Pianist Hampton Hawes, like his hero Charlie Parker, is a player whose bristling lines are brimming with rhythmic and harmonic ingenuity yet are inextricably steeped in the blues. Part of Craft’s Acoustic Sound Series in celebration of Los Angeles-based Contemporary Records’ 70th anniversary, Four! has been on the radar of guitar aficionados since its original release in 1958 due to the presence of the great Charlie Christian disciple, Barney Kessel. But this irrepressibly swinging outing is very much a four-way conversation. Highlights include the rapid-fire exchanges between Hawes and Kessel on Parker’s “Yardbird Suite” and on an uptempo reading of the standard “There Will Never Be Another You.” The jaunty “Bow Jest” is a showcase for bassist Red Mitchell’s superb arco work and Kessel’s blues-drenched soloing, while Hawes’ aptly named “Up Blues” and the standard “Sweet Sue” are both springboards into some exhilarating group swing. The lone ballad, a tender take on “Like Someone in Love,” highlights Hawes’ pianistic elegance. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl and featuring scholarly and insightful liner notes by the late dean of jazz journalism, Nat Hentoff, Four! is an absolute must for straight-ahead fans.

The post Hampton Hawes: Four! appeared first on The Absolute Sound.

Pianist Hampton Hawes, like his hero Charlie Parker, is a player whose bristling lines are brimming with rhythmic and harmonic ingenuity yet are inextricably steeped in the blues. Part of Craft’s Acoustic Sound Series in celebration of Los Angeles-based Contemporary Records’ 70th anniversary, Four! has been on the radar of guitar aficionados since its original release in 1958 due to the presence of the great Charlie Christian disciple, Barney Kessel. But this irrepressibly swinging outing is very much a four-way conversation. Highlights include the rapid-fire exchanges between Hawes and Kessel on Parker’s “Yardbird Suite” and on an uptempo reading of the standard “There Will Never Be Another You.” The jaunty “Bow Jest” is a showcase for bassist Red Mitchell’s superb arco work and Kessel’s blues-drenched soloing, while Hawes’ aptly named “Up Blues” and the standard “Sweet Sue” are both springboards into some exhilarating group swing. The lone ballad, a tender take on “Like Someone in Love,” highlights Hawes’ pianistic elegance. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl and featuring scholarly and insightful liner notes by the late dean of jazz journalism, Nat Hentoff, Four! is an absolute must for straight-ahead fans.

The post Hampton Hawes: Four! appeared first on The Absolute Sound.