Our Man in Paris [Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Dexter Gordon | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 5, 2003)
• Original Release Date: 1963
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: Blue Note Records
• ASIN: B0000AC8N4
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,507 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blue Note in Paris, August 7, 2003

By 

Michael B. Richman (Portland, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Man in Paris (Audio CD)

At first, Dexter Gordon's "Our Man in Paris" seems an unlikely choice for the RVG series, because Rudy Van Gelder didn't record it in the first place. Unlike most Blue Note albums which were recorded in Van Gelder's studios, first in Hackensack then Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, this one was recorded in Paris (5/23/63) by Claude Ermelin, as Dexter Gordon two years earlier had traded in his New York address for France. Maybe Mr. Van Gelder thought that through remastering, he could fix the minor sound deficiencies that had plagued an otherwise perfect album. Well, the new issue does sound fantastic! This date, featuring fellow expatriates Bud Powell and Kenny Clarke, along with Pierre Michelot, was originally supposed to feature Kenny Drew on piano, and a program of all new material penned by Gordon. Powell was called in at the last minute, but he wanted to only record standards on such short notice. In classic jazz fashion, a potential disaster turned into one of the most magical performances in the Blue Note catalog. Welcome back from Paris Dex, and Rudy thanks for adding your two francs.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A be-bop reunion, August 22, 2003

By 

G. Schramke (Vienna, Austria) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Man in Paris (Audio CD)

This session is a meeting between three of the most influential musicians of the forties (Dexter, Bud Powell and Kenny Clarke as "Americans in Paris"), completed by the great french bassist Pierre Michelot. At this really happy date the musicians decided to play tunes, that go back to the time, when those guys first gigged and recorded together, like Parker's "Scrapple from the Apple". But especially about Dexter's playing it can be said, that he had modified his style during the sixties, absorbing ideas from musicians, who originally had been influenced by him (listen to some very Coltrane-ish licks on "Night in Tunisia"). Actually, Dexter once stated, that he was thrilled by that kind of mutual exchange of ideas: First he had been a main source of influence for the early John Coltrane and later, especially during the time of this recordings (1963), Dexter further developed his style using some of Coltrane's ideas. Besides the above mentioned faster tunes, I expecially like "Willow Weep for Me" with it's nice intro and that kind of blues-feeling and of course the beautiful ballad "Stairway to the Stars". Bud Powell, almost at the end of his career, still plays very inspired. Expecially during those years in Paris, Bud was at his best on encounters with other great Americans, who visited Europe or temporarly lived there.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Parisian Soul Music, June 2, 2006

By 

Samuel Chell (Kenosha,, WI United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Our Man in Paris (Audio CD)

I've given up trying to choose my favorite Dexter album, because it's always the one I happen to be playing. I thought I might be able to pass this one up--not close enough to the culmination of Dexter's resurgence, too late in Bud's career, too far from the Blue Note studios, too dependent on a French (or expatriate) rhythm section.

Strike all of the above. Dexter never played with "abandon," but this recording is probably as close as he comes to it. He's on fire for each of the tunes, complete and fresh phrases flowing from his horn in musical narratives containing more than the usual number of serendipitous quotes and allusions. At times it seems like no end is in sight, as the master storyteller is in Homeric, epic form. He handles the four-bar break on "Night in Tunisia" as impressively as Bird but with half the number of notes.

I wouldn't call the performances on this album superior to Dexter's "Love for Sale" (on "Go!"), "Tanya" or "King Neptune" (on "One Flight Up") or "Body and Soul" (on "The Panther"), but it's definitely in the same league and should be essential not just for fans of L.T. but for anyone who's serious about the art of improvisation.

Powell loses his place a couple of times (forgetting whether he's on the first, second or fourth chorus of a 32-bar song) but makes quick, virtually undetectable recoveries. Moreover, his fingering is precise, his melodic lines fluid and complex yet swinging. And the fact that the original recording was made by a French engineer insures that the piano, though somewhat distorted (see below), has a "realistic" or personal and natural quality distinguishing it from the usual Blue Note piano sound.

Count this one among Dexter's top 3-4 recordings, which is high praise indeed for a player as consistently brilliant as he. Dexter in Paris must be the next best thing to April in Paris. If there's a caveat, it's the quality of the audio. I was so hopeful that the "RVG Remastered Edition" would be an improvement over both the LP and preceding CD version, that I shelled out for the session for a third time. Disappointingly, Dexter's tenor still sounds compressed, compartmentalized, and even grating, and Bud's piano still carries that trace of distortion. In spite of these obstacles, the substance of this recording simply will not be denied.