Hank Jones & Frank Wess – “All Or Nothing At All”

Hank Jones & Frank Wess – “A Hankerin’”

Hank Jones & Frank Wess – “You Made A Good Move”

From “Hank and Frank” : 2006 : Lineage Records

The term “jazz legend” gets tossed around pretty loosely these days, but there is little doubt that the great Hank Jones is deserving of the title.  He was named an NEA Jazz Master in 1989 (full list here), received the National Medal of the Arts in 2008 and was honored with a lifetime achievement Grammy award in 2009.  Unlike his more high profile brothers (trumpeter Thad and drummer Elvin), Hank Jones played the role of sideman to perfection for most of his career.  It was not until much later in life that he began to make a name for himself as a successful headliner.  The NY Times reported that he was planning a tour of Europe when he passed away on March 17th at the age of 91.

Hank Jones and the horn player Frank Wess first played together in the 1950′s and reunited in 2006 for the excellent “Hank and Frank” recording.  The album features a stellar lineup of players and stands as both an excellent introduction and a fine tribute to the skills of one of jazz’s great pianists.

For more on Hank Jones, check out Jazz Times excellent feature article on him from January of 2009.

Players:
Hank Jones – Piano
Frank Wess – Tenor and Flute
Ilya Lushtak – Guitar
John Webber – Bass
Mickey Roker – Drums

Ahmed Abdul-Malik – “Out Of Nowhere”

Ahmed Abdul-Malik – “African Bossa Nova”

Ahmed Abdul-Malik – “Communication”

From “Sounds of Africa” : 1962 : New Jazz NJLP 8282

“Sounds of Africa” is a funky and soulful affair that adds African rhythms to what is essentially a hard bop sound.  Ahmed Abdul-Malik’s bass is front and center on most of the album and he even plays the oud on a few of the tracks (he makes a  brief appearance on that instrument as part of Coltrane’s band during their legendary 1961 stint at the Village Vanguard).  Abdul-Malik will always be best known for his work with Thelonious Monk in the late 1950′s (“Misterioso, “Thelonious in Action”, “Live at the Five Spot Discovery!”), but he also has a nice set of solo albums from the early 60′s on the New Jazz label that showcase his compositional skills and superb chops as a leader of his own groups.

Players:

On Out of Nowhere:

Tommy Turrentine (tp)
Bilal Abdurrahman (cl, per)
Eric Dixon (ts)
Calo Scott (cello)
Ahmed Abdul-Malik (b)
Andrew Cyrille (d)

On African Bossa Nova & Communication:

Richard Williams (tp)
Rupert Alleyne (fl)
Bilal Abdurrahman (cl, darubeka)
Edwin Steede (as)
Taft Chandler (ts)
Calo Scott (cello, vln)
Ahmed Abdul-Malik (b, oud)
Rudy Collins (d)
Chief Bay (African d)
Montego Joe (cga, bgo)

Steve Reid – Lions of Judah

Steve Reid – Long Time Back

From “Nova” : 1976 : Mustevic Sound MS2001

The great jazz drummer Steve Reid passed away April 12th at the age of 66.  He had recorded with everyone from Miles Davis and James Brown to Fela Kuti and Sun Ra.  His most famous drumming gig was probably on Dancing in the Streets with Martha Reeves & The Vandellas.  Soon after that recording he became the drummer for the house band at the famed Apollo Theatre, which at the time was led by Quincy Jones.  In the 1960′s and 70′s he recorded some great jazz records with the likes of Freddie Hubbard, Jackie McLean and Horace Silver.

His album “Nova” was released on his own independent Mustevic Sound label and features a group of players billed as “The Legendary Jazz Brotherhood” so you know they can play.  It is an amazing mix of the avant-garde, funk and soul-jazz and is a wonderful listen for fans of just about any genre of modern jazz.

Jazz Times published a great profile on Steve Reid a couple years back that can be found here.

Players:
Joe Rigby – Saxophones
Ahmed Abdullah – Trumpet
Les Walker – Organ, Piano
Richard Williams – Bass
Steve Reid – Drums