Blue Lights, Volume 1 (LP)

Kenny Burrell had been recording for Blue Note for two years when he went into Manhattan Towers to cut Blue Lights in 1958, a high-quality blowing session that produced two stellar volumes. The guitarist assembled an impressive line-up with trumpeter Louis Smith, tenor saxophonists Junior Cook and Tina Brooks, pianists Duke Jordan and Bobby Timmons, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Art Blakey. Volume 1 opens with Burrell’s relaxed blues “Yes Baby” before shifting into Jordan’s more animated “Scotch Blues.” Burrell casts a spell with a stunning rendition of Vernon Duke’s “Autumn In New York” before closing out the set with a percolating version of the Duke Ellington warhorse “Caravan.” The album’s final touch was the graceful cover which features an illustration by Andy Warhol, one of three Blue Note covers the soon-to-be famed artist collaborated on with designer Reid Miles.

This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is mono, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.