The Cooker

Performer: Lee Morgan (Jazz)
Producer: Alfred Lion
Distributor: EMI Music Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Lee Morgan (trumpet); Pepper Adams (baritone saxophone); Bobby Timmons (piano); Paul Chambers (bass instrument); Philly Joe Jones (drum). Lee Morgan was a tender 19-year-old when he recorded 1957's THE COOKER for Blue Note. While Morgan wouldn't truly hit his stride until a few years after this release, his duties as leader here are mighty impressive, nonetheless. A stellar personnel line-up that includes drummer Philly Joe Jones, bassist Paul Chambers, pianist Bobby Timmons, and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams keeps the musicianship at a remarkably high caliber, and the ensemble's performance on standards like "A Night in Tunisia" and "Just One of Those Things" sizzle, as do their takes on Morgan's two originals. THE COOKER isn't a landmark release, but it is a very solid hard-bop outing that showcases dynamic group chemistry and the formative first steps of Morgan's dazzling trumpet chops.

Along with Freddie Hubbard, Lee Morgan was one of the leading trumpeter/composers of the 1960s hard-bop era. His composition "The Sidewinder" is perhaps THE signature piece of the genre, and is practically the textbook definition of the "boogaloo" groove that became popular in the mid-'60s. Influenced by Clifford Brown, Morgan possessed fleet fingers and a robust tone, and his enormously influential approach utilized blues-based harmony, simple melodic motives, and funky, groove-oriented rhythms. The jazz world was robbed of an innovator when Morgan was shot dead by a jealous girlfriend in 1972.

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