Review
by Thom Jurek
Hank Crawford's '60s sides for Atlantic rightfully established him among the preeminent soul-jazz saxophonists. For pure phrasing and feel, Crawford was in a class by himself. When Creed Taylor kicked off CTI in 1970, he brought Crawford on board immediately. This date from 1973 -- one of eight cut between 1971 and 1978 -- is Crawford's strongest for the label and one of the better records of his career, though jazz purists would never agree. Produced and arranged by Bob James with a smoking cast that includes Joe Beck, Idris Muhammad, Richard Tee, and Bob Cranshaw, as well as a brass section of crack New York studio cats, Wildflower is the album Crawford had been trying to make since 1971. Recorded in two days, the band provides a slick, right, colorful platform for Crawford's melodic improvisation that is rooted in the art of the phrase. One long note held on "Mr. Blues" or a series of carefully articulated verbal feelings, such as on "Corazon," may not step out of the groove, but make it both a deeper blue and as wide as the human heart's complexity. On the title cut, with a vocal chorus in the background, Crawford turns a pop melody into a torrent of raw emotionalism and savvy groove-conscious glory. James' charts are big but never obtrusive; they point in one direction only, to bring that huge soul sound out of Crawford's alto -- check out the way the melody line breaks down into the solo in Stevie Wonder's "You've Got It Bad Girl," or the backbeat arpeggio exercises in "Good Morning Heartache." This record is so hot the only soul-jazz it can be compared to in both its contemporary form and funky feel are Grover Washington's Feels So Good and Mister Magic issues. In other words, Crawford's Wildflower is indispensable as a shining example of '70s groove jazz at its best.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/wildflower-mw0000188013
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Reseña
por Thom Jurek
Las bandas de Hank Crawford para Atlantic en los 60 le situaron entre los saxofonistas de soul-jazz más destacados. En cuanto a fraseo y sentimiento, Crawford era único en su clase. Cuando Creed Taylor puso en marcha CTI en 1970, incorporó a Crawford inmediatamente. Este disco de 1973, uno de los ocho grabados entre 1971 y 1978, es el mejor de Crawford para el sello y uno de los mejores de su carrera, aunque los puristas del jazz nunca estarían de acuerdo. Producido y arreglado por Bob James con un elenco de lujo que incluye a Joe Beck, Idris Muhammad, Richard Tee y Bob Cranshaw, así como una sección de metales del crack de los estudios neoyorquinos, Wildflower es el álbum que Crawford llevaba intentando hacer desde 1971. Grabado en dos días, la banda proporciona una plataforma hábil, correcta y colorida para la improvisación melódica de Crawford, enraizada en el arte de la frase. Una nota larga sostenida en "Mr. Blues" o una serie de sentimientos verbales cuidadosamente articulados, como en "Corazon", pueden no salirse del surco, pero lo hacen a la vez de un azul más profundo y tan amplio como la complejidad del corazón humano. En el corte que da título al disco, con un coro vocal de fondo, Crawford convierte una melodía pop en un torrente de crudo emocionalismo y sabia gloria consciente del groove. Los charts de James son grandes pero nunca intrusivos; apuntan en una sola dirección, sacar ese enorme sonido soul del contralto de Crawford -- echa un vistazo a la forma en que la línea melódica se descompone en el solo de "You've Got It Bad Girl" de Stevie Wonder, o los ejercicios de arpegio de backbeat en "Good Morning Heartache". Este disco es tan caliente que el único soul-jazz con el que se puede comparar tanto en su forma contemporánea como en su sensación funky son los temas Feels So Good y Mister Magic de Grover Washington. En otras palabras, Wildflower de Crawford es indispensable como ejemplo brillante del mejor groove jazz de los 70.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/wildflower-mw0000188013
Tracks:
1 - Corazon - 6:03
2 - Wildflower - 3:17
3 - Mr. Blues - 6:05
4 - You've Got It Bad Girl - 9:38
5 - Good Morning Heartache - 6:09
Credits:
Alto Saxophone – Hank Crawford
Arranged By, Conductor – Bob James
Bass – Bob Cranshaw, Joe Beck
Design [Album] – Bob Ciano
Drums – Idris Muhammad
Engineer – Rudy Van Gelder
French Horn – Brooks Tillotson, Jimmy Buffington
Guitar – Joe Beck
Lacquer Cut By – RVG*
Percussion – Arthur Jenkins, David Friedman, George Devens, Phil Kraus, Ralph MacDonald, Rubens Bassini
Photography By – Alen MacWeeney
Piano, Organ – Richard Tee
Producer – Creed Taylor
Trombone – Paul Faulise, Wayne Andre
Trombone, Bass Trombone – Tony Studd
Trumpet – Alan Rubin, Marvin Stamm
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Bernie Glow
Voice – Hilda Harris, Maeretha Stewart, Randy Peyton, Bill Eaton*
Label: Kudu – KU-15
Released: 1973
Genre: Jazz, Funk / Soul
Style: Jazz-Funk
https://www.discogs.com/release/633122-Hank-Crawford-Wildflower
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