• HENDERSON JOE
• JAZZ
• INTERNATIONAL
• MUSIC

Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson (1937-2001) was the elliptical alternative to John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter when these sessions were recorded in 1969 on the Milestone label under Orrin Keepnews' production, with Miles Davis' sidemen: Herbie Hancock and Ron Carter on electric and acoustic piano and bass and drummer Jack DeJohnette. Their jazz-fusion sound is evident on the super-bopped "Afro-Centric" and the ostinato-anchored title track, which both featured the little-known trumpeter Mike Lawrence. The angular, radioactive blues "Isotope" and the lilting waltz "Black Narcissus," which debuted on this date, are two of the leader's compositional contributions to the jazz canon. The standard "Lazy Afternoon" and Ron Carter's darkly moody "Opus One-Point Five" are the only non-Henderson contributions. The last track, the pianoless, spontaneously-created "Foresight and Afterthought (An Impromptu Suite)," previews the groundbreaking trio recordings Henderson made for the Blue Note and Verve labels in the 1980s and '90s, when his genius was fully appreciated. --Eugene Holley, Jr.