Now Hear This | ||||
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Studio album by Duke Pearson | ||||
Released | 1969 | |||
Recorded | December 3, 1968 | |||
Studio | Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ | |||
Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 43:19 | |||
Label | Blue Note BST 84308 | |||
Producer | Duke Pearson | |||
Duke Pearson chronology | ||||
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Now Hear This is the thirteenth album by American pianist and arranger Duke Pearson. It features big band performances recorded in 1968 and released on the Blue Note label. [1]
Columbus Calvin "Duke" Pearson Jr. was an American jazz pianist and composer. Allmusic describes him as having a "big part in shaping the Blue Note label's hard bop direction in the 1960s as a record producer."
A big band is a type of musical ensemble that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and dominated jazz in the early 1940s when swing was most popular. The term "big band" is also used to describe a genre of music. One problem with this usage is that it overlooks the variety of music played by these bands.
Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label that is owned by Universal Music Group and operated with Decca Records. Established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derives its name from the blue notes of jazz and the blues. Originally dedicated to recording traditional jazz and small group swing, from 1947 the label began to switch its attention to modern jazz. Although the original company did not record many of the pioneers of bebop, significant exceptions are Thelonious Monk, Fats Navarro and Bud Powell.
The Allmusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine awarded the album 4½ stars stating "Duke Pearson returned to a big band setting for Now Hear This!, once again proving his agility and inventiveness as an arranger and leader... Even if much of this music is beautiful, Pearson's arrangements take chances and are unconventional, which means it rewards close listening as well". [2]
Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic |
All compositions by Duke Pearson except where noted
The piano is an acoustic, stringed musical instrument invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700, in which the strings are struck by hammers. It is played using a keyboard, which is a row of keys that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings.
Randal Edward Brecker is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B.
Marvin Louis Stamm is an American jazz trumpeter.
Ella at Duke's Place is a 1965 studio album by Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied by the Duke Ellington Orchestra. While it was the second studio album made by Fitzgerald and Ellington, following the 1957 Song book recording, a live double album Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur was recorded in 1967.
Francis A. & Edward K. is an album by Frank Sinatra with Duke Ellington and his big band.
The Stockholm Concert, 1966 is a 1966 live album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied in part by the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The recording remained unreleased until 1984.
Big Band is a 1997 album by jazz saxophonist Joe Henderson, the fourth of the five albums he recorded with Verve Records during the end of his career.
The Ellington Suites is an album by American pianist, composer, and bandleader Duke Ellington which collects three suites recorded in 1959, 1971, and 1972 released on the Pablo label in 1976. The album won a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Big Band in 1976. Ellington wrote "The Queen's Suite" for Queen Elizabeth II who was presented with a single pressing of the recording, which was not commercially issued during Ellington's lifetime.
The Popular Duke Ellington is a studio album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington featuring many of the tunes associated with his orchestra rerecorded in 1966 and released on the RCA label in 1967.
Piano in the Background is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1960.
First Time! The Count Meets the Duke is an album by American pianists, composers and bandleaders Duke Ellington and Count Basie with their combined Orchestras recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1961.
The Cosmic Scene is a 1958 album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington. Featuring a nonet rather than his usual big band, the album was credited as "Duke Ellington's Spacemen" and was recorded and released on the Columbia label. It was reissued by Mosaic Records in 2007.
Blues in Orbit is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Columbia label in 1959 and released in 1960. The album was re-released on CD in 2004 with bonus tracks including alternate takes and tracks from earlier sessions.
Festival Session is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Columbia Records label in 1959. The album was rereleased on CD in 2004 with two bonus tracks.
Live at the Blue Note is a live album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded at The Blue Note nightclub in Chicago for the Roulette label in 1959.
Duke Ellington Presents... is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Bethlehem label in 1956.
Ellington '55 is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Capitol label in 1953 and 1954 and released in 1955. The album features the Ellington Orchestra's performances of popular big band compositions and was reissued on CD with two bonus tracks in 1999.
Kofi is an album by American trumpeter Donald Byrd featuring performances by Byrd with Frank Foster, Lew Tabackin, Duke Pearson, Ron Carter, Bob Cranshaw, Airto Moreira, Wally Richardson, and Mickey Roker recorded in 1969 and 1970 and released on the Blue Note label in 1995.
Introducing Duke Pearson's Big Band is the eleventh album by American pianist and arranger Duke Pearson featuring big band performances recorded in 1967 and released on the Blue Note label. The album was rereleased with six bonus tracks from Now Hear This, Pearson's 1968 big band recording, on a single CD in 1998.
I Don't Care Who Knows It is an album by American pianist and arranger Duke Pearson featuring performances recorded between 1968 and 1970. The album was released on the Blue Note label in 1996.
It Could Only Happen with You is the final album by American pianist and arranger Duke Pearson featuring performances recorded in 1970 but not released on the Blue Note label until 1974.
Inspired Abandon is an album by American jazz trombonist Lawrence Brown with Johnny Hodges featuring performances recorded in 1965 for the Impulse! label. The album was rereleased on CD as bonus tracks on the American CD reissue of Everybody Knows Johnny Hodges.
Don't Sleep in the Subway is an album by American jazz saxophonist Johnny Hodges featuring performances with a big band recorded in 1967 and released on the Verve label.