Pinnacles (J. J. Johnson album)

Pinnacles
Studio album by J. J. Johnson
Released	1980
Recorded	September 17–19, 1979
Studio	Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, CA
Genre	Jazz
Length	38:56
Label	Milestone M 9093
Producer	Ed Michel
J. J. Johnson chronology
Chain Reaction: Yokohama Concert, Vol. 2 (1977) Pinnacles (1980) Concepts in Blue (1980)

Pinnacles is an album by jazz trombonist and arranger J. J. Johnson, recorded in 1979 for the Milestone label. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[5]

The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow observed: "Although not quite an essential set, J.J. Johnson is in excellent form on this date". ^[4] All About Jazz wrote: "This is deep ‘Seventies funk, with block horns and lots of percussion. It’s also pretty generic – these guys are more at home playing jazz, and that’s what they should be playing". ^[6]

Track listing

All compositions by J. J. Johnson except where noted.

1. "Night Flight" - 7:46
2. "Deak" - 6:26
3. "Cannonball Junction" - 5:32
4. "Pinnacles" - 6:40
5. "See See Rider" (Traditional) - 6:46
6. "Mr. Clean" (Weldon Irvine) - 5:46

Personnel

• J. J. Johnson - trombone, arranger
• Oscar Brashear - trumpet (tracks 2, 3, 5 & 6)
• Joe Henderson - tenor saxophone (tracks 1–4)
• Tommy Flanagan - piano
• Ron Carter - bass
• Billy Higgins - drums
• Kenneth Nash - percussion (tracks 5 & 6)

Use of Electronic Music Equipment

From the liner notes:

"J.J. Johnson uses Barcus-Berry pickup, Gentle Electric pitch follower, ^[7] and Roland Space Echo on "Cannonball Junction", and the same pickup and pitch follower, plus ARP 2600 Synthesizer and Oberheim Expander Module on "Mr. Clean."

References

1. Milestone Records 9000 series discography, accessed July 20, 2016
2. Milestone Label Discography, accessed July 20, 2016
3. Tommy Flanagan Catalog, accessed July 20, 2016
4. Yanow, Scott. Pinnacles – Review at AllMusic . Retrieved July 18, 2016.
5. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 788. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
6. AAJ Staff, All About Jazz Review, April 1, 1999
7. "Gentle Electric Home Page". gentleelectric.com. Retrieved June 22, 2020.