Bobby Hutcherson: Montara and Little Angel
From: Montara [Blue Note 1975]
Madlib: Montara
From: Shades of Blue [Blue Note 2003]
There was a post from Codec recently on the excellent Feed Me Good Tunes about certain albums “tracking you down” and subsequently taking possession of your daily existence. As I was reading it I immediately identified with his plight, since something similar has been happening to me recently. For him it was Cannibal Ox’s The Cold Vein (a fine rescue); for me, Bobby Hutcherson’s Montara started crashing on the couch in my living room a few weeks ago and hasn’t left yet. As one of Blue Note’s top sellers in the ’70s, this record is hardly a rarity, but in terms of must-haves, it’s really a no-brainer. Sadly, it has taken me years to realize this.
Montara and I met innocently enough on a day when I happened to have an extra $10 to spend at my local Newbury Comics store. There it was, staring out at me from the “Wicked Cheap” section, one of my notorious “back burner” picks: those records that you always have the intention of acquiring, but something else always seems to take precedence over it. I was dumbfounded when I arrived home and played it, feeling a sort of bittersweet regret, as if I so much time had been lost without it embracing my eardrums all these years.
I’ve always thought that if Hutcherson had chosen a more popular instrument with which to channel his talent, his impact on jazz would have been enormous. As it stands, the vibraphone has carried the curse of not being taken as seriously as, say, the tenor sax or piano. His closest contemporary would be Gary Burton, a giant in his own right, yet Hutcherson was more actively involved in the post-bop “new thing” of the mid-’60s, cutting his teeth on classic Blue Note sessions with Eric Dolphy, Andrew Hill, and Jackie McLean. He briefly swam in the waters of commercial fusion before taking a short detour into Latin jazz with Montara in 1975. This sort of thing had been done before, of course, but Hutcherson approached these rich, Cuban grooves and sophisticated charts as if he had been playing them for decades. It also didn’t hurt that he enlisted players like Willie Bobo, Blue Mitchell, and the underrated Ernie Watts for the session.
The title track has me longing for late summer afternoons, a gorgeous, breezy ballad that is unhurried and casual, with a particularly lyrical statement from Hutcherson on marimba. Eddie Cano’s gentle washes of electric piano blend in flawlessly with the persistent conga pattern, and the fades that bracket the track give a sense of it being locked in an infinite continuum, like it’s been playing forever. (Madlib’s reworking of this track from Blue Note’s Shades of Blue is an interesting comparison, as he suppresses the song’s Latin elements for a rough breakbeat and a vocal hook.) The simple but intelligently-crafted theme of Eddie Martinez’s “Little Angel” is established by the horns before the leader rips into perhaps his best solo on the album, executing rapid-fire 32nd notes with precision.
I really can’t recommend Montara highly enough, though I’m sure many readers here are already intimately familiar with this album. So in the spirit of Codec’s post I ask: are there any “back burner” records – the ones that you had always meant to get your hands on – that took way too long to discover you?
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I can cite a definite example of a record/release that took too long to find me(but thank the Lord, it did): Express Yourself – The Best of Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd St Rhythm Band.
Sweet Moses, but let me shout this from rufe-top: if you are any kind of funk or soul fan, purchase this CD immediately (that is, run, do not walk)!
We're all familiar with the oft-played (and sampled) Express Yourself track; but brothers and sisters, every song of this best-of is worth your time and paper. I guarantee it. Think the loosest, most gritty, low-down parts of War, Edwyn Starr, west coast funk, Sly Stone – and your just inside the fence.
Ear Fuzz – THIS was my 'back burner'.
Keep up the fine work.
polk
Dayton, Ohio
Cheers for this.Hutcherson does have that ear worm thing. I remember picking up a disc of unreleased blue note rarities a couple of years back but the the standout giant by some stretch was a cover of "It's a family affair" by Bobby and I couldn't stop listening to it.
i could rock this cat and Roy Ayers all day.
flood—I'm glad to see you're still kickin' it at the fuzz. I actually missed coming across your posts here, even though I probably read floodwatchmusic more often than the newspaper.
A few random thoughts:
a)Feed Me Good Tunes is one of the best music blogs in the universe. Besides having great taste in music, the writing is excellent. I did a guest post there last summer—coincidentally, Madlib was the artist I featured.
b)Bobby Hutcherson is an underappreciated genius…great song choices, too.
c)Manu DiBango is pretty nice with the vibraphone also. Never really contemplated the question of who my
favorite vibraphonist is, but some of the best are/were Bobby, Manu, Roy Ayers, Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, and Cal Tjader. You're right, though—this is not the instrument of choice for those seeking recognition, fortune and fame.
d)I was trying to think of a "back burner" record, but there are too many to mention. Those are the best kind of records—often much better than releases I anticipate and/or overestimate. That feeling of "bittersweet regret" you described has a lot to do with why I've spent a lifetime diggin' in the crates. As you know, it can be very addictive…
Thanks again for a great post. Be easy.
I’ve got a track from 1995 by a french rapper called Ménelik that samples this joint. Beat by Jimmy Jay. If you want to I can send you an MP3. Keep up the good work!
@ Scholar – thanks for the kind words, it's good to see you here! I'd have to say my favorite vibes players would be a few of the ones you mentioned: Hutch, Tjader, Milt… not too familiar with Manu DiBango; I'll have to check him out. Keep diggin'…
@ Enkeling – I'd actually like to hear that track, thanks… I'll be in touch.
flood:
Beautiful post – you've given me something new to chase down.
I like the vibraphone (like, for sure, love, I don't know yet), but even if Hutcherson reveals himself as the puzzle piece I just wasn't meant to join, going after your experience is the least I can do in return for you sharing mine.
There are weeks when I wish more music came looking for me; it makes for some easy, powerful writing. But then, it'd cheapen that feeling of discovering and being discovered, to have it happen so often.
Ear Fuzz is now on my government watch list!
-Codec
P.S. Hi to Scholar!
This post (along with that one of Shuggie Otis) make it easy for me to call this my new favorite site!
Just knowing there are other people out there who really appreciate the music, the true form of the creative process, makes me feel a bit better.
My little "Back Burner" track would probably have to be 'Law of the Land' by Matumbi. I read about Matumbi somewhere and within a couple of weeks found a copy of that 12" in great condition.