Kenny Drew Undercurrent

[kh1958]

Just when I thought I'd heard just about every great hard bop date on Blue Note, I stumble across this one in a Tower cutout bin--Kenny Drew's Undercurrent, from December 11, 1960, with Freddie Hubbard, Hank Mobley, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes. Six Kenny Drew compositions, and both Freddie and Mr. Mobley are in great form. According to the Blue Note discography, this is one of only two sessions as a leader for Mr. Drew on Blue Note.

[Dan Gould]

Agreed, its a very very fine date. I was fortunate to get a copy in the late 80s when it was reissued. I particularly enjoy Drew's compositions.

[couw]

absolutely!

[jlhoots]

Excellent date.

I'll pull out my JRVG & give it a listen today.

[Big Al]

Funny thing... I was just thinking about this date the other day when I saw it in the Tower online used CD sale. Wondering why I didn't buy it again. Again because I owned it once, but couldn't warm up to it. Don't get me wrong: it's a fantastic lineup, with some of my favorite players on board. But, for whatever reason, it did nothing for me.

[J.A.W.]

Funny you should say that Al, when I first heard it way back it didn't do much for me either, but it's grown on me and now I find it a great date!

[Rooster_Ties]

According to the Blue Note discography, this is one of only two sessions as a leader for Mr. Drew on Blue Note.

Can't think of the other one, and my discography is at home (I'm at work). Is there another Kenny Drew BN cover I'm forgetting??

[Dan Gould]

I think it was paired with the Howard McGhee in the reissue series.

[sidewinder]

Yes, paired with Vol 1 of the Howard McGhee in the 10" Conns.

[blue-note-ojc]

I can relate to the comments about this disc growing on you . I cannot reacall that I did not get too excited about this particular one when I first heard it. Maybe so, maybe not. However, I have found over the years that every Blue Note that I have purchased, I eventually was very glad I did, even if at the beginning I did not particularly think it was so hot. Those 50's and 60's Blue Notes that ALfred Lion did, and even some after his departure, were all first class. There was real music there. Listen to it carefully. Every time it seems you listen you hear more than the time before.

I have never cared for avant garde, so in my case I cannot say the same for that. But then I never repeatedly listened to any of it like I have the staright ahead stuff.

[brownie]

Have enjoyed 'Undercurrent' since I found several years ago a vinyl reissue of the session in the BN King Japan series.

The Introducing Kenny Drew trio date also comes from Japan, a BN Toshiba vinyl reissue with two additional takes ('Yesterdays' and 'Everything Happens To Me').

[Kevin Bresnahan]

I really like this date. Mobley shines. Great tunes too. However, the title track has that hi-hat squeek that just annoys the hell out of me. Of course, it might just be my ears. I seem to zone in on it and it just drives me nuts.

BTW, I have owned the TOCJ, the JRVG and the US CD. All of them have the squeek. When I compared them all, I kept the JRVG. It's one of Rudy's better jobs.

[Guest akanalog]

i generally hate early louis hayes (and later hayes-but i think he hit a nice groove in the mid 70s) but i think he sounds great on this one. drew's compositions are also noteworthy. a little out of the ordinary, for the time-to my ears. that ballad-ish tune at the end sounds fairly progressive to me.

[kh1958]

After seeing Louis Hayes many times with the McCoy Tyner Trio, as well as a couple of times with the Freddie Hubbard Quartet, and most recently backing up Bobby Watson and others in a Jazz Messengers alumni group, I must say I love Louis Hayes' drumming.

i generally hate early louis hayes (and later hayes-but i think he hit a nice groove in the mid 70s) but i think he sounds great on this one. drew's compositions are also noteworthy. a little out of the ordinary, for the time-to my ears. that ballad-ish tune at the end sounds fairly progressive to me.

[jazzbo]

Me too, and he was magic with Sam Jones.

Kevin, yeah. . . ever since you pointed it out years ago I hear that squeek. But. . . I've had several squeeky drummer's thrones so it doesn't bother me much. . . makes me a bit nostalgic!

One of the better Hubbard sideman dates.

Edited January 29, 2006 by jazzbo

[Parkertown]

Kevin,

The Classic DAD is real nice, too... And I recently picked up the Classic 180gm cuz I could get it for $12.50. It's very fine, as well.

I'm gonna try to overlook what I read here re: the squeak. That stuff can bother me too. I hope I don't hear it , darn it.

That title track is quite a burner, though...

[Peter Friedman]

I have had this one since it was first released on LP back many decades ago. Now have it on CD, I have always dug Kenny Drew a lot. His early playing was a terrific blend of bebop (ala Bud Powell), and a more bluesy style (associated with someone like Horace Silver). In his later years his playing on some tunes took on a more rhapsodic, impressionistic style, especially on ballads. I suppose the influence of Bill Evans effected him. But Kenny always was a marvelous blues player.

Hubbard and Mobley are great on this album too,

[clifford_thornton]

This is one of those dates that I cannot even recall what it sounds like - though the King LP has been in my shelves for quite a while. Still, I would like to hear the "augmented" ten-incher, as "Everything Happens to Me" is one of my favorite standards.

[BFrank]

I picked up a copy from a Tower online remainder sale a couple of years ago. They must have a ton of them stashed somewhere.

[sidewinder]

This is one of those dates that I cannot even recall what it sounds like - though the King LP has been in my shelves for quite a while. Still, I would like to hear the "augmented" ten-incher, as "Everything Happens to Me" is one of my favorite standards.

My King LP has also been 'gathering dust' so this is a good excuse to get it out of the rack.