Customer Reviews

Complete Blue Note Recordings

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I love this boxed set of recordings by Herbie Nichols. Nobody out there has ever sounded like him, either before or after his death from leukemia in 1963. That is a tribute in itself. He has a completely original approach to composition and playing the piano that is unduplicatable.
I know that others have compared him to Monk, but this is superficial, in my mind. Herbie's tunes all have a classical feeling to them, even when he is playing "out of the box." The notes flow together like a classical piece, but most of his tunes are played with at least 2 or 3 notes out of the scale. Don't get me wrong, all of this music is distinctly recognizable as jazz, and great jazz! It feels to me like the compositions float above the key he is playing in, but at the same time there is a definable melody to each piece. The tunes all swing, many of them are catchy melodies, and I find myself smiling often while listening. It's just amazing!
It's very difficult to describe the feel of his stuff, it's like eating an exotic fruit that only exists on one small island in the whole world, then trying to describe the taste.
I sense that Herbie knows exactly what he is doing and where he is going with each note. This is music that pushes the envelope, but which at the same time is structured in a way that is pleasing to listen to. In short, it's just genius!
I want to emphasize that Herbie's music is not "avant garde" in the sense of being all over the place. These are compositions that are well-thought out, often brilliant, often surprising. Herbie's music generates a mood and a feeling that simply cannot be duplicated by anyone else. I find myself sometimes, while listening, just reveling in his unique tapestries.
All 3 CD's are excellent, there is no drop-off from one to the next. There are alternate takes on some of the tunes, but well worth listening to.
All of the music on these CD's is jazz trio, with Al McKibbon on bass and Max Roach / Art Blakey on drums, recorded in 1955. They sound great together!
This boxed set goes on my list of all-time great sessions in jazz. I can't emphasize enough the uniquely enjoyable quality of Herbie's music. Completely different, yet completely enjoyable. It's as simple as that.
If you are a jazz collector, or a serious lover of jazz trio music, this recording is absolutely essential.
In a world where "unique" is over-used, I can safely say that this guy is completely his own, never to be copied. An overlooked genius.

The ranks of fine jazz musicians who never received credit for their contributions during their lifetimes are unfortunately large. Herbie Nichols' life offers testimony to the fact that talent doesn't always dictate the course of a career. This wonderful pianist was all but ignored during his life. Fortunately, Blue Note recorded this set of music, which provides all of us the opportunity to hear what was missed the first time around.

Nichols' pieces revolve around subtle vamps, unexpected Monk-like angularities and dark, swirling melodies. While the influence of Monk is there, Herbie's music is completely his own, and like Monk, he crafted compositions that are unique, self-contained worlds. He just doesn't repeat himself. The music here is satisfying on each and every listening.

For a fine review of and comment on Herbie Nichols' life (and the difficulty of pursuing a life in jazz), pick up A.B. Spellman's book, "Four Lives in the Bebop Business."

Blue Note's recent release of this deluxe set marks a refreshing day for the jazz community. Nichols led a difficult life, compounded pothumoulsy by a relative (almost forceful) lack of recognition of his talents. This is one of my personal favorites, and implore you to purchase it. For a unique interpretation of bop, or to simply enjoy stunning and tasty musical genius, one cannot do without this one.

Flat out, Herbie Nichols was the greatest jazz pianist of the 1950s, and I'm very ashamed to admit that I never listened to the man until last autumn. A friend gave me the Blue Note set and the scales fell from my ears. Not Monk, not Powell, not Tristano. No one. But himself. Nichols created sounds with the space and beauty and passion and anger and sadness unlike any other sounds in jazz history, or music history. To listen to him is to be reborn.

"Sunday Stroll" is the most beautiful six minutes ever recorded.

To describe Herbie Nichols without comparisons to T. Monk would be nearly impossible- odd, even awkward melodies and uniquely dissonant chord structures are obviously characteristics of both of these great musicians. The differences, however,are just as profound. Herbie has a more European sensibility and a classical training and so comes off with a slightly more intellectual style. Fortunately, Herbie still swings solidly and technique never seems to overwhelm or displace his rhythmic intensity. Also, while Monk's tunes might be deceptively simple, Herbie makes no pretention toward simplicity- he draws as much from the modern classical composers as he does from the jazz canon and incorporates influences easily and seamlessly into a smart, cohesive style. Yet the most obvious characteristic common to these two is the sense of playfulness that goes into every phrase. It is not hard to imagine Herbie grinning in anticipation, wondering how the listener will react to each oddball melody or chord voicing as he plows forward, fragments of offbeat measures and angular tunefulness in his wake. This is an absolutely wonderful collection from a uniquely wonderful artist.

Herbie Nichols is one of the archetypal tragedies of jazz. Dead of leukemia at 44, he had left a legacy of compositions to rival Thelonious Monk's, and yet he is widely unknown.

Alfred Lion had the good sense to record him for Blue Note in a trio format, documenting many of his most outstanding compositions. He is sometimes categorised as a "post-bop" pianist and composer, although some of his most interesting pieces were composed during the early bebop era. As a player, his approach to the piano was witty and agile, perhaps less angular and dissonant than Monk, but no less unusual in its rhythmic and harmonic conception.

His imagination as a composer was vast, his musicality intense and vivid. Nichols' pieces observe the idiosyncrasies of the most powerful musical ideas in the jazz world of the time, but most significantly, transform them through a deeply personal conception of music. He plays with the listener's expectations so cleverly that the word "familiarity" ceases to have meaning.

Herbie Nichols was unable to earn a living from his music. Poignantly, his work is joyful and optimistic. "Step Tempest", recorded in May 1955, builds layer upon layer of contrapuntal complexity. The early passages are reminiscent of Bud Powell in their execution and Duke Ellington in their structure. But the solo that follows -if it is fair to describe it as such- is a soft, sinuous stream of chromatic notes, cautiously succeeding each other. "House Party Starting", from the August session of the same year, is underscored with dark, threatening tones.

Herbie Nichols is a giant and his recognition is long overdue. Buy this record today and do him justice by playing it loud to everybody.

I myself never heard of Herbie Nichols before 1998, but once I did I was appropriately impressed. His music seemed "easy" to listen to, but it wasn't; Nichols' melodies were angular, jutting against each other sideways rather than in a linear fashion. One of the other reviewers here expressed surprise that Nichols' music isn't better known, but great art is never very popular. Alfred Lion of Blue Note Records, who recorded these sessions, was amazed that they didn't sell well because he loved the music and believed in it. But don't take my word for it - get this album, as well as Buell Niedlinger's "Blue Chopsticks" and the Herbie Nichols Project's "Strange City" to hear one of the most original voices in jazz.

The liner notes to this box draw an analogy between Herbie Nichols, Thelonious Monk, and Andrew Hill -- three brilliant, individualistic pianist/composers who were heavily recorded by Blue Note founder Alfred Lion despite a lack of "commercial potential". Like Hill and Monk's tunes, each of Herbie's compositions has a very distinct personality, and they encompass a wide range of emotions and moods. They explore harmonies, rhythms and forms that were unorthodox in 1955 and still sound a little strange today. They range from "The Gig" (a humorous tongue-twister!) to the sinister, pounding chords of "Cro-Magnon Nights" and the upbeat Latin groove of "Brass Rings".

If you like piano trio music and/or Monk and are willing to try something off the beaten track, this box set is HIGHLY recommended.

In a class by himself, Herbie Nichols will first remind you of Monk, but keep listening and you'll soon hear a seamless rythmic flow and subtle melodic approach that seperate him from the older master. Tunes are often based around deceptively simple motivic/rythmic kernels, which are expanded upon patiently but not exhaustively, a departure from the prevalent 50's bop approach, and an anticipation some free jazz a decade later.

These recordings are truly priceless, not only for the piano work but for the drumming. Art Blakey and, on the later sessions, Max Roach are clearly enjoying their prominent roles in Nichols' compositional format. Stop reading and buy the set!

How is it that music so fresh, so inventive, and so complex and simple all at once goes almost unnoticed for so long! If CDs wore out the way LPs did, I would have to be buying this set again to replace my worn out versions! Anyone who appreciates Monk and Powell will treasure this set. Guaranteed.