Hard Bop

by The Jazz Messengers

Hard Bop cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1957-04-01
  • Label: Columbia, Philips
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 37:35
  • Community rating: 3.5/5 from 3 ratings

Artists on this release: Richard Rodgers, Ned Washington, Sam Dockery, Art Blakey, Bill Hardman, Spanky DeBrest, Jackie McLean, Nat Hentoff, Victor Young

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Serving as one of the definitive foundational texts of its titular subgenre, this propulsive session features Art Blakey directing an incredibly potent iteration of his famous collective. Showcasing the fiery, highly competitive frontline of Jackie McLean and Bill Hardman, the arrangements blend deep, blues-drenched grooves with blistering bebop technicality. The record permanently codified the muscular, intensely rhythmic aesthetic that would dominate East Coast jazz for a decade.

Genres

Descriptors: Instrumental, Acoustic, Improvisation, Rhythmic, Melodic

Tracklist

  1. Cranky Spanky (04:50)
  2. Stella by Starlight (08:58)
  3. My Heart Stood Still (05:42)
  4. Little Melonae (08:25)
  5. Stanley's Stiff Chicken (09:40)

Credits

More from The Jazz Messengers: full discography