Music Monday: Some Things Old, Some Things New

It’s been sort of weird week for listening. I’ve not had as much sustained listening time as usual and my life is poorer for it. 

That said, I did enjoy a pair of mid-1970s Herbie Hancock albums. The first album is 50 years old this fall: Thrust. It’s deeply groovy and fun with Bernie Maupin on woodwinds, Paul Jackson on bass, and Mick Clark on drums. If you hear it, you’ll know it!

What makes this album more fun is contrasting it with the Hancock’s 1973 effort. Nope not Headhunters, but the less acclaimed album Sextant (1973) which Hancock performs with his Mwandishi Sextet. The final track on the album “Hornets” is amazing. Like Thrust, it features Bennie Maupin on reeds, alongside  trumpeter Eddie Henderson, trombonist Julian Priester, bassist Buster Williams and drummer Billy Hart. Sextant and Thrust also feature Patrick Gleeson in synthesizers.

As for something new, I’ve been really into bassist Anna Butterss new album Mighty Vertebrate (2024). It’s poppy enough to be fun, but feels (for lack of a better way of talking about) just a bit serious? You can get it here.

Her 2022 effort, Activities feels a bit more playful and more electronic (and less maybe jazz music?).  

Finally, I’ve been enjoying a bit of Jimmy Heath lately. He’s a guy who I don’t think I’ve ever listened to consistently (despite my affection for Philadelphia jazz). Jimmy Heath’s Quintet which features Albert Heath on drums, Paul Chambers on bass, Wynton Kelly on piano, and Kenny Burrell on guitar. That’s a pretty stout quintet, and they play some pretty stout hard bop tunes on On the Trail from 1964.