A while back we looked at some of jazz's most notable swan songs, a short but certainly not complete list of the best last recordings of some jazz greats. So, what about some of the best beginnings? Here are five of what I'd consider some of the finest debut albums in jazz. As before, this isn't a definitive list; I may very well crank out a followup later on as I've thought of even more while writing this. But to get the discussion going, here are the first five off the top of my head, in chronological order of original release:
1) Herbie Hancock Takin' Off (1962)
Of the artists spotlighted in this list, none has had a longer and more varied career than Herbie Hancock. He's gone from progressive bop to space fusion to jazz-funk to hip-hop to standards and goes back to straight-ahead jazz whenever the mood strikes him. His current release Possibilities is a pairing with a different vocalist on each track. Forty-five years as a leader, and he is still trying out new formats.
But his first release, out when JFK was president, was a very fine artifact of vintage Blue Note hard bop. Preceding his long stint with Miles Davis by a couple of years, Herbie was already fully formed as a funky but cerebral jazz pianist with a classical background, and as a composer. While the lead-off tune "Watermelon Man" has found its way into many a copybook, the rest of the originals are likewise versatile, interesting, and catchy. The horn section was none other than Dexter Gordon and Freddie Hubbard, two legends at their peaks. Hancock made better records after this one, but frankly, none are more enjoyable to listen to.
2) Joe Henderson Page One (1963)
Speaking of Blue Note, it was only one year later that the record label unveiled another young talent to the jazz world, and like Hancock, he entered the scene with a unique, fully developed technique. Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson was never known as a major composer like Herbie, but "Recorda Me" was a worthy addition to the jazz canon and Kenny Dorham's monster tune "Blue Bossa" bows here as well. The strong set of songs are amply supported by Henderson's trademark inside-outside style and bolstered by notable sidemen like Dorham and McCoy Tyner; Page One was a can't-lose proposition that still remains Joe's best out of a widely renowned discography.
Article comments
1 - Mark Saleski
nice picks pico. yea, everybody has wanted to give Wynton the "what for" (maybe if he didn't hang around with stanley croush so much, people would cut him more slack) but he sure did breath some life into the more tradition parts of the genre back then .
and oh man, Conference of the Birds is just killer!
still can't believe Joe Henderson is gone.
2 - Allen Michie
I think you could also add Michael Brecker's debut solo recording, "Michael Brecker." A perfect album in every way. The band was the best of its generation: Pat Metheny, Don Grolnick, Jack DeJohnette, and Charlie Haden. Of course it's no more a "debut" album than Herbie Hancock's, since the leader was already an accomplished and well-known musician from having played on countless other records. But this debut immediately put Brecker into the role of leader, and it made us realize how much he had been one all along.
3 - Allen Michie
Two other quick notes:
Don't forget Ornette Coleman's amazing debut which put Western Civilization on notice: "The Music of Ornette Coleman--Something Else!!!"
Also, Wynton's debut album would be on my top five list as well. It can stand on its own merits, but all of the people who make great claims for it rescuing and reviving mainstream jazz in the early 80s must have never heard a Woody Shaw record.
Wynton took private lessons from Shaw back then, and there are entire solos from Wynton's early work that are almost completely lifted from Shaw. Columbia Records scandalously dropped Shaw as Wynton rose from his ashes, a factor in Shaw's clinical depression and eventual suicide.
4 - Michael J. West
Delightful to see Dave Holland get some props. Absolutely delightful.
I hereby advance Cecil Taylor's Jazz Advance for consideration as well. One rarely hears such challenging music on a debut record, regardless of the era.
5 - Michael J. West
Allen #3:
I am probably Blogcritics's Number One Ornette Coleman fan and one of his greatest cheerleaders anywhere...but I gotta admit I'm not impressed with Something Else!!!. The piano is just a bad fit for his sound and he ends up restrained because of it.
6 - Pico
Thanks for the replies, everyone, I enjoy these kinds of discussions.
Mark: Sounds like you're a big Dave fan like me. I'll have more on him later this month.
Allen #2: I gave serious thought to Brecker's first, especially since he's been foremost on everyone's mind right now. Those first two tunes are absolutely killer. So much so that the rest of the album comes as a bit of a letdown to me. But I don't begrudge anyone else for putting this forward.
Allen #3: I gotta agree with M West, Ornette's first was more of a dress rehearsal to me. That piano had to go, and he quickly realized it.
Great call on Wynton sounding like Woody Shaw, I could never understand why everyone said he sounded like Miles back then. But are you sure Shaw committed suicide? All the accounts I read had him stepping out in front of that subway train by accident; his eyesight was notoriously bad.
Michael J. West: Cecil's Jazz Advance...I love that choice! His early music doesn't get a lot of notice, but I found it to be just as interesting as the stuff that made him famous.