Description

Newly remastered from the original vinyl at Gearbox Studio with extended liner notes and new information, The Joe Harriott Quintets Swings High, recorded in 1967, saw Joe returning to his hard bop roots on a set that burns with a rare light.

A top band of British jazz players, including the UKs greatest drummer, Phil Seamen, and the sensitive and less-known-than-it-should-be trumpet playing of Stu Hamer, create a session that transcends the difficulties of its recording to create a timeless session, and from the point of view of pure playing, one of Joes very best.

Joe Harriott: alto saxophone
Coleridge Goode: bass
Phil Seaman: drums
Pat Smythe: piano
Stu Hamer: trumpet

Joe plays so fiercely on the record that at times it seems as though hes about to blow his alto apart. Coleridge Goode

Shepherds Serenade always a big one! Great reissue. Gilles Peterson

Some might say that this music is old- fashioned. If youd call Bird and Fats Navarro playing Ornithology old-fashioned, then this is too. But its still strong, warm music played with skill and feeling, and thats enough for me. Richard Williams (1970)