Blue Note's Greatest Sessions

Product Description:

Personnel: Herbie Hancock (piano); Jerry Dodgion (alto flute); George Coleman (tenor saxophone); Freddie Hubbard (trumpet); Thad Jones (flugelhorn); Peter Phillips (bass trombone); Ron Carter (bass instrument); Mickey Roker, Tony Williams (drums).

Recording information: Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey (1964 - 1968).

At the same time that he was gaining prominence as a member of Miles Davis's second great quintet, Herbie Hancock embarked on an adventurous solo career, kicking off with a number of superb recordings for Blue Note. Three of those albums--1964's EMPYREAN ISLES, 1965's MAIDEN VOYAGE, and 1968's SPEAK LIKE A CHILD--are collected on Blue Note's GREAT SESSIONS box, providing an excellent cross-section of Hancock's early work.

The albums feature playing from the finest musicians on the jazz scene of the 1960s, including Ron Carter, Tony Williams, Freddie Hubbard, and George Coleman, and also showcase Hancock's fine compositions. With their mix of groove-based jams, lyrical modal flights, and carefully orchestrated, sometimes unusual arrangements (especially on SPEAK LIKE A CHILD), these three discs offer up some of the best and most satisfying post-bop of the era.