A little-known tenor saxophonist deserving of much wider recognition, Teddy Edwards made two Pacific Jazz albums including 1960’s impressive Sunset Eyes, a showcase for his rich, powerful, full-blooded sound that dispels any preconceived notions that all West Coast jazz musicians maintained a uniformly placid musical demeanor. The album was drawn from three recording sessions with three different quartets including Edwards’ working band at the time with pianist Joe Castro, bassist Leroy Vinnegar, and drummer Billy Higgins. Also featured are pianists Ronnie Ball and Amos Trice, bassist Ben Tucker, and drummer Al Levitt. Highlights of the set include Edwards penned originals like the opener “Tempo de Blues,” “Takin’ Off,” and the title track, Vinnegar’s “Vintage ’57,” and the stunning ballad performance of “I Hear A Rhapsody.” and featured a cast of musicians including pianist Joe Castro, bassist Leroy Vinnegar, drummer Billy Higgins, and others.
Tracklist
Side A
Tempo De Blues
Vintage '57
I Hear A Rhapsody
Up In Teddy's New Flat
Side B
Sunset Eyes
Teddy's Tune
Takin' Off
Blue Note Records’ Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series is produced by Joe Harley and features all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering is by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and vinyl is manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI).