Search Complete: Morgan’s Masterpiece is Back
The angel on my left shoulder reminded me that my collection's HDTracks digital and Music Matters vinyl pressing of Search for the New Land are superb—no need to upgrade. That angel disappeared after the devil on my right shoulder gave him an atomic wedgie, stole his lunch money, stuffed him into a gym locker, and now keeps me company as I enjoy this new Blue Note Classics edition of Lee Morgan’s Search for the New Land.
Morgan’s impressive Blue Note run spanned 16 years and 25 albums as a leader, not a dud in the catalog. His discography as a sideman was equally enviable and varied, from Coltrane’s notorious Blue Train to Grachan Moncur III’s inside/outside insider’s favorite Evolution. But if he accomplished just one thing that made him a hero at Blue Note forever, it was The Sidewinder and the unexpected breakthrough success of its title track.
Lee Morgan’s hastily scrawled runaway hit changed Blue Note’s financial trajectory from the frying pan to a newly remodeled kitchen. The history of The Sidewinder is a tale worth exploring, but suffice it to say, it’s enough to know that it was a BIG HIT, and a BIG HIT changes everything. Especially expectations. Given Search for the New Land was the follow-up to the BIG HIT, I could only imagine the enthused facial expressions of the eager executives on the edge of their seats as they awaited the sounds of that next boogaloo smash (accompanied by the imagined tinkling of coins from the Christmas bonus). Oh, to have a time machine to see it for myself!
Three things make my trip to a 1964 Blue Note A&R meeting a non-starter:
Lack of time machine.
Even if I had a time machine, I’d prioritize a few other things ahead of this idea.
I’ve had an experience that’s close enough to give me a sense of what it must have been like:
I worked for the Capitol Music Group in the mid-2000s, comprising the Capitol and Virgin Records labels. We were getting ready to work on The Decemberists’ follow-up to The Crane Wife, a critical and commercial success that surprised a LOT of people. Especially for a record that channeled Fotheringay, XTC, and Jethro Tull around a series of folktales and historical anthems—Ramones fans need not apply. Still, The Crane Wife was accessible, catchy, and made a lot of year-end “best of” lists for a good reason—it’s a fantastic record.
So I was pretty stoked to be invited along with a few other members of the marketing, sales, and radio teams to Electric Lady Studios
for playback of their forthcoming record, The Hazards of Love, followed by a chat with Colin Meloy about the record so we could get our heads around how we’d set it up. The playback occurred in a tight room with a large mixing desk; maybe 7 of us were present, including Colin. I was seated across from our two senior radio execs, Bill and Howard. The engineer hit play.
As a lifelong prog rock fan, a lengthy song doesn’t intimidate me. In fact, in the right hands, it’s a selling point. And The Decemberists certainly stretched a few songs out on The Crane Wife, so I wasn’t surprised—or bothered—when 10 minutes had gone by without a break in the music. But that’s when I started paying closer attention to the faces of our radio guys, who would have to take this around to radio stations and convince them to play it. At 10 minutes, they were focusing on the hooks they could sink their teeth into and thinking about conversing with Colin about making a radio edit. At 18 minutes, a visible sheen of sweat had broken out on Bill’s forehead. At 32 minutes—where I’d started to keep my fingers crossed that we’d surpass Thick As A Brick, just because it’d be fun to use as a marketing cudgel to prog rockers who believe no good new music has been produced since 1975—I thought we might need to call the paramedics for radio AND sales teams.
Here was a band coming off a catchy record that fans and critics loved, ready to level up, and they turned in a long-form song cycle about a dysfunctional relationship between shapeshifters, humans, and…well, you get the idea. While The Hazards of Love did break into individual tracks, the album presented as one continuous piece of music. Which I thought was cool AF.
The look on the faces of the Capitol Music Group team at Electric Lady that day must have been somewhat similar to those at Blue Note at the Search for the New Land playback
“The Sidewinder” was a jukebox staple, had appeared in a Chrysler ad that much of the television-watching nation had seen during the world series that year, and was a huge radio hit. By contrast, the title track, “Search for the New Land,” takes up much of Side A and speaks more directly to the soul than the dancefloor. Opening with a mission statement from Lee Morgan and Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Grant Green trill notes alongside in companionship and anticipation—it’s necessary tension to set things in motion. The fellowship slides effortlessly into lockstep with a waltz-y groove that becomes each musician's central theme as a launchpad, taking flight for modal exploration before returning for a team huddle and passing the baton to the next soloist. Bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Billy Higgins drive the momentum with style and powering this 16-minute journey that every jazz listener MUST take.
Lee Morgan delivered Search for the New Land only a few months after The Sidewinder. But Blue Note sat on it for two years before finally releasing it, urging Morgan (and others on the label) to see if lightning would strike twice (or more) with another Sidewinder-esque hit. And a 16-minute, advanced modal excursion that nodded to Morgan’s growing interest in politics and civil rights—which would consume more of his bandwidth in subsequent years—wasn’t precisely what Blue Note hoped to hear. While Morgan composed and recorded several Sidewinder-esque numbers, none reached similar lofty heights of commercial, chart, or critical success. Search for the New Land eventually saw the light of day and was hailed as a Morgan masterpiece, and many cite it as their favorite Lee Morgan album.
Of course, the opening title track looms so large that the rest of the tracks can seem completely overwhelmed and overshadowed by its gargantuan wallop. So it’s good medicine to occasionally spin Search for the New Land Side B first to allow one to absorb the rest of the excellent material here with open ears and mind. "Melancholee" is a poignant ballad, though Herbie Hancock's piano work is too awe-inspiring to allow time for sadness. "Mr. Kenyatta" is a rhythmic delight and makes me wonder if drummer Billy Higgins has a third arm hidden somewhere. And “Morgan the Pirate” will give you an entirely new appreciation for the powerfully driving yet fleet-fingered bass work supplied by Reggie Workman—his playing is strong throughout the album. Still, it’s especially notable on this track and may even knock Mr. Workman up a few notches on your all-time great bassists’ list.
This new edition gives my Music Matters pressing a run for the money in the sonics department—so close I’m tempted to put my Music Matters cut up for sale. Rudy Van Gelder—the Notorious RVG—captured the session beautifully with a terrific recording, and this new Blue Note Classics edition (all analog cut by Kevin Gray) does it justice. Inflated secondary market prices are in the rearview mirror. There’s no reason to agonize over which pressing is “the best”—unless you want to drop serious coin on an original or slightly less serious but still not smiling money on a Music Matters pressing, this $30 Blue Note Classics is just what the doctor ordered.
Don’t snooze on picking this one up, or you’ll be crying tears of remorse into your pillow of regret—we’ve all seen how long it takes for titles to come back around once the initial pressing sells through.
In Case You Missed It On Instagram:
Bill Evans Quintet ‘Quintessence’
Mt. Kangchenjunga is one of the highest mountains in the world, third only to Mt. Everest. But far fewer people attempt the climb—Kangchenjunga doesn’t have the lofty reputation of Everest; it’s far more obscure and *definitely* harder to spell—Bill Evans’s Quintessence shares similar qualities. Like any artist with at least one iconic album in their discography (Bill has several), their other records risk being lumped into a broad category of “not the iconic one” and occasionally (and unfairly) criticized for not setting a new high bar. That’s a rather binary, under-nuanced take from my perspective. Remember the best pizza you ever had? Did it send every other pizza experience in your life to the trash bin? From my perspective, Pepe’s Pizza beats Sally’s Pizza as far as New Haven pizzerias, but that doesn’t mean that Sally’s makes terrible or even mediocre pizza—it’s some of the best pizza you’ll ever taste. While Quintessence isn’t groundbreaking like Sunday at the Village Vanguard or Portrait in Jazz, it has so much going for it that I continue to wonder why it hasn’t gotten more love and respect:
1) It’s distinctive: Evans usually worked in a trio format, and while that’s where he burned brightest, Quintessence is a terrific quintet session that’s almost as successful.
2) The band is superb: Bill Evans–piano, Harold Land–tenor sax, Kenny Burrell–guitar, Ray Brown–bass, Philly Joe Jones–drums.
3) A pristine recording: Quintessence borders on reference quality.
4) Cheap heat: Quintessence on vinyl is common and inexpensive.
So you’ve got five great tracks played with that gorgeous, melodic, understated swing that Evans does so well, a brilliant band, and a great sounding, easy-to-find, inexpensive vinyl pressing—why aren’t more people talking about Quintessence? Even the cover art is lovely, though the font favors aesthetics over legibility.
Stan Getz ‘Sweet Rain’
I’m looking forward to scrutinizing the 2024 Verve Acoustic Sounds Series list announced the other day, but one title stood out immediately—‘Sweet Rain.’ Stan Getz has many terrific records, including several must-owns. Every jazz library should have ‘Captain Marvel’—a fusion classic that’s the best Return to Forever album not recorded by Return to Forever. Getz’s third stream classic ‘Focus’ belongs in every ‘G’ section. And, of course, Getz played a massive part in popularizing bossa nova in the US with the Grammy-winning pair ‘Jazz Samba’ and ‘Getz/Gilberto,’ both sound as fresh now as when they were recorded. But standing taller than them all in my personal Getz pantheon is ‘Sweet Rain.’ Getz had plenty of mileage, success, and personal/substance abuse difficulties in his rearview mirror by the time he entered Rudy Van Gelder Studio in March ‘67 for this session, leading Chick Corea-piano, Ron Carter-bass, and Grady Tate-drums. It was the perfect band for this record and an ideal foundation for Getz to build beyond the bossa nova. Mission accomplished. Getz’s legendary tone floats on gossamer wings over their splendid modal intricacies—I don’t want to say Getz’s tone is irresistibly seductive, but after playing this record twice this morning, it’s possible *I* may need a pregnancy test. Ironically, the gentle, velvety sounds that Getz coaxes from his tenor sax starkly contrast with the demons haunting his personal life. Addiction and a violent temper had created a reputation Getz struggled to escape—allegedly, a musician colleague once asked after hearing Getz was having heart surgery, “Did they put one in?” When listening to ‘Sweet Rain,’ it’s hard to believe- this is a record for enjoying with those you love. It seems unnecessary to call out highlight when there are only four tracks totaling 36 minutes, but the Chick Corea penned ‘Windows” is excellent, and the chord changes in “Litha” make me smile every time. There is a rare squeak from the usually reed-accurate Getz during “Con Alma” and one or two other minor honks, but I still believe this is Getz’s masterpiece.
Hobby Orkest (Dutch Hobby Orchestra)
I dropped mention of this group a few weeks back and included a track to sample, but here’s more about this terrific CD that’s spent a lot of time in my headphones since arriving last month.
The tale of the tapes usually arrives in the final stretch of the artist’s biopic, after the bottom has fallen out of their career due to tragedy, substance abuse, and/or financial disaster. Inevitably, the recordings of music that could have changed EVERYTHING mysteriously vanish into the mists of time, awaiting a Netflix docudrama to liberate the artist from the “where are they now?” file, prime them for a world domination tour, and prime their label to release several unnecessary colored vinyl variants for Record Store Day. What a hackneyed, banal narrative—like Lt. Frank Drebin from The Naked Gun would say,
OK, not QUITE like that, but this anecdote isn’t quite like that either. The history of the Dutch Hobby Orchestra (aka Hobby Orkest) is a series of clandestine rehearsals and sneaky midnight studio excursions for surreptitious recordings of THE BEST jazz happening in late-60s Holland. By day, band members took whatever work they could get. TV jingles and incidental music paid the bills, but these musicians were bored and easily frustrated by shallow, pedestrian charts—they had higher, wilder, and more complex aspirations. Unfortunately, enthusiasm, ambition, heart, and chops were no match for TERRIBLE timing—big band jazz couldn’t compete with the expanding mindshare of rock music. So after three years of their dreams outpacing audiences, record labels, and the press, the Hobby Orkest called it a day, their tapes all but forgotten until rescue and release by the Dutch Jazz Archive. This is an excellent collection (they never cut a formal album), and while it won’t change history or inspire a miniseries, the fierce, mighty swing of this 19-piece Dutch Hobby Orchestra keeps me coming back for more. Support this release and the Dutch Jazz Archive at www.jazzarchief.nl
Re-Re-Issues:
Suppose you’re a jazz vinyl enthusiast who spends much time online. In that case, you may have run across a video of Acoustic Sounds boss Chad Kassem announcing the 2024 Verve Acoustic Sounds series titles, including titles from Verve, Impulse, Phillips, and associated labels. Some of these albums are coming around for the second time after receiving the audiophile treatment via earlier pressings on the Classic Records imprint. That’s the extent of the news about these titles that I’ve seen (unless I missed a press release or there’s something buried on the Verve website), so in case you missed it, here’s the list and Chad’s video:
Feb 23 Stan Getz & Bill Evans - Unreleased Session
March 29 Ella Fitzgerald - Clap Hand, Here Comes Charlie
April 26 Gerry Mulligan - Night Lights
May 10 Kenny Burrell - Guitar Forms
May 24 Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges - Back to Back
May 31 Diana Krall - Look of Love
June 14 Billie Holiday - Body and Soul
June 28 Johnny Hodges - Blues A Plenty
July 5 Diana Krall - When I Look In Your Eyes