Customer Reviews

Midnight Oil

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At first glance, you might expect this to be another one of those Prestige Records 'blowing sessions' in which Kenny Burrell took part so frequently. Burrell, after all, is the only 'big name' in the front line on this album. But the first few notes should dispel any such notions. This date, after all, features the elegant swing of pianist Hank Jones - who was a far less frequent participant in such sessions - and a great performance by drummer Charlie Persip, who is really actively interacting with the other musicians rather than laying down a steady groove the way Art Taylor frequently did in a similar setting. And that unusual front line of Jerome Richardson on flute, Jimmy Cleveland on trombone and Burrell on guitar offers very unusual timbres and tonalities, with lots of space. This just doesn't sound like your garden-variety hard bop date. As for the leader, the great Eric Dolphy once referred to flute master Richardson as his "secret teacher", and Richardson walks all over Dolphy, at least on this particular axe. Richardson approaches the flute with a focus on tone and on swing and plays with intelligence and without any sentimentality or superficial prettiness. Surprisingly, however, it's Richardson's one turn on tenor sax here that most reminds one of Dolphy. Without Dolphy's chops on reeds, Richardson nevertheless plays this particular axe with a slightly strangulated, vocal-like approach that echoes Dolphy's trademark sound on the alto. All in all, 'Midnight Oil' is an interesting date that only loses a star for its brevity. Everytime I listen to this album, and it seems to be finding a new musical voice, it ends in mid-musical thought.

Multi-instrumentalist Jerome Richardson's 1958 session "Midnight Oil" smolders nicely. On this session Richardson primarily plays flute (and tenor sax on the first track "Minorally"), and he is joined by a stellar band of Jimmy Cleveland on trombone (who sits out on the last tune "Lyric"), Hank Jones on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Joe Benjamin on bass and Charlie Persip on drums. Don't burn a lot of cash for "Midnight Oil," but if you can find it cut-out like I did, it's a worthwhile investment.