Search - Grant Green :: Solid

A Blue Note special

N. Dorward | Toronto, ON Canada | 03/16/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Grant Green recorded a mountain of discs for Blue Note in the 1960s; so many that quite a few were left in the can till after his premature death in 1979. As it turns out quite a lot of the unreleased discs count among his best work. In 1964 he twice recorded with a rhythm section of McCoy Tyner, Bob Cranshaw & Elvin Jones; the May session yielded _Matador_, & the June session, on which Joe Henderson and James Spaulding were added, yielded _Solid_. It's a good session, probably the most hard-hitting Green ever recorded, with a typically catholic choice of material by Duke Pearson, George Russell (the very long reading of "Ezz-Thetic"), Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson ("The Kicker", recorded before the famous Horace Silver version), Burt Bacharach ("Wives and Lovers", included as a bonus track but left off the original vinyl), & one Green composition. As with a lot of Green discs, the leader doesn't in fact occupy a more prominent position than any of the other players, especially as Green leaves comping duties to Tyner. -- It's rather intriguing, incidentally, how much Green followed not just Coltrane's influence but also Sonny Rollins. Countless Green discs include readings of Rollins tunes or Rollins-associated tunes (e.g. "I'm an Old Cowhand" on _Talking 'Bout_, "Airegin" & "Oleo" on the sessions with Sonny Clark)--Rollins' 1954 blues "Solid" is sufficiently basic that one wonders why Green didn't just write his own line & get a little extra cash for a composer credit.A very good disc--not, perhaps, quite Green's best (_Idle Moments_ & the Sonny Clark set would be the first ports of call for a listener new to Green) but certainly a worthwhile album."

Grant Green's Best

Ben Fernandez | Boston, MA | 10/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This cd and "Matador" are two of Grant Green's best cd's. Both were recorded with Coltrane's rhythm section, and both are classics. "Matador" and "Solid" are to Grant Green as "Live at the Half Note" and "Full House" are to Wes Montgomery. Really inspired playing by all."

Harder edged than most Green albums, but it burns!

placidothecat | MD United States | 02/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Harder edged than most Grant Green albums. Green is pushed to new heights thanks to an amazing support cast. Everyone involved simply burns. The ensemble plaing and soloing on George Russell's "Ezz-thetic" is mind blowing. Great tunes, great playing, too bad the remastered CD edition seems to be dissapearing fast. Get it if you can!"