Harold Land

Harold Land – The Fox (Remastered 2024) (1960/2024) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Harold Land’s hard bop album “The Fox” was originally released in 1960, with Contemporary Records reissuing it in ‘69. Featuring Harold Land (tenor sax), Dupree Bolton (trumpet), Elmo Hope (piano), Herbie Lewis (bass), Frank Butler (drums) it was produced by David Axelrod. This new edition features remastered hi-res audio from the original tapes.

Due to his decision to settle in Los Angeles, tenor saxophonist Harold Land has long been underrated. A strong bop stylist who later on would be influenced a great deal by John Coltrane, Land in 1959 had a sound closer to Sonny Rollins. For this excellent straight-ahead quintet set with trumpeter Dupree Bolton and pianist Elmo Hope, Land performs four of Hope’s superior but little-known compositions along with two of his own. This is high-quality hard bop, easily recommended to fans of straight-ahead jazz.

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Makoto Terashita meets Harold Land – Topology (2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Studio Masters By admin · June 10, 2023 · Comments off

BBE Music presents the fourth release in their acclaimed J Jazz Masterclass Series: Topology by Makoto Terashita and Harold Land. Originally released in 1983 on the cult Aketa’s Disk label, Topology captures a surprising yet fascinating and engaging collaboration between a young Japanese jazz pianist and an elder American statesman of jazz.Reissued by BBE Music for the first time since original release 36 years ago, Topology showcases the extraordinary compositional and playing skill of Makoto Terashita, the young pianist responsible for five of the album’s six tracks, alongside the confident and seasoned tones of Harold Land, respected US veteran sax player and former colleague of some of the leading jazz artists of the 50s, 60s and 70s including Max Roach, Clifford Brown, Gerald Wilson and Bobby Hutcherson. By the time he came to record with Terashita in 1983, Land was in his mid-50s and had numerous album credits under his belt, including some twelve albums as leader. In contrast, Terashita was in his early 30s with just one album to his name, his stunning 1978 debut Great Harvest. Notwithstanding the apparent disparity in experience, the creative relationship they fostered is audibly evident in the wonderful music that was captured during the recording session.Topology kicks off with ‘Dragon Dance’, an epic spiritual jazz tour de force elegantly ushered in by an extended solo piano introduction from Terashita. This track was chosen to open volume 2 of BBE’s universally praised ‘J Jazz’ compilation. The energy and impact of tracks like ‘Dragon Dance’ and the powerful bop of ‘Crossing’- both Terashitsa-penned numbers – is balanced by more nuanced and reflective tracks like Land’s own composition ‘World Peace’. In total, Topology presents the listener with a complete experience of two musicians from different generations and countries united in musical spirit.A long out of print rarity known only to a handful of Japanese jazz collectors, Topology is now available once more, reissued for the first time as a 4.

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Harold Land – Westward Bound! (2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Studio Masters By admin · March 4, 2023 · Comments off

Contains previously un-issued live recordings of unsung tenor saxophone hero Harold Land from The Penthouse in Seattle from 1962, 1964 and 1965 with stellar musicians including Hampton Hawes, Carmell Jones, Buddy Montgomery and Philly Joe Jones.

Released in partnership with the Harold Land Estate, the remastered audio was captured from direct transfers of the original Penthouse’s tape reels.

Westward Bound! includes an extensive booklet with rare photos; essays by jazz historian Michael Cuscuna, co-producers Zev Feldman and Cory Weeds, and pianist Eric Reed; plus interviews with tenor saxophone giant Joe Lovano and the legendary saxophonist Sonny Rollins.

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