Green, Young, and the North Beach Corner
Four serious players locked in a room, and the result is exactly as good as that sounds.
By 1964, Grant Green had made a lot of records for Blue Note — some straight-ahead, some soul-jazz, some that landed somewhere in between. Street of Dreams (1964) sits comfortably in the organ-combo pocket, but what makes it worth your time is the specific combination of people on it. You've got Green on guitar, Larry Young on organ, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, and Elvin Jones on drums. That's not a typical lineup. Hutcherson adds a brightness and harmonic complexity that an organ trio alone wouldn't have, and Jones — who was deep in his work with John Coltrane around this period — brings a rhythmic intensity that pushes everyone to stay alert.
The title track is a good place to start. Green plays it cool and unhurried, which is his default mode, but the arrangement feels more layered than his simpler soul-jazz dates. Young's organ work here is worth paying attention to — he was developing a style that owed less to Jimmy Smith than most organists of the time, and you can hear that on this session. He comps differently, leaves more space, and takes the instrument somewhere less churchy. The interplay between him and Hutcherson is genuinely interesting.
The album cover — showing actual street signs from a corner in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco — gives the record a grounded, almost cinematic feel that matches the music. This isn't Green's most essential album; if you're new to him, start elsewhere. But if you already like what he does and want to hear him in an unusually well-matched group, this one delivers. The personnel alone makes it worth a listen.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Grant Green
All 38 albums →
The musicians on this record
Unity 1965
Larry Young
plays organ here
plays organ here
Dialogue 1965
Bobby Hutcherson
plays vibraphone here
plays vibraphone here
Dear John C. 1965
Elvin Jones
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
