Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage

In the mid-'60s, a distinctive postbop style evolved among the younger musicians associated with Blue Note, a new synthesis that managed to blend the cool spaciousness of Miles Davis's modal period, some of the fire of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, and touches of the avant-garde's group interaction. Maiden Voyage is a masterpiece of the school, with Hancock's enduring compositions like "Maiden Voyage" and "Dolphin Dance" mingling creative tension and calm repose with strong melodies and airy, suspended harmonies that give form to his evocative sea imagery. Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard was at a creative peak, stretching his extraordinary technique to the limits in search of a Coltrane-like fluency on the heated "Eye of the Storm," while the underrated tenor saxophonist George Coleman adds a developed lyricism to the session. --Stuart Broomer Amazon.com essential recording

 Great jazz album
Great jazz album from the '60s. This one belongs high up in the pantheon of jazz albums that include Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, John Coltrane's Blue Train, and Speak No Evil by Wayne Shorter. If you feel that these other albums are essiential jazz listening, then you will certainly enjoy 'Maiden Voyage' by Herbie Hancock, and you will see why people still rave about this album today.
If you are an experienced jazz fan then you will most definately already have an opinion on this album, but if you are just getting into jazz then this album should certainly be on your 'to buy' list. Firm five stars from me! July 11, 2007

 Good, but Empyrean Isles is so much better...
What we have here is an album that fails to live up to the standards that the first two and last tracks set. I'd rather hear Miles Davis' version of Little One found on E.S.P. - this one just plods along for a seeming eternity. So does Survival of the Fittest. Both okay songs - neither of them are bad, that's for sure - but they could've seen to be shorter. That's why I don't see Maiden Voyage as being on the same level of Empyrean Isles. It's just not.
Now for the good news. The three well-known pieces on this album make it worth the buy. The title track is the token easygoing blues groover (i.e. Watermelon Man and Canteloupe Island) with a simple theme that's hard to get out of your head nonetheless. Next up is the frenetic Eye of the Hurricane, which provides a perfect contrast. Third and final is the quiet ballad Dolphin Dance, a gorgeous thing that rules as much as the other two I mentioned. And that Hancock covers such a wide range of emotions on this record is another point towards it.
So I like this album, and like many others this was my first exposure to Herbie Hancock. But he's put out at least one better record, arguably two (Headhunters also makes the list). May 26, 2007

 Fantastic Voyage would be closer to the truth..
I feel the salty smell of the sea when I listen to this album.

My family and myself heard an interpretation of the title
track in a cafe, in a small town on the "Pacific Coast Frontier".
The wave of the melody swept over me like the evening fog.

Absolutely amazing.. November 6, 2006

 Review is simple GET IT!!
Why go to a lot of trouble to discuss in depth one of the greatest jazz albums ever crafted?

Well, let me just say:

If you consider yourself a Jazz Fan. . .then you NEED this album.

It is not the ONLY ALBUM . . .or anything like that. . .but this continues to be an influence on anyone serious about jazz.

It is one of the twenty greatest jazz albums of all time.

Chris Tune September 6, 2006

 I Can't Help Myself...
"The emperor has no clothes!" There, I said it - finally. I have been wanting to say that about Rudy Van Gelder's stereo recordings for quite some time now. His stereo recordings lack ambiance and have very small soundstages with no depth. This should come as no surprise since most were recorded in his parents living room, but even those that were recorded in a proper studio are no better. Of all the jazz available on CD today, the Blue Note label represents the bottom of the sonic barrel. That's too bad since Blue Note owns most of the greatest jazz performances ever put to tape.

This album was recorded in a real studio, but it suffers the same problems as most of Rudy's other stereo recordings. To make matters worse, it has distortion that isn't normally present in RVG's work, perhaps it's due to problems related to the tape's magnetic coating flaking off. Suffice it to say this is no audiophile quality CD.

All ranting about the sound quality aside, this is an excellent jazz performance. I don't need to tell you how good it is - just read all the other reviews. August 29, 2006

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