Vertigo [Original recording remastered]

Jackie McLean | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 15, 2000)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Blue Note Records
• ASIN: B00004GJVN
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #74,478 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #79 in Music > Indie Music > Jazz > Modern Post Bop

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This CD combines two Jackie McLean quintet sessions from the early '60s that capture the alto saxophonist in a significant period of transition. First up is a 1963 session with trumpeter Donald Byrd and two significant protégés. Byrd had been working for a while with pianist Herbie Hancock, but it was the first recording session for drummer Tony Williams, just 17 years old when he began working with McLean. The arrival of Hancock and Williams was momentous. They were already stretching the vocabulary of hard bop, and the horns respond accordingly. It's McLean's presence that's dominant, though. His hard-edged intensity always stood out, and there's an increasing bite in this period, leading up to his embrace of a much freer group format. The second session, from 1962, is more securely in the bop mold. It's another first-rate band of Blue Note regulars, with the veteran trumpeter Kenny Dorham, pianist Sonny Clark (like McLean, a master of blues-suffused bop), drummer Billy Higgins, and bassist Butch Warren. Over the years, these have been elusive recordings. Both appeared on LP (Vertigo and Hipnosis) years after they were recorded and in combination with other material. This is their first appearance on CD, and it's a limited edition, so McLean fans should act quickly. --Stuart Broomer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 Stars actually... Very good album from Mr. McLean, February 5, 2001

By 

"bluenotejazz" (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vertigo (Audio CD)

This album is thoroughly enjoyable from begining to end. My usual complaint from multisession reissues isn't present as the album flows pretty smoothly from the first to the second session. Additionally the opening track has some of the most interesting and entertaining duo horn work on any bop or post bop album I've heard. Although Jackie has better albums, notably A Fickle Sonance, Destination Out, and Let Freedom ring, this is still both a good starting point and good addition to your library.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another gem from Jackie Mack!, March 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Vertigo (Audio CD)

With so many previously unavailable Blue Note classics having been reissued on CD in the last few years, I was beginning to think there weren't any "finds" left. And then came Vertigo.... This '63 session with Hancock and Williams sets the tone for his later classics Destination Out and One Step Beyond. Vertigo has that unmistakeable Blue Note 60s sound -- not too avant-garde yet challenging, exploratory and thoroughly rewarding. The bonus '62 session finds McLean tackling more typical post-bop material, yet it could easily be a stand alone release (I found it better than Swing Swang Swingin and Tippin the Scales). Sometimes McLean can sound a bit out of tune, but he's fine here. Two of the tracks from the '62 set appear later, and under different titles, on the Mosaic box set. In all, well worth getting, and with so many McLean Blue Notes going out of print, get it while you can.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another gem from Jackie Mack!, March 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Vertigo (Audio CD)

With so many previously unavailable classic Blue Note albums having been made available on CD in recent years, I was beginning to wonder if there were any more "finds" out there. And then came Vertigo...! This '63 session is similar in feel to Jackie's classics Destination Out and One Step Beyond. Hancock and Williams help to give the album that exploratory yet not too avant-garde feel that is so recognizable and enjoyable from mid-60s Blue Notes. The bonus '62 session is good enough to be a stand alone album. On some of the Jackie sessions that originally sat in the Blue Note vaults (Tippin the Scales comes to mind), Jackie's tone can be harsh, even a little out of tune. That is not a problem with this bonus set -- the front line sound with Kenny Dorham is excellent. Of special interest to me on the bonus session was early versions of two tunes that show up on later albums of Jackie's (compiled on the now out of print Mosaic box set) with different song titles. With so many of Jackie's best albums now unavailable again, any fan of McLean's music should get this CD quickly.