Lee Morgan – Lee Morgan Sextet (200g LP)

Label : Classic Records ( Blue Note 1541), 200 Gram Vinyl Record
Continuing where his debut left off, Morgan’s second LP in 1956 as a leader for Blue Note, finds the teen prodigy (still only 18) slowly emerging out from the long shadow of his idol and mentor Clifford Brown and feeling his own way among giants. You can hear his confidence growing in his solos, energized and fed by the company he had been keeping rather than any intimidation or hesitation at all. Excellent ensemble work must be credited to Benny Golson, who arranged four of the six numbers on the date. Led by a three-horn assault of Morgan’s trumpet, Blue Note regular Hank Mobley on tenor and the fairly obscure altoist Kenny Rodgers, they cruise through a variety of tempos and moods, the highlights being their memorable takes on “Whisper Not” and “Where Am I?” Mastered and cut by Bernie Grundman on Classic’s all-tube, pure mono cutting system.