Horace Silver • The Tokyo Blues

 

Review by Steve Leggett
Following a series of concert dates in Tokyo late in 1961 with his quintet, Horace Silver returned to the U.S. with his head full of the Japanese melodies he had heard during his visit, and using those as a springboard, he wrote four new pieces, which he then recorded at sessions held on July 13 and 14, 1962, along with a version of Ronnell Bright's little known ballad "Cherry Blossom." One would naturally assume the resulting LP would have a Japanese feel, but that really isn't the case. Using Latin rhythms and the blues as a base, Silver's Tokyo-influenced compositions fit right in with the subtle cross-cultural but very American hard bop he'd been doing all along. Using his usual quintet (Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Junior Cook on tenor sax, Gene Taylor on bass) with drummer Joe Harris (he is listed as John Harris, Jr. for this set) filling in for an ailing Roy Brooks), Silver's compositions have a light, airy feel, with plenty of space, and no one used that space better at these sessions than Cook, whose tenor sax lines are simply wonderful, adding a sturdy, reliable brightness. The centerpieces are the two straight blues, "Sayonara Blues" and "The Tokyo Blues," both of which have a delightfully natural flow, and the building, patient take on Bright's "Cherry Blossom," which Silver takes pains to make sure sounds like a ballad and not a barely restrained minor-key romp. The bottom line is that The Tokyo Blues emerges as a fairly typical Silver set from the era and not as a grandiose fusion experiment welding hard bop to Japanese melodies. That might have been interesting, certainly, but Silver obviously assimilated things down to a deeper level before he wrote these pieces, and they feel like a natural extension of his work rather than an experimental detour.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-tokyo-blues-mw0000081525

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Reseña de Steve Leggett
Tras una serie de conciertos en Tokio a finales de 1961 con su quinteto, Horace Silver regresó a los Estados Unidos con la cabeza llena de las melodías japonesas que había escuchado durante su visita, y utilizando éstas como trampolín, escribió cuatro nuevas piezas, que luego grabó en sesiones celebradas el 13 y 14 de julio de 1962, junto con una versión de la poco conocida balada de Ronnell Bright "Cherry Blossom". Uno supondría naturalmente que el LP resultante tendría un aire japonés, pero realmente no es el caso. Utilizando los ritmos latinos y el blues como base, las composiciones de Silver con influencia de Tokio encajan perfectamente con el sutil hard bop transcultural pero muy americano que había estado haciendo todo el tiempo. Utilizando su quinteto habitual (Blue Mitchell en la trompeta, Junior Cook en el saxo tenor, Gene Taylor en el bajo) con el baterista Joe Harris (que aparece como John Harris, Jr. para este conjunto) sustituyendo a un enfermo Roy Brooks), las composiciones de Silver tienen una sensación ligera y aireada, con mucho espacio, y nadie utilizó ese espacio mejor en estas sesiones que Cook, cuyas líneas de saxo tenor son simplemente maravillosas, añadiendo un brillo robusto y fiable. Las piezas centrales son los dos blues directos, "Sayonara Blues" y "The Tokyo Blues", ambos con un flujo deliciosamente natural, y la construcción, la paciente toma de "Cherry Blossom" de Bright, que Silver se esfuerza por asegurarse de que suena como una balada y no como un retozo en clave menor apenas contenido. El resultado final es que The Tokyo Blues emerge como un conjunto bastante típico de Silver de la época y no como un grandioso experimento de fusión que suelda el hard bop a las melodías japonesas. Eso podría haber sido interesante, ciertamente, pero Silver obviamente asimiló las cosas a un nivel más profundo antes de escribir estas piezas, y se sienten como una extensión natural de su trabajo más que un desvío experimental.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-tokyo-blues-mw0000081525

Tracklist:
1 - Too Much Sake - 6:43
2 - Sayonara Blues - 12:10
3 - The Tokyo Blues - 7:36
4 - Cherry Blossom - 6:08
5 - Ah! So - 7:07


Credits:
    Bass – Gene Taylor
    Creative Director [Reissue] – Gordon H Jee
    Design [Cover] – Reid Miles
    Design [Reissue] – Amanda Wray
    Drums – John Harris, Jr.
    Liner Notes – Atsuhiko Kawabata
    Liner Notes [Reissue] – Bob Blumenthal
    Photography By [Cover And Liner] – Francis Wolff
    Piano – Horace Silver
    Producer – Alfred Lion
    Recorded By, Remastered By [2008] – Rudy Van Gelder
    Reissue Producer – Michael Cuscuna
    Tenor Saxophone – Junior Cook
    Trumpet – Blue Mitchell

Notes:
Recorded At – Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Originally recorded on July 13 (#2 & 3) and 14 (#1, 4, 5), 1962 at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Originally released in 1962 on Blue Note BST 84110.

Label: Blue Note ‎– 50999 2 65146 2 8, Blue Note ‎– 65146
Series: RVG Edition –
Released: 24 Feb 2009
Genre: Jazz
Style: Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Piano Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/The-Horace-Silver-Quintet-The-Tokyo-Blues/release/12363552

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