The Best of Herbie Hancock: The Blue Note Years [Remaster]

Performer: Herbie Hancock
Artist: Miles Davis; Hank Mobley; Dexter Gordon; Freddie Hubbard; Donald Byrd; Sonny Rollins; Grachan Moncur III; Ron Carter; Wayne Shorter; Billy Higgins; Tony Williams; Thad Jones; Julian Priester; Eddie Henderson; Jaco Pastorius; Stevie Wonder
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: Personnel: Herbie Hancock (piano); Dexter Gordon, George Coleman, Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone); Freddie Hubbard, Donald Byrd (trumpet); Thad Jones (flugelhorn); Grachan Moncur III (trombone); Peter Phillips (bass trombone); Jerry Dodgion (alto flute); Butch Warren, Ron Carter, Chuck Israels (bass); Billy Higgins, Tony Williams, Mickey Roker (drums). Producer: Alfred Lion. Compilation producer: Michael Cuscuna. Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey between 1962 and 1968. Personnel: Herbie Hancock (vocals, piano, keyboards, synthesizer, vocoder, programming); Stevie Wonder (vocals, harmonica); Wayne Shorter, Bennie Maupin (tenor saxophone); Eddie Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Miles Davis (trumpet); Julian Priester (trombone); Alphonse Mouzon (keyboards, drums); Ron Carter (upright bass); Jaco Pastorius, Paul Jackson , Bill Laswell (bass guitar); Harvey Mason, Sr. , Terri Lyne Carrington, Tony Williams (drums); Bill Summers (percussion). Liner Note Author: Bob Belden. A bold jazz innovator whose stylistic range is rivaled only by his mentor, Miles Davis, keyboardist/composer/bandleader Herbie Hancock receives Columbia/Legacy's ESSENTIAL treatment on this excellent 2006 two-disc set. Although whittling the finest moments of Hancock's strikingly eclectic, decades-spanning career down to a mere 20 tracks is an exercise in futility, the collection reveals admirable results within those constraints, offering up tunes from 1962 to 2000. Among the many brilliant moments on this comp are Hancock's swinging hard-bop classics "Watermelon Man" and "Cantaloupe Island" (both featuring ace trumpeter Freddie Hubbard), the fiercely funky "Chameleon," and the groundbreaking electro-pop hit "Rockit." Although many of Hancock's individual albums are essential in their own right, and the four-disc HERBIE HANCOCK BOX delves deeper into his daunting catalogue, this compilation is the perfect introduction to the stunning stylistic and technical breadth of the pioneering artist's output. Calling a two-disc retrospective of the varied and celebrated career of Herbie Hancock "essential" is a tall order to fill. Sony/BMG's Legacy does, as would be expected, an incomplete but decent job at offering a fine representative look at the artist, and at choosing best-known cuts to do so. This set is admirably cross-licensed by producer Bob Belden, who also wrote the great liner notes. Disc one is a journey in and of itself and offers a fine portrait not only of Hancock's changes as a musician, but also the changes in jazz brewing at the time. It begins with "Watermelon Man" from Takin' Off, Hancock's first Blue Note recording in 1962, and follows curiously enough with a fine reading of "'Round Midnight" off Sonny Rollins' Now's the Time offering for RCA in 1964. You get "Cantaloupe Island" and the title track from Maiden Voyage before Hancock's Columbia recordings as a member of the Miles Davis Quintet in 1966 begin. The two quintet cuts are "Circle" and "Sorcerer." There is no electric Miles-era material found here. This compilation follows the artist to Warner Brothers for "Tell Me a Bedtime Story" off Fat Albert's Rotunda (the serial music for Bill Cosby's groovy kids cartoon show), and then moves into the solo material with "Hidden Shadows" from Sextant and "Chameleon" from Head Hunters. The disc ends with "Joanna's Theme," from the soundtrack to the film Death Wish. When one considers what's been covered so far, the journey is actually amazing. Platter two continues with more fusion tracks, from Thrust, and a couple from the undervalued Mr. Hands issued in 1980, 1978's Sunlight, the truly awful Monster, and the innovative Future Shock (yes, it's "Rockit"; what else?). But there are also tracks from the many acoustic recordings he did for Columbia such as the Herbie Hancock Trio disc with Tony Williams and Ron Carter. Ditto material from V.S.O.P., the Gershwin's World outing, and of course the solo album New Standard in 1995. Fans can argue all day about what should have been left out and what should have been included but wasn't, but what does matter is how the wild twists and turns in Hancock's career have showcased him to be a chameleon as well as an innovator. While one may wish to place Maiden Voyage or Head Hunters in a newbie's hands, this serves as an undeniably well-rounded historical introduction. ~ Thom Jurek Mirroring his onetime boss and mentor Miles Davis' own protean output, Herbie Hancock has explored hard-bop, soul-jazz, fusion, funk-rock, soundtracks, hip-hop-inflected pop ("Rockit"), and many permutations in between. His early work for Blue Note, though, offers the best entr�e for newcomers. Compiled from five of his albums for the label and covering a period from 1962-1968, this fine sampler -- a straight reissue of 1988's The Best of Herbie Hancock: The Blue Note Years -- includes highlights from his debut, Takin' Off ("Watermelon Man"), the classic Maiden Voyage (the title track and "Dolphin Dance"), and the early electric album Speak Like a Child (the title track and "Riot"). Add to this more indelible cuts like "Cantaloupe Island" and "One Finger Snap," not to mention the presence of numerous '60s jazz luminaries (Dexter Gordon, Freddie Hubbard, Thad Jones, Hank Mobley, Billy Higgins, et al.), and you have perfect way to get a taste of some of the best modern jazz committed to wax. ~ Stephen Cook Mirroring his onetime boss and mentor Miles Davis' own protean output, Herbie Hancock has explored hard bop, soul-jazz, fusion, funk-rock, soundtracks, hip-hop-inflected pop ("Rockit"), and many permutations in between. His early work for Blue Note, though, offers the best entr�e for newcomers. Compiled from five of his albums for the label and covering a period from 1962-1968, this fine sampler includes highlights from his debut, Takin' Off ("Watermelon Man"), the classic Maiden Voyage (the title track and "Dolphin Dance"), and the early electric album Speak Like a Child (the title track and "Riot"). Add to this more indelible cuts like "Cantaloupe Island" and "One Finger Snap," not to mention the presence of numerous '60s jazz luminaries (Dexter Gordon, Freddie Hubbard, Thad Jones, Hank Mobley, Billy Higgins, et al.), and you have perfect way to get a taste of some of the best modern jazz committed to wax. ~ Stephen Cook Herbie Hancock is arguably the most influential jazz pianist since the late Bill Evans. A true master of his instrument, Hancock has long possessed the ability to play unique, knotty solos, all the while infusing his music with plenty of soul and groove. Whereas many of his contemporaries perform in a more detached and clinical style, Hancock can charm even the most casual of jazz listeners with his warm touch. This Blue Note collection presents many of the 1960s tunes that made the post-bop pianist famous, including "Watermelon Man" and "Cantaloupe Island," songs that stem from his groundbreaking forays into the funkiest territories of jazz. Also heard here is the ethereal "Maiden Voyage," which boast a classic Freddie Hubbard trumpet solo and remains one of Hancock's most popular compositions. THE BEST OF also presents the lilting "Dolphin Dance" and the hard-swinging "Riot," which features a scorching solo by Hancock. Although this compilation only draws from one decade of Hancock's career, it is an excellent compilation of the pianist's '60s output.

Rolling Stone (9/2/71, p.44) - "...ranges from the street-strutting funk of the early `Watermelon Man' through statements succesfully more challenging and complex..." JazzTimes (p.65) - "[Hancock is] a musician with passion, an open mind and an awareness of history that constantly propels him forward into new sonic territory."

One of the most open-eared and forward-thinking jazz musicians of his day, Hancock has, more than just about anyone else, consistently tried to broaden the music's horizons by mixing it with the most interesting elements of contemporary pop. Hancock has consistently pushed the envelope, from his earliest days with Miles Davis to his jazz-rock fusion of the early '70s and his early embrace of synthesizers and electronic instruments, his early-'80s experiments with hip-hop and sampling, or more recently, his acoustic piano reinterpretations of songs--the new standards, in his parlance--by everyone from Don Henley to Nirvana.

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