In some ways tenor saxophonist
Booker Ervin was the archetypal jazz player for the post-bop 1960s, combining the tradition of Texas sax with just the hint of edgy modernism, a sort of the Delta-meets-Morocco sound so accessible that it is easy to miss the chances
Ervin took with his music. Although his career was short (cancer claimed him in the summer of 1970 when he was just shy of his 40th birthday),
Ervin still managed to record some 20 albums as a frontman, most notably his "book" series, The Song Book,
The Blues Book,
The Space Book, and this fine session,
The Freedom Book, which finds him working with a rhythm section of
Jaki Byard on piano,
Richard Davis on bass, and
Alan Dawson on drums. Recorded on December 3, 1963,
The Freedom Book is a near perfect set of modern hard bop, ranging just far enough out there to feel fresh but retaining a strong lifeline to bop tradition. Highlights of the session include an impressive
Ervin original, "A Lunar Tune," a fine version of
Randy Weston's "Cry Me Not," the deliberately strident "Al's In," and another
Ervin composition, the moving "A Day to Mourn," an emotionally charged ballad written after the assassination of JFK. The bonus track, an interesting and brief treatment of
Victor Young's "Stella by Starlight," a piece strongly associated with
Charlie Parker, was recorded at the
Freedom Book session but was originally released on the album
Groovin' High. It fits perfectly here, capping off a wonderful album. ~ Steve Leggett