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One thing noted, if you can, avoid the RVG re-issue and try and get the original issue on CD or an import. Along with other progressive musicians such as Joe Henderson on tenor, Woody Shaw on trumpet and Elvin Jones on drums, "Unity" leaps out of the standard blues progressions into the modal vein with tunes such as Shaw's "Zoltan" and "The Moontrane" plus a smok'ng Henderson solo on "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" to make this album a classic of its type. If you're tired of the usual organ-sax-guitar combo, then the classic "Unity" by the Coltrane of the organ, Larry Young, fits the bill. Fortunately a friend laid a Japanese copy (24 bit) on me and it was far superior than the Van Gelder re-issue in terms of sound imagery and separation which is practically non-existent on the U.S. Young would go further into the avant garde with his later albums such as "Of Love and Peace", "Mother Ship" but this classic was the one that pointed the way. I've listened to this album as far as back as the '60s when it was issued, I believe in '66 and have never grown tired of it. copy. The later RVG releases are far better sonically than "Unity" or "Out to Lunch" such as "Song for My Father", "Adam's Apple", "JuJu" ,"Inner Urge" and "Maiden Voyage".
Of course, when you are pounding and moving the notes like Young does, the listener can be forgiven for focusing on the music and not on the sound, but if one takes a moment to hear it, the production is really excellent and original. As a former church organist converted to jazz piano over a thirty year period, I didn't think there was anything that could get me interested in the organ again, but I was wrong. The organ of Larry Young in Unity has a bold, crisp sound that is hard to get without a lot of old equipment, like the church organ speaker my band and I used to carry to gigs to get the leslie sound. There's a serious shortage of great jazz organ recordings, but this is the one they will all be judged by, so go ahead and add this to your collection to see how high the bar is set. This is a wonderful recording.
This was truly a date for the ages; it sounds just as fresh today as it did when released over 40 years ago. This date from 1965, really showcased his advanced harmonic and melodic style.
While I applaud those who appreciate his artistry, I believe that this description does not really do him justice. Larry Young has been referred to as the "Coltrane of the B-3 organ".
Larry Young, on the other hand, had a totally different conception. During the era that this recording was made, jazz organ on Blue Note was dominated by Jimmy Smith, whose success helped keep Blue Note afloat financially.
Jimmy played in a blues and boppish style. Additionally, the supporting cast was truly world class; Woody Shaw on trumpet (one of his first dates), Joe Henderson, and the legendary Elvin Jones.
This recording should be in everyone's basic jazz library.
Larry played the Organ more like a piano so he constructs his solos on lines more than sticking to the more chordal improvisation that was so heavily used by Smith and others. Larry Young was the first Organist to start to break away from the Jimmy Smith tradition. The players are in top form, the Compositions are played with intensity. Jimmy Smith is the king of the Organ but Young took what Smith had done and refined it.
"Moontrane", another Shaw original, was written for John Coltrane since he was one of Shaws, Youngs, and Hendersons biggest influences. He also added his own material to start a whole new way to look at an instrument that was handicapped by it's own size, but stood out with it's incredible sound. Joining the "Young" organ master is the masterful Elvin Jones with his complicated Rhythmic drumming, Elvin had just left the Coltrane group and, if you have heard any of his earlier sessions with the Coltrane group, you will start to hear his playing change in a way that he is more open to what the soloist is doing yet still keeping the beat and Enhancing the feeling. "Unity" is an album that belongs in the post-Hardbop category. The group plays a reworking of the standard "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" and features excellent solos from all around. Woody Shaw is a very fine trumpeter who sounds like a combonation of Blue Mitchell and Freddie Hubbard.
"Zoltan", the opening tune, was composed by Woody Shaw and the solo work done on this song alone is worth the price of the album. Young and Jones play a Duo on "Monks Dream" which is obviously by Thelonious Monk.
The closer, also by shaw, is a smoker and uses even more complex harmonies and chord patterns that "Moontrane" not to mention the odd number of 5o bars. If you have experienced any of his first few sessions for the Prestige label, you will hear the undeniable Jimmy Smith influence in his playing.
The form is standard 32 bars but the harmonies and Chordal structure are much different than that of many standard jazz compositions. Joe Henderson, a very talented Tenor Saxophonist is often considered to be incredibly original yet you will hear an almost direct relation between him and fellow sax men Junior Cook and Sonny Rollins.
Hendersons solos are constructed of broken up phrases that are loud but meaningful statements. "If" is a Henderson tune resembling the blues but many of the chords are replaced with altered voicings that make it very unique sounding.
If you want to hear extremely good jazz, this is one of the best examples.
Like Miles' Kind of Blue, Coltrane's A Love Supreme and Horace Silver's Song For My Father, this album -- although unfairly unheralded -- is one of those magical musical occasions. For fans of post-bop jazz, Larry Young's Unity is, quite simply, essential. Young has been called the Coltrane of the Hammond B-3 organ for his progressive, modal, accessible music. Elvin Jones, Woody Shaw and Joe Henderson do some of their best work on this session. A classic.
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