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According to many critics, there is no more fitting album title in the entire history of music than “Heavy Soul”, the great classic by renowned tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec, released in 1961. This record marked the comeback of a jazz musician who played an important role in the history of Blue Note. In the 1940s, Quebec had recorded several 78 RPM records for Alfred Lion and worked as a talent scout, encouraging Lion to record some of the rising stars of the then-emerging bebop scene, including Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell. In 1959, Lion began introducing Quebec's music to jazz fans with a series of jukebox singles. These were a huge success and inspired Lion to bring the saxophonist back to the studio to record a full album. So, in November 1961, Quebec brought a four-piece band consisting of organist Freddie Roach, double bassist Milt Hinton, and drummer Al Harewood to Rudy Van Gelder's recording studio. The eight tracks that emerged from this memorable recording session were a true masterclass in soul jazz!
Quebec's powerful tenor saxophone sound expresses a wide range of emotions and moods, from the driving swing rhythms of original pieces such as “Acquitted” and “Que's Dilemma” to slower, more contemplative pieces such as “Just One More Chance”, “Brother Can You Spare A Dime” and “I Want A Little Girl”. A remarkable interpretation of “The Man I Love” leads to the brilliant title track, which is brimming with soul, but it is the album's finale that is the real triumph: Roach and Harewood form an extremely reliable rhythm section, while Quebec and Hinton sing a duet in an enchanting performance of “Nature Boy” that lingers in the listener's soul long after the last note has faded away.
As part of the extremely popular “Blue Note 85th Anniversary Reissue Series”, Universal Music Japan presents the sonically impressive remastering of this jazz classic by the legendary Kevin Gray, who is also responsible for the analog reissues of Blue Note US such as “Tone Poet” and “Classic Vinyl” – as a limited-edition Japan only UHQCD with OBI Stripe. The recording session for “Heavy Soul” took place on November 26, 1961 at the Rudy Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.
1. Acquitted2. Just One More Chance3. Que's Dilemma4. Brother Can You Spare A Dine5. The Man I Love6. Heavy Soul7. I Want A Little Girl8. Nature Boy