Stanley Turrentine - Blue Note Stanley Turrentine/Sextet Sessions (2002)

During its history, Mosaic has compiled many box sets dealing with the classic Blue Note years. Its five-CD Stanley Turrentine box is a bit unusual in that it groups together six albums (five from 1961-1964 and one from 1969) that are only a small percentage of Mr. T's 1960s output for the label. While he recorded in quartets, on many dates with organist Shirley Scott (his wife during the era), and with larger groups, these albums (Comin' Your Way, Jubilee Shout, A Chip Off the Old Block, In Memory Of, Mr. Natural, and Another Story) all team him with one or two other horn players. Turrentine, a soulful tenor who had a distinctive sound of his own no matter what the setting, is primarily heard playing straight-ahead jazz. His sidemen include brother Tommy Turrentine, Blue Mitchell, Lee Morgan, and Thad Jones on trumpets, Tom McIntosh and Curtis Fuller on trombones, pianists Horace Parlan, Sonny Clark, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, and Cedar Walton, guitarist Kenny Burrell, a variety of bassists and drummers, and (on one date) Shirley Scott. Although these albums were unrelated to each other, there is a strong unity to this box, reinforced by Turrentine's consistency and the high quality of this hard bop-oriented music. While the performances (which include one set dedicated to Count Basie) may not be the tenor's most essential recordings, these are certainly above average and quite enjoyable.