Track Listing

1. Rosewood
2. Everytime I See You
3. Legend of the Cheops
4. Rahsaan's Run
5. Sunshowers
6. Theme for Maxine
7. Isabel, the Liberator [*]
8. Joshua C. [*]
9. Why? [*]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #192515 in Music
• Released on: 1998-09-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered

Amazon.com
The year was 1977, and plugged-in jazz fusion was the local tongue in the mainstream jazz world. But trumpeter Woody Shaw, who'd by then done stints with Eric Dolphy, Bud Powell, Horace Silver, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon, and others, breezed onto the Columbia jazz roster with this powerhouse recording. With a raft of Latin-tinged numbers, Shaw showed why he was the trumpet's leading mainstream proponent. Shaw's tone was ultraconfident, hard when it ought to be and then flowingly loose elsewhere. Shaw's bands for this session, which range from a quintet to a 15-piece, all embrace a wide flange of expertise, from fast, albeit rounded, rhythms to occasional flights outward by Joe Henderson and Shaw himself. Sure, some of these tunes sound dated, as if their architecture was in a struggle against fusion's melodies. But in this reissue, which on CD draws three cuts from Shaw's later For Sure! session, one can hear the roots of the acoustic jazz rebirth that came some years later with the burgeoning "young lions" scene. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews

Celestial Harmonies
I have been an avid follower and listener of Woody Shaw since I heard his album Moontrane back in 1976 when I was in high school. If I'm not mistaken, he also plays cornet on this recording, as well as trumpet and flugelhorn. This was his first Colombia records recording, and they are all exceptional. Woody was a passionate, intriguing, intellectual and masterful soloist. Beautiful tunes and arrangements. Strong contributions from all the supporting musicians (Joe Henderson and Woody playing together is worth the price of admission right there!). Besides Onaje's tune, my faves are also "Rosewood", "Theme for Maxine" and "Rahsaan's Run". The addition of a few tunes from his "For Sure" album is a definite bonus. Still listening to Rosewood to this day. Check it out!

A Jazz Classic
This was Woody Shaw's first recording on a major label. It features different combinations of groups from quartets to fourteen-piece esembles. The music cooking and hard-driving (Rosewood, Rashaan's Run), modal (Theme For Maxine), light-hearted (Every Time I See You). Woody was a brilliant composer and improviser. This album demonstrates that emphatically. Woody was the best trumpet player of his generation and he left us too soon. The solo from Joe Henderson on 'Theme for Maxine' is one his all-time greats - an added treat. On the CD, couple of bonus cuts are added from Woody III which are fine, but the material on Rosewood is definitely stronger.

This recorded gem is a must for all lovers of Jazz.
This recording documents the major label debut of one of the finest improvisers to come onto the international jazz scene in the 60's/70's. Here Woody is heard in several differant ensemble formats. The sizes vary from the standard quintet(Trumpet/ tenor sax frontline), to larger groups which includes a variety of woodwinds/ percussion/ and even harp. Woody's arranging/composing is beautifully showcased throughout this classic release.The compositions are harmonically dense however they are still quite accessable melodically speaking. What stands out the most to me is Shaw's modern improvisational concepts that are derived from John Coltrane , McCoy Tyner, and Eric Dolphy to name a few. Standout performances are given by Woody's then working band~ The Late Carter Jefferson- Saxes, Onaje Allen Gumbs-Keyboards (his beautiful composition[included in ths CD] "Every Time I See You" has been putting a smile on my face for 20+ years), Clint Houston-Bass, Victor Lewis-Drums. Joe Henderson is featured on several numbers to really make this a complete package. This CD release includes 3 bonus tracks that were chosen from Woody's Columbia LP "For Sure". This helps the first time listener to hear the developing direction of one of America's True Jazz Legends...I hope that Columbia decides to release it's entire Woody Shaw catolog on CD..It's about time.