Search - Henry Butler :: Fivin' Around

BUY THIS NOW! You may not get another chance

Nobody important | 06/19/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I still have trouble believing that Henry Butler's earliest recordings are out of print. Buy this one now. Henry Butler can play it all, and this is the best example of him playing straight-ahead post-bop. The band here cannot be beaten: Charlie Haden on bass, Billy Higgins on Drums, Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Azar Lawrence on tenor, Steve Kujala on flute and Jeff Clayton on Oboe. Butler is also joined on a few tracks by a string quartet. I know what you are thinking-- string quartets and jazz have a poor history of overly-commercial playing, but the music on this set is consistently adventurous, and probably the most adventurous of Butler's jazz albums. He pushes boundaries, but always keeps the music rooted in his hard-driving and soulful roots. Reminiscent of McCoy Tyner's best stuff from the 70's but also rooted in Horace Silver-type hard bop, this album is a lost gem. Buy it while you can."