1967 · Album
Mr. Blues
Recorded 1965–1966 · Atlantic · Album Number: Sixth album led by Hank Crawford
Blues in the Pocket, 1965
Crawford's alto cuts through with the kind of directness that makes blues feel like conversation.
The first thing that hits is the tempo — nothing rushed, nothing dragging. Crawford's alto sax sits front and center, warm and conversational, trading space with horns that know when to push and when to lay back. The rhythm section locks in with that easy pocket feel of mid-sixties Atlantic Records soul-jazz, the kind of groove that suggests dimmed lights and a room full of people who know what they're listening for. There's no pretense here, no academic distance. This is blues played by people who lived it.
Mr. Blues ranks among Crawford's strongest efforts, a record that found him working in his element — the space where jazz and blues territory overlap without either one apologizing. By this point in his career, Crawford had developed the skill to make his alto sing with genuine soulfulness, pulling sounds from the horn that felt less like technical display and more like emotional necessity. The sessions captured here across 1965 and 1966 show him in command of his voice, supported by arrangements that knew when to strip things down and when to add color.
This isn't Crawford's starting point if you're new to him, but it's the record that proves why he mattered. The sixth album under his own name, it occupies that sweet spot where an artist stops proving himself and simply delivers on the promise he's been making all along. For listeners who want their jazz direct and unpretentious, who value feeling over flash, this one's worth the time.
Who's playing
Charles Greenbass
Charles Dungeybass
Charles Lindsaybass
Sonny Forriestguitar
Hank Crawfordalto saxophone
Wendell Harrisontenor saxophone
Lonnie Shawbaritone saxophone
Howard Johnsonbaritone saxophone
Fielder Floydtrumpet
John Hunttrumpet
Isaac Waltondrums
Wilbert Hogandrums
Joe Dukesdrums
Milt Turnerdrums
