Horace Silver - Further Explorations LP (Tone Poet Vinyl Series)

Further Explorations documents hard-bop pioneer Horace Silver’s quintet featuring Art Farmer on trumpet, Clifford Jordan on tenor saxophone, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums. One can always expect a Horace Silver date to groove, but this session from January 1958 is particularly inspired, with the pianist penning all but one of the compositions. “The Outlaw” is one of Silver’s most irrepressible creations with brilliant solos from Jordan, Farmer, and Silver. “Moon Rays” is what Silver referred to as a “walking ballad” that gives the band plenty of room to stretch out.  Blue Note Tone Poet Series  The Blue Note Tone Poet Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was’ admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley (from Music Matters), a.k.a. the “Tone Poet,” on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels. Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180 gm audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology Inc. Every aspect of these Blue Note/Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.  Blue Note Records’ Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series is produced by Joe Harley and features all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering is by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and vinyl is manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI).  Tracklist: A1. The Outlaw A2. Melancholy Mood A3. Pyramid   B1. Moon Rays B2. Safari B3. Ill Wind