With the release of Silver in Seattle: Live at The Penthouse from Horace Silver this week, the legendary Blue Note imprint expands our appreciation for one of the great jazz pianists. These 1965 recordings contain all the vitality of last year's Forces of Nature: Live at Slugs' from McCoy Tyner and Joe Henderson. Joe Henderson offered up real fire on that 1966 set, and he brings his best to these 1965 tracks too. In a sense, this is as much a reissue for the Silver fans as it is for the Henderson ones.
Recorded at The Penthouse nightclub in Seattle over the course of two August nights in 1965, this album features Woody Shaw on trumpet, Joe Henderson on tenor saxophone, Teddy Smith on bass, and Roger Humphries on drums. Behind Horace Silver commanding the band from the piano, is there any doubt before you even play this that the music is going to be smoking hot? Opening with Joe Henderson's "The Kicker", things take off for the skies. Henderson sets the pace from the first few notes, with Shaw answering his wails, and Silver providing anchors to the melody underneath. This is a scorcher of a performance, and for those who are drawn to Horace Silver for the smoothness of his playing, there may be some surprise at how much juice is in this. Silver offers up "Song for My Father" next. Like "The Kicker", this one is also from Silver's seminal 1962 album Song for My Father. And while the band on that release featured this line-up minus Woody Shaw, the trumpeter puts his own stamp on the song here. Humphries uses a light touch on the drums, while Shaw's trumpet carries the hook with Henderson's sax. Of course, this is a Horace Silver classic, and it's a given that he is going to shine on this one. His phrasing is forceful but smooth, with Henderson's muted sax playing a response.
There's an elegance (as always) to Horace Silver's touch on the keys, and this live set lets us hear the heart and soul in his work maybe in a more visceral way than some of his studio recordings. "The Cape Verdean Blues", another Silver standard and the title track of his about-to-be-released record of the same name when this set was recorded, is perhaps the best showcase on Silver in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse of the pianist's absolute mastery of the keys. As always, he lets his band take their turns, but ultimately what rings in the ear is the nuanced and intuitive touch he brings, both as leader and as player in an ensemble. The epic "Sayonara Blues" is the real centerpiece of this recording, and each player brings something to this ruminative and expansive number. At the heart of the selection is Horace Silver, and if his piano is not leading the charge, it is the key to holding these musicians around a central idea, and doing it with wit and style as one can always expect from a Horace Silver recording.
Recorded in August 1965 by KING-FM radio host and engineer Jim Wilke, Silver in Seattle: Live at The Penthouse was mastered by Matthew Lutthans, and produced by Zev Feldman. With photo-filled liner notes by Don Was, this is one heck of a release. To call this essential would be a tremendous understatement. Anyone who wants to hear jazz greatness, needs this set in their collection. It really did help me see Horace Silver in a new light, and provided evidence of Joe Henderson's amazing adaptability in that era. This is very highly recommended.
Silver in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse by Horce Silver is out tomorrow on Blue Note.