Great material from one of the most influential saxophonists ever. Typical stuff from the legend of the "tender" sax....Dig it!
April 15, 2008 |  | Dex in a Happy Frame of Mind |  |
Though the wonderful Freddie Hubbard is on board, this album is all about Dexter Gordon and Horace Parlan. There is a cool, relaxed, even languid feel to it, but underneath the hip veneer there is an irrepressible feeling of joy. I believe this is due in part to Dexter himself, who was never afraid to toss in a few humerous quotes, or to trail happily at his own pace behind the beat, not to mention the man himself who could never be kept down, but I also think that a large part of the feel of this album is due to Horace Parlan. After all besides Dex and Freddie it is Horace and his trio that make up this group. Horace Parlan's was one of the great stories of jazz. A childhood bout with polio crippled his right hand but it couldn't cripple his spirit, infact it forced him to develope an individual voice on the piano. And while his unique and recognizable technique set him apart, it was his positive outlook and palpable joy in music that made his identity. It takes character to overcome adversity, but it takes spirit to thrive with wonder and to retain your love of life, and these were Parlan's gifts. In the sense that his music is always bathed in a happy tint, Parlan's music is somewhat like Horace Silver's, however he is closer to the individuality of Herbie Nichols than to the proto-funk of the other Horace. In any case "Doin' Allright" exhibits the jaunty, good-natured feel of Parlan's own albums (If you haven't heard it then do what it takes to obtain a copy of Parlan's masterpiece, "A Happy Frame of Mind"), but with the addition of the deep-throated romanticism of Dexter Gordon's tenor sax. Whatever words I use won't do justice to this vital, affirming music, so I'll just say if you're interested in listening to jazz that revels in the joy of living than this is for you.
July 30, 2007| | | Dexter Gordon Doin' Allright | |
I don't know if this a review of the cd as a product or an album. Either way a cd's a cd and an album is an album. This is groove orientated jazz. Kind of boring. If you want some crazy tenor sax ish check out pharoahe sanders "Thembi."
July 13, 2007It's no mistake that one of Dexter Gordon's albums was titled, "The Panther!" Gordon was one of the most sure-footed tenor saxophonists ever, and his art was in constructing flawlessly confident, piledriving solos full of swagger and grace.
Gordon never tried to be anything but a practitioner of straight-ahead mainstream jazz, a consummate professional. His horn playing is note perfect and crisp as the starch on his collar. On this album, he has a perfect foil in the brash, young trumpeter Freddie Hubbard.
The album starts rolling with the suave "I Was Doing Allright", and hits its stride with the originals, "For Regulars Only", and "Society Red".
My first exposure to Gordon was seeing a replay of his performance at the Maintenance Shop in Ames, Iowa in 1979--a performance that is still available on tape. Gordon, I remember, would acknowledge applause at the end of a tune by grinning and waggling his sax back and forth on its harness. He was fully aware that he was the best.
I would give the album five stars, but for the fact that the relaxed feel at times is almost laconic. It's swing to unwind by, from a player who anticipated Rollins and Coltrane, but never joined them in their free flights.
July 25, 2005Being that I'm a huge Dexter Gordon fan, I was extremely happy last summer when I found out that Blue Note was adding three more of Dex's classics to the RVG series. This session happened to be the first one I picked up and it actually turns out to be my favorite of the three (the other two are "Dexter Calling" and "One Flight Up"). The present session is the first one Dexter ever did for Blue Note and still ranks up with his best. The personnel includes the then young but amazing Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Horace Parlan on piano, George Tucker on bass, Al Harewood on drums,and of course, LTD himself. Hubbard and Gordon compliment each other perfectly, which explains why they ended up working together again a few more times in the future. The ensemble treat Gershwin's "I Was Doing All Right" in a very laid-back, relaxing manner which really shows off every member for all their worth. Dex's rendition of "You've Changed" to me qualifies as one of the best ballad performances ever recorded. Hubbard and Parlan both have nice solos here but it is truly Dex's showcase and he certainly makes the most of it. "For Regulars Only" and "Society Red" are two compelling Dexter originals. From listening to these awesome tracks, it is easy to see why they are still played quite often today. "It's You or No One" is nothing short of a flagwaver and swings like there's no tomorrow. Dex liked this version so much that it became a standard part of his performance repitoire and can be heard also on his 1976 "Homecoming" disc. Like most RVG editions, "Doin' Allright" also comes with two great extra tracks. "I Want More", one of Dex's best compositions from both his performance in "The Connection" and from his classic "Dexter Calling", is now heard here. It truly is a great version and it is interesting to contrast it with the equally awesome "Dexter Calling" version. The other extra track is an alternate take of "For Regulars Only" which really does not sound that bad in comparison to the master take. "Doin' Allright" is a spectacular session on every front that should be owned by every serious jazz fan!
March 26, 2005More reviews at Amazon.com ...
