BOOKLET
Artist: Lee Morgan
Album: Tom Cat
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Hard Bop, Trumpet Jazz, Jazz Instrument
Item Number: AWMXR-0008
Brand/Label/Format: XRCD 24 Audio Wave/Blue Note
Recorded: August 11, 1964
Release Date: 2010
Tracklisting
1. Tom Cat
2. Exotique
3. Twice Around
4. Twilight Mist
5. Riggarmortes
Musicians:
Lee Morgan (trumpet)
Jackie McLean (alto saxophone)
Art Blakey (drums)
Curtis Fuller (trombone)
McCoy Tyner (piano)
Bob Cranshaw (bass)
Features:
Mastered and produced by Alan Yoshida and Joe Harley from the Original Rudy Van Gelder Blue Note 2-Track Analog Tapes!
Highest Quality Analog-to-Digital transfers from tape to CD
Deluxe Packaging with Hi-Resolution Black & White Session Photos.
Includes Original Album Liner Notes
XRCD24 is Compatible with ALL CD PLAYERS!
Review by Scott Yanow (Allmusic)
It seems strange that the music on this CD was not released initially until 1980. Trumpeter Lee Morgan had had an unexpected hit with “The Sidewinder,” so his more challenging recordings were temporarily put aside. As it turns out, this was one of Morgan’s better sets from the 1960s and he had gathered together quite an all-star cast: altoist Jackie McLean, trombonist Curtis Fuller, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Art Blakey. They perform “Rigormortis,” McCoy Tyner’s “Twilight Mist,” and three of the trumpeter’s originals, including the title cut. The advanced hard bop music still sounds fresh decades later despite its initial neglect.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:dxfrxqegldke
Detailed Description
The most common reaction after hearing Lee Morgan’s Tom Cat is “why on earth didn’t Blue Note release this at the time!”. The great trumpeter, only 26 at the time of this recording, and his all-star cast with Jackie McLean, Art Blakey, Curtis Fuller and McCoy Tyner are a who’s who of the mid-1960s hard bop scene. Quite simply, this is one of Lee Morgans’ finest sessions. Even Blue Note owner Alfred Lion, when asked, was hard pressed to understand why a session of this caliber was held back. However Morgan was recording so frequently for Blue Note during this era that several of his finest recordings were lost in the shuffle as the label looked for another hit to rival the massive success of Lee’s The Sidewinder. The reasons are somewhat obscure but in any case, this classic outing sat in the vaults as Blue Note slowly declined, became inactive and by 1981 was reduced to being a reissue company focusing on its past glories. With Morgan no longer around (having been shot in 1972 by a jealous lover while performing at Slugs night club in NYC), it’s as if Lee Morgan is speaking from the grave, pointing out future directions for younger musicians. This memorable, innovative and soulful music is for many listeners one of Lee Morgan’s best recordings.
http://www.elusivedisc.com/prodinfo.asp?number=AWMXR0008