The Rajah (album)
Encyclopedia
The Rajah is an album
by jazz
trumpeter Lee Morgan
released on the Blue Note
label. It was recorded on November 29, 1966 but not released until 1984 and features performances by Morgan, Hank Mobley
, Cedar Walton
, Paul Chambers
and Billy Higgins
.
awarded the album 3½ stars stating "Despite its neglect, this is a fine session that Lee Morgan and hard bop fans will want.".
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trumpeter Lee Morgan
Lee Morgan
Edward Lee Morgan was an American hard bop trumpeter.-Biography:...
released on the Blue Note
Blue Note Records
Blue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis. Francis Wolff became involved shortly afterwards. It derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. At the end of the 1950s, and in the early 1960s, Blue Note headquarters...
label. It was recorded on November 29, 1966 but not released until 1984 and features performances by Morgan, Hank Mobley
Hank Mobley
Henry Mobley was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone that was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Stan Getz...
, Cedar Walton
Cedar Walton
Cedar Anthony Walton, Junior is an American hard bop jazz pianist.-Biography:Walton grew up in Dallas, Texas. His mother was an aspiring concert pianist, and was Walton's initial teacher. She also took him to jazz performances around Dallas...
, Paul Chambers
Paul Chambers
Paul Laurence Dunbar Chambers, Jr. was a jazz bassist. A fixture of rhythm sections during the 1950s and 1960s, his importance in the development of jazz bass can be measured not only by the length and breadth of his work in this short period but also his impeccable time, intonation, and virtuosic...
and Billy Higgins
Billy Higgins
Billy Higgins was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop.Higgins was born in Los Angeles, California. Higgins played on Ornette Coleman's first records, beginning in 1958...
.
Reception
The Allmusic review by Scott YanowScott Yanow
Scott Yanow is an American jazz commentator, known for many contributions to the Allmusic website, for writing ten books on jazz and for reviewing jazz recordings for over 30 years.-Biography:...
awarded the album 3½ stars stating "Despite its neglect, this is a fine session that Lee Morgan and hard bop fans will want.".
Track listing
- "A Pilgrim's Funny Farm" (MasseyCal MasseyCalvin Massey was an American jazz trumpeter and composer.Massey studied trumpet under Freddie Webster, and following this played in the big bands of Jay McShann, Jimmy Heath, and Billie Holiday. In the late 1950s he led an ensemble with Jimmy Garrison, McCoy Tyner, and Tootie Heath; John Coltrane...
) - 13:36 - "The Rajah" (Morgan) - 9:11
- "Is That So?" (PearsonDuke PearsonDuke Pearson was an American jazz pianist and composer. Allmusic notes him as being a "big part in shaping the Blue Note label's hard bop direction in the 1960s as a producer."-History:...
) - 5:18 - "Davisamba" (Davis) - 6:46
- "What Now, My Love?" (BécaudGilbert BécaudGilbert Bécaud was a French singer, composer and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et Maintenant", a 1961 release that became an English language hit as "What Now My Love"...
) - 5:22 - "Once in My Lifetime" (BricusseLeslie BricusseLeslie Bricusse is an English composer, lyricist, and playwright.Although best known for his partnership with Anthony Newley, Bricusse has worked with many other composers. He was educated at University College School in London and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge...
, NewleyAnthony NewleyAnthony George Newley was an English actor, singer and songwriter. He enjoyed success as a performer in such diverse fields as rock and roll and stage and screen acting.-Early life:...
) - 5:47- Recorded at Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, November 29, 1966
Personnel
- Lee MorganLee MorganEdward Lee Morgan was an American hard bop trumpeter.-Biography:...
- trumpet - Hank MobleyHank MobleyHenry Mobley was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone that was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Stan Getz...
- tenor saxophone - Cedar WaltonCedar WaltonCedar Anthony Walton, Junior is an American hard bop jazz pianist.-Biography:Walton grew up in Dallas, Texas. His mother was an aspiring concert pianist, and was Walton's initial teacher. She also took him to jazz performances around Dallas...
- piano - Paul ChambersPaul ChambersPaul Laurence Dunbar Chambers, Jr. was a jazz bassist. A fixture of rhythm sections during the 1950s and 1960s, his importance in the development of jazz bass can be measured not only by the length and breadth of his work in this short period but also his impeccable time, intonation, and virtuosic...
- bass - Billy HigginsBilly HigginsBilly Higgins was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop.Higgins was born in Los Angeles, California. Higgins played on Ornette Coleman's first records, beginning in 1958...
- drums