Mann Among Flutes at Newport
Chick Corea's piano gives this Newport set a restless energy that the flute alone could never supply.
The musician who most shapes this album is pianist Chick Corea, still early in his career when he joined Herbie Mann's group. His comping is busy and inventive, pushing the band forward rather than sitting politely behind the flute. Mann's flute lines have room to breathe because Corea keeps the harmonic ground moving underneath them.
The Newport Jazz Festival set captures the group at a live, loose moment. The rhythm section of Dave Pike's vibraphone, Bruno Carr on drums, and the Latin percussion of Carlos "Patato" Valdés gives the music a bright, danceable pulse. The horns of John Hitchcock and Mark Weinstein on trombone add weight without crowding the front line. Nothing here is especially subtle, and that is part of the appeal.
As a document of Mann in 1965, this is a solid, enjoyable entry rather than a career peak. Standing Ovation at Newport (1965) is worth hearing for fans of the period's jazz-meets-Latin crossover, and AllMusic reviewer Scott Yanow gave it four stars, calling the group's performance one of the high points of that year's festival. Start elsewhere if you are new to Mann, but come back to this one for the energy of the live room.
Who's playing
Earl Maybass
Ben Tuckerbass
Chick Coreapiano
John Hitchcocktrombone
Mark Weinsteintrombone
Herbie Mannflute
Bruno Carrdrums
Carlos “Patato” Valdéscongas
Dave Pikevibraphone
Where next?
More by Herbie Mann
All 36 albums →
The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
