tracks III/2-10)
Bob Cranshaw - Bass (tracks III/2, 4-10)
Ben Tucker - Bass (track III/3)
Bobby Hutcherson - Vibes (tracks III/6-10)
Dexter Gordon had a good education. He developed his
tenor sax style in the bands of such leaders as Lionel Hampton, Billy
Eckstine and Tadd Dameron. He was strongly influenced by Lester Young
but, in his turn, he influenced such major tenorists as Sonny Rollins
and John Coltrane. So one can only welcome a three-CD compilation
entitled "Best of", even though it is only the best of the
recordings he made for Blue Note between 1961 and 1965. This means
that the collection leaves out important earlier and later work, including
his famous tenor duels with Wardell Gray.
Nevertheless, this album substantiates the belief that
Dexter was a significant tenorist who somehow combined the dexterity
of bebop with the more relaxed style of swing. Every track is a testament
to his abilities as a fluent, melodic improviser who often stayed
mainly in the middle and lower registers of his instrument. Perhaps
he lacked some of the adventurous spirit of Sonny Rollins in the choice
of material, as these recordings here capture him playing mostly well-worn
tunes from the Great American Songbook, plus some original compositions.
Although his tone was not as sweet as that of (say) Stan Getz., he
produced a sound which could be mellow as well as biting. And Dexter
often reached that pinnacle of the jazzman's art: where an improvisation
becomes a new melody in itself.
The 28 tracks here illustrate the main reasons for
Dexter's popularity as well as the characteristics which distinguished
him as a top-flight saxophonist. Blue Gardenia, for example,
is a fine example of his relaxed yet precise playing, while the following
Soul Sister exemplifies his down-home qualities with a bouncy
waltz which moves into a loping 4/4. Dexter's playing on this latter
track also includes some of those quotations with which he salted
his solos.
In contrast, his version of Our Love is Here to
Stay exhibits his bebop credentials: producing spirited clusters
of notes at high speed. And his own compositions - like the bluesy
Society Red and the catchy Le Coiffeur - testify to
his creativity.
The varied personnels show how comfortable Gordon could
be in different contexts. Such pianists as Kenny Drew, Sonny
Clark and Bud Powell contribute refined solos, while drummers like
Billy Higgins and Kenny Clarke thrust the music along (notably on
Love for Sale and A Night in Tunisia). However, drummer
Al Harewood gets on one's nerves with his repetitive clicks on such
tracks as I Was Doing All Right.
Another slight annoyance are the sleeve-notes - haltingly
translated from French, leading to such sentences as "One may
describe the 'Gordon style' as a deep tone gloomy sun, and the Blue
Note recordings of this great musician bear witness to special times
in the history of jazz". Although Don Patterson is listed as
playing the organ on Soul Sister, it sounds more like a piano
to me. And why do two of the photos on the sleeve depict Roland Kirk
instead of Dexter Gordon?
However, with more than 200 minutes of almost unvaryingly
excellent music, this album is well worth getting if you can afford
it.
Tony Augarde
CD Reviews
Blue Note 5099969538520
