Definitive Joe Henderson

Joe Henderson | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 24, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Umvd Labels
• ASIN: B00006IQOO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #154,469 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

As a member of the Blue Note roster during the 1960s, Joe Henderson was recognized as a solid hard-bop tenor saxophonist and composer--a team player appreciated as much for his contributions to his label mates' albums as for his own recordings. One of the big stories in jazz during the '90s was his transformation into a beloved, best-selling tenor master via the handsomely produced, brilliantly promoted album tributes to Billy Strayhorn, Miles Davis, and Antonio Carlos Jobim that he recorded for Verve. Staging a kind of battle of the eras (with only one track from the '70s or '80s), The Definitive Joe Henderson samples both the Blue Note years (which teams Henderson with such luminaries as Lee Morgan, McCoy Tyner, and Kenny Dorham) and Verve years (which features the likes of Herbie Hancock, John Scofield, and Dave Holland, and includes the tenorist's only big band outing). While Henderson's voice on the latter tracks is deeper, sparer, and more lyrical--his unaccompanied reading of "Lush Life" is luminous—the tuneful and deep-digging Blue Note classics such as "Mode for Joe" and "Inner Urge" still carry the day. --Lloyd Sachs

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A disputable selection, October 6, 2011

By 

Bertrand Vermeer (Netherlands, Europe) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Definitive Joe Henderson (Audio CD)

It is obvious that, when presenting a selection of the recordings of a musician, there must be made difficult decisions. But in this case I'm not content with the outcome. The two by far best recordings are missing: 'Our Thing' and 'In 'n Out'.

That makes for only four stars in the rating, in combination with the inclusion of Hendersons 80- and 90-th recordings, that don't belong to his strongest performances. It seems that music-making became, in that phase of his career, too easy for this highly musical talented artist: the positive tension and originality faded away, in the same way as my concentration and fascination while listening.

May be there exists another compilation of Hendersons work that included his finest recordings as mentioned: in that case I must recall this review and refer to the alternative.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The definition of "definitive", October 16, 2010

By 

Eric C. Sedensky "late-to-jazz musician" (Madison, AL, US) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Definitive Joe Henderson (Audio CD)

I bought this recording because I wanted to hear Joe Henderson play one of his own tunes, Recorda-Me, a song we were studying in one of my jazz music classes. And of course, the Recorda-Me track is excellent: a brilliant study in improvisation and creativity. But what really surprised and delighted me about this recording was the incredible depth and variety of the rest of the music. Oftentimes, a music buyer will pick up a recording that is called "definitive", only to find that it seems as if the artist (or record company) was merely chucking together a bunch of songs to make a few more dollars without doing any real work. This is not the case with this recording. Every track is a gem and every track breaks away in a different direction and carries a different feel from the previous tracks. The collection of backing musicians is awesome, with the likes of Kenny Dorham, McCoy Tyner, Lee Morgan, Bobby Hutcherson, Cedar Walton, Christian McBride, and many other big names, all making an appearance (another advantage of having songs from two of the biggest labels in jazz assembled on one recording). And the collection of songs runs the gamut too, from the Latin style Recorda-Me, to the modal Milestones (a personal favorite), to some big band Strayhorn tunes, and on. This look at Joe Henderson really is definitive and has captured his diverse moods and talents in a way that few other recordings have. I recommend this work to any jazz fan, all saxophone fans, and any other music lover looking to add something soothing, warm, and satisfying to their music collection.