1959 · Album
Drums Around The Corner
Recorded 1958–1959 · Blue Note Records (original sessions) · Produced by Not definitively verified
Lost Sessions, Found Groove: Blakey Forty Years Later
Drums Around the Corner catches Blakey in his element: sharp, driving, completely present.
Art Blakey recorded these sessions in 1958 and 1959 when he was running the Jazz Messengers at full throttle, but the tapes sat in a vault for four decades before anyone released them in 1999. That gap matters because it means we're hearing Blakey when nobody was paying attention to preserve his legacy — just him and his band working through material without the weight of a canonical statement hanging over the session. The result feels more relaxed than some of his better-known work, less concerned with proving anything.
What you get here is Blakey doing what made him essential: driving a small group forward with the kind of propulsive drumming that made younger musicians actually listen to what a drummer could do. He's not flashy or theatrical. He hits hard, he listens to the horns, and he knows when to push and when to lay back. The sessions capture the Messengers in transition, with different lineups and approaches, so there's variety without losing coherence. Some tracks crackle with real energy. Others feel like stretches in the studio where everyone's finding their way. Not every moment lands equally, but that's honest.
Catalog-wise, this is supplemental material for people who already know Blakey well — not a starting point, but a solid addition if you've worked through his major recordings and want to hear how he sounded in unglamorous working sessions. It's worth tracking down if you respect what the Messengers did, but it's not the album that made his reputation. Think of it as a backstage pass rather than the main event.
Who's playing
Jymie Merrittbass
Bobby Timmonspiano
Lee Morgantrumpet
Art Blakeydrums
Roy Haynesdrums
Philly Joe Jonespercussion
Ray Barrettocongas
Where next?
More by Art Blakey
All 12 albums →
The musicians on this record
The Cooker 1958
Lee Morgan
plays trumpet here
plays trumpet here
Kenny Drew Trio 1957
Philly Joe Jones
plays percussion here
plays percussion here
Just Us 1960
Roy Haynes
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
