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Herbie Hanccock: Empyrian Isles

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Capitol Records
Released: 1964.07.17
Time:
 53:34
Category: Jazz
Producer(s): Alfred Lion
Rating: *********. (9/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.herbiehancock.com
Appears with: Chick Corea, Jack de Johnette
Purchase date: 2004.08.27
Price in €: 6,99





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] One Finger Snap (H.Hancock) - 7:17
[2] Oliloqui Valley (H.Hancock) - 8:27
[3] Cantaloupe Island (H.Hancock) - 5:30
[4] The Egg (H.Hancock) - 13:57
[5] One Finger Snap (H.Hancock) - 7:33 [*]
[6] Oliloqui Valley (H.Hancock) - 10:45 [*]

[*] - Not part of the original album.

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


HERBIE HANCOCK - Piano
RON CARTER - Bass
FREDDIE HUBBARD - Cornet
ANTHONY WILLIAMS - Drums
TONY WILLIAMS - Drums

ALFRED LION - Producer
MICHAEL CUSCUNA - Producer, Reissue Producer
RUDY VAN GELDER - Original Recording Engineer, Remastering
REID MILES - Cover Design
FRANCIS WOLFF - Cover Photo
BOB BLUMENTHAL - Liner Notes

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


1964 LP Blue Note BLP-4175
1964 CS Blue Note BST-84175
1985 CD Blue Note BCT-84175
1985 CS Blue Note B4-84175
1989 CD Blue Note 7841752
1999 CD EMI 9062
1999 CD Blue Note 84175
2004 CD Capitol 4175

Recorded on June 17, 1964 at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.



My Point of View and Inventions and Dimensions found Herbie Hancock exploring the fringes of hard bop, working with a big band and a Latin-flavored percussion section, respectively. On Empyrean Isles, he returns to hard bop, but the results are anything but conventional. Working with cornetist Freddie Hubbard, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Tony Williams — a trio just as young and adventurous as he was — Hancock pushes at the borders of hard bop, finding a brilliantly evocative balance between traditional bop, soul-injected grooves, and experimental, post-modal jazz. Hancock's four original concepts are loosely based on the myths of the Empyrean Isles, and they are designed to push the limits of the band and of hard bop. Even "Cantaloupe Island," well-known for its funky piano riff, takes chances and doesn't just ride the groove. "The Egg," with its minimal melody and extended solo improvisations, is the riskiest number on the record, but it works because each musician spins inventive, challenging solos that defy convention. In comparison, "One Finger Snap" and "Oliloqui Valley" (alternate takes of both tracks are included as bonuses on the CD reissue) adhere to hard bop conventions, but each song finds the quartet vigorously searching for new sonic territory with convincing fire. That passion informs all of Empyrean Isles, a record that officially established Hancock as a major artist in his own right.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine - All Music Guide



Pianist and composer Herbie Hancock has had a long and varied career, during which he's enjoyed both creative and commercial success, though seldom at the same time. For many listeners, his creative peak came early, on two stunning Blue Note recordings, Maiden Voyage and the less celebrated Empyrean Isles. Recorded in 1964, Empyrean Isles is the earlier of the two and also the most radical. Hancock's quartet features Freddie Hubbard substituting a cornet for his usual trumpet, and getting a more burnished, slightly warmer sound. Without the jazz-typical saxophone present, Hancock's is almost a naked band, and the single horn blurs the lines between the pianist's mood-rich compositions and improvisation. The group uses the increased sense of space for intense collective creation, with Hancock and drummer Tony Williams pressing far beyond their instruments' usual roles and engaging Hubbard in edgy, complex dialogue, while bassist Ron Carter anchors the performances. Hubbard rises to the occasion with brilliance, responding to the stimulus with a fluency of thought and execution--a daring that built on his avant-garde experience with musicians like John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, and Eric Dolphy. From the breezy "Oliloqui Valley" to the funky "Cantaloupe Island" and on to the dissonance of the extended "Egg," this is one of the most significant documents of the Blue Note style that emerged in the mid-'60s. It's music that tests the balance of control and risk, and Hubbard's is also one of the great performances by a trumpeter in modern jazz.

Stuart Broomer - Amazon.com



1964 war Pianist Herbie Hancock seiner Zeit voraus. In "Cantaloupe Island" nimmt er mit Freddie Hubbard (Trompete), Ron Carter (Baß) und Tony Williams (Schlagzeug) Fusionrhythmen vorweg. Dazu gibt's je zwei Hard-Bop- Versionen von "On Finger Snap" und "Oliloqui Valley" und das freie "The Egg".

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