Dexter Gordon
Go!

LA RECENSIONE

Produced by the legendary Alfred Lion, founder of Blue Note, it is considered one of the most important Jazz albums in jazz history. Certainly not a seminal album, but definitely a successful record from the first to the last note. Hardly Gordon - just like Pepper, Hawkins, McLean, Mobley, Desmond, and others - is mentioned by laymen among the immortals of Jazz like Coltrane or Parker, for instance; however, musicians like him have undoubtedly left an indelible mark for those fortunate enough to have discovered them in their musical journeys, particularly in paths related to Jazz.

"Cheese Cake" opens the album in a bursting manner. This fantastic Hard Bop standard is tasked with introducing the listener to Gordon's world; a theme now familiar to those who chew Jazz, presented with all its class by Gordon's tenor, later unfolding into powerful Hard Bop rides by the tenor player, where the dizzying ups and downs of Butch Warren on double bass, the relentless drumming of Billy Higgins, and the piano responses of Sonny Clark, Dexter’s true alter ego throughout the piece, find fertile ground. The second track is a standard not written by Gordon, "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry", a delicate ballad typical of Broadway's golden era during the '30s and '40s, where Dexter attacks the dreamy harmony created by the rhythm section with the piano, with notes both suave and vigorous at the same time.

"Second Balcony Jump" opens in all its irreverent swing, skillfully blended with a very clear Bop sound created by Gordon’s magnificent sax. "Love for Sale" is one of Cole Porter's most famous standards, one of the princes of Broadway's golden era. It all starts with the proverbial Latin rhythm where the theme is exposed, and then everyone sets off together towards freedom, which, after all, is one of Jazz's prerogatives. Same formula, same successful path taken by magnificent Dexter and the rest of the band. "Where Are You" is another nocturnal and very romantic ballad... Typical of the sparkling old skyline scenario of the Big Apple. This scenario alone is enough to give words to the intensity with which Gordon manages to convey with his notes.

The record closes with "Three O'Clock in the Morning". Try savoring an aperitif to the notes of this piece with a few close friends on your terrace this summer... Old Dexter, your sax remains ever-immortal...