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Neither a dizzy technician nor a miles minimalist, Dorham occupies a middle ground (bop, ballad, and post-bop) with his pleasant, personalized trumpet tone. Whistle Stop Jan. 1961 / Blue Note RVG Dorham is a considerate artist, mostly cliche free even in mainstream efforts like this. He doesn’t write cookie-cut tunes just to have something to play, nor does he rip off a lot of acrobatic trumpet lines to live up to the instrument’s bravura reputation. The quality of his music comes from warmth and richness, at least from what I’ve heard. This semi-classic hardbop date gives a well-rounded picture of Dorham, backed by Hank Mobley, Kenny Drew, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones. Straightahead fans will enjoy the first two cuts: “Philly Twist” sounds like “Billie’s Bounce” and a couple of other popular blues heads melded together, and “Buffalo” fits the Jazz Messenger mold. Then the music deepens with “Sunset”, a moody piece that, like Miles’ “So What”, swings in a beautifully unhurried way. Dorham plays muted trumpet on this one. The soft cadence of the “Sunset” theme is a compositional hallmark of Dorham’s, where the rhythm goes into stop time under different chords and long melody notes. Don’t know if I’m explaining it well, but you can hear this in some of his other tunes, like “Brown’s Town” from Joe Henderson’s In ‘n Out. The title track alters standard changes and gets whapped into shape by Philly Joe. I appreciate Hank Mobley’s tenor sax in small doses, but like Dexter Gordon, once I start listening in depth, I’m bored. However, Mobley is compatible with Dorham for the most part, and he does well on this album. Spacious Latin rhythms and melodic incantations make “Sunrise In Mexico” a memorable track, thanks especially to Mr. PC’s double-stop bass parts and the stealthy drums. “Windmill” provides an outgoing climax, then “Dorham’s Epitaph” ends the program on a few suggestive notes.
Overall, this disc is worth acquiring for “Sunset”, “Sunrise”, and “Windmill”. I used to own a limited edition that came out in the 1990s, and now there’s a stronger sounding RVG.
Not as experimental as you might think, looking at the supporting cast of Joe Henderson, Herbie Hancock, Butch Warren, and Tony Williams. This was Henderson’s Blue Note debut, and one can already pick him out blindfolded. He’s a fine complement to Dorham’s pearly trumpet, and they would become quite the pair on albums to come. Dorham’s three originals are solid but don’t present many challenges. “Straight Ahead” is just that – let’s blow on rhythm changes for a while. “Una Mas” is a quarter-hour, Latinish boogie groove with a bluesy 16-bar form. It’s up to the soloists to entertain at this length, which they do, but the reprise at the end (“Una mas!”) is totally unnecessary, as the groove has long since been used up. “Sao Paulo” is a much subtler and more mysterious venture into Latin jazz, and it’s the real star of the album. A Joe Henderson BN boxset from the 1990s kicked off with this track.
The rhythm section swings without much fuss, muscle, or adventure, so in that respect, it’s a middle of the road date, and recommended to fans of such. The bonus track “If I Would Ever Leave You” doesn’t broaden the field, either. Patrons of Kenny and/or Joe will hear a lot of good playing, though.
Dorham teams with Joe Henderson, Tommy Flanagan, Richard Davis, and Tootie Heath on this first-class album. The twelve-minute title track is a very impressive exploration of a minor/major Spanish mood. Henderson contributes a great solo that includes some effective overblowing, while Dorham probes the heavyweight atmosphere and the rhythm lightens for the piano and bass solos. The remaining three tracks are just as good. “Night Watch” renders hard-bop ideas in a casual way, and the vulpine corners of “The Fox” are more outwardly complex. The obligatory Blue Note boogie number arrives in Henderson’s “Mamacita”, yet the melody, bassline, and solos are far from dull.
What I like about Dorham’s playing is that it’s not so much the individual phrases that stand out (though he has some good ones) as it is his overall feel. Meanwhile, this is as fine a record as Joe Henderson cut in the ‘60s, and that’s saying something. From the magnificent “Trompeta Toccata” solo onward, he’s in the zone. Flanagan has a couple of bright moments, and Richard Davis is a great choice for bassist. Recommended. |
