Johnny Griffin
The Congregation

Andy Warhol. The cover of this record was designed by the not yet famous Andy Warhol, one of the three works that the artist created for Blue Note, along with "Volume Two" and "Blue Lights" by Kenny Burrell.

Well, now that I've caught your attention, let's talk about important things. Johnny Griffin (1928-2008) was a fairly well-known jazz saxophonist in the '50s-'60s. Mmmmmh, it's not nice to speak of artists in the past tense because, it may be rhetorical if you like, when you engage with their art, good or bad as it may be, a part of them briefly comes back to life. Leaving aside these linguistic-existentialist issues, it can be said that, despite being a top-tier instrumentalist and despite having played with the likes of John Coltrane, Paul Chambers, Thelonious Monk, and Art Blakey, Griffin's name did not enter the pantheon of the greatest in jazz. Maybe it's because throughout his career, he remained faithful to the hard bop school without radically evolving his style, or maybe he didn't have the luck to be in the right recording studio at the right time to contribute to the right record. Whatever the reason, history has been a bit too harsh with Johnny Griffin.

"The Congregation" (1957) is not a masterpiece (rating 3.5, rounded up to 4 for evident technical merits and because, damn it, we need a little social justice!), but it's a record that deserves attention, because jazz was not only made by Armstrong, Davis, or Parker, but also by all those musicians who were less fortunate (and also had less talent, granted, this is undeniable), but who have their good reasons to be rediscovered. Now, I don't know Griffin except for this album (bought completely blindly, never heard of him before, with the only guarantee being Paul Chambers on double bass), but it's enough for me to urge you to listen to something of his. His tenor saxophone has a very assured, strong, exuberant sound but always with a purpose, never exaggerated. But above all, it's a saxophone from Chicago. This is not negligible, because in Chicago, besides the "very important railway hub" (as someone reminds us), there is also the headquarters of many blues/r&b artists. That's why Johnny Griffin's sound is so infused with blues and r&b, as well as, of course, bop. Just listen to the title track and you'll immediately realize: classic structure of an r&b song, a certain type of feeling in the three solos by Griffin, Chambers, and Sonny Clark (piano).

More or less in the same vein, "Latin Quarter", a saxophone theme with beautiful rhythmic accompaniment by Chambers, Clark, and Kenny Dennis (drums). A stunning pizzicato double bass solo responding to the leader's sparkling blowin'. A nice standard never hurts at the right time, and "I'm Glad There Is You" shows that Griffin wasn't only raised on bread and blues, there's also lyricism in his style, there's Lester Young and Coleman Hawkins, and suddenly Charlie Parker (find me any saxophonist not influenced by Parker!), even Sonny Rollins. However, everything is mixed with originality, Griffin is not just anyone. And neither are his sidemen, having heard the passages they occasionally insert in the tracks, it's impressive. "Main Spring" (written by Griffin, like "The Congregation") is another blues like the title track, the same feeling, but here there's a bit more compositional daring, as the sax solo is less classical, although the r&b roots are heard. And then someone like Clark revels in similar harmonies, and indeed his solo is a textbook example of blues piano. Griffin knew how to choose his sidemen well! Chambers also goes at it quite a bit, this time with the bow, imagining a solo with more blues feeling than this is difficult. After a brief piano/drums intro, "It's You Or No One" sees a more aggressive Dennis accompany (and sometimes retrace) the sax interventions. An up-tempo where the leader's intense technique fully manifests, followed by a nice piano solo and the usual devastating Mr. P.C. (with the bow). There's room for a brief call and response between sax and drums before closing out a fun and valid record. Oh yes, there's the bonus track "I Remember You", a nice standard played with great knowledge and taste, it doesn't add anything to the discussion (and indeed wasn't included in the original album) although it's worth mentioning another great performance by Chambers (yes, I adore him) with the bow, before returning to his simple and effective walking bass, supporting a beautiful piano solo by Sonny Clark.

A record of harmonically non-revolutionary tracks, but played in a personal and confident manner. I won't tell you that "The Congregation" will change your life, but I will tell you that it deserves to be considered. And forgive me for the initial deception, who cares if the cover is by Warhol (also because I don't see it as such a great work of art), it was a trick, yes, I tricked you, but I did it to draw you in to read, for a good cause. A little social justice for Johnny Griffin is needed.