Green, Grant: Solid (Vinyl LP)

In Spring 1964, guitarist Grant Green recorded two blazing post-bop albums — Matador and Solid — both of which would go unreleased for more than a decade as Blue Note instead decided to release the guitarist’s organ-based soul jazz outings of the time.

Green had hinted at this post-bop direction on his 1963 masterpiece Idle Moments, and for the Matador session assembled a quartet with pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and Elvin Jones. A month later Green returned to Van Gelder Studio and expanded the band to a state-of-the-art sextet with the addition of tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson and alto saxophonist James Spaulding.

The high-octane set kicks into gear right from the jump on Duke Pearson’s “Minor League” and burns through George Russell’s hard-charging “Ezz-Thetic” with other highlights including Green’s evocative “Grant’s Tune”, the Sonny Rollins blues “Solid” and an emphatic version of Henderson’s “The Kicker”.

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

1. Minor League
2. Ezz-Thetic
3. Grant's Tune
4. Solid
5. The Kicker