Burt

Funny, before I started going way back for his early bop stuff, I found two solos whilst kanoodling amidst some of the first of his works that I could remember well as having impacted my auditory memory. "Many Blessings" from The Inflated Tear was one such number that really caught my attention for being a powerful example of Rahsaan's dedication as a soloist. The whole album is great, but that one solo had me returning to it more than any other I could remember... The other that followed was "Take Me Girl, I'm Ready" from the Blacknuss album. the contrast presented by the setup to the solo is a bit striking. If you played the song for someone unfamiliar with Kirk's chops, the whole first half of the song sounds like an amateur struggling to stand out by blowing too hard. No smooth runs or well-executed riffs, and again, the sound of a guy blowing too hard and finessing too little. And then about halfway through the cover, Rahsaan is 'taken' by his girl, and the 'blacknuss' begins. I can only imagine what it would be like to be blind while listening to the nonsense of a subconscious teasing me with its visual superlatives for my partner. "This is the best looking woman I've seen in my whole life..."