Mirroring his onetime boss and mentor Miles Davis' own protean output, Herbie Hancock has explored hard-bop, soul-jazz, fusion, funk-rock, soundtracks, hip-hop-inflected pop ("Rockit"), and many permutations in between. Hi... more »s early work for Blue Note, though, offers the best entrie for newcomers. Compiled from five of his albums for the label and covering a period from 1962-1968, this fine sampler includes highlights off his debut, Takin' Off ("Watermelon Man"), the classic Maiden Voyage (the title track and "Dolphin Dance"), and the early electric album Speak Like a Child (the title track and "Riot"). Add to this more indelible cuts like "Cantaloupe Island" and "One Finger Snap," not to mention the presence of numerous '60s jazz legends (Dexter Gordon, Freddie Hubbard, Thad Jones, Hank Mobley, Billy Higgins, et al.), and you have perfect way to get a taste of some of the best modern jazz.« less
Mirroring his onetime boss and mentor Miles Davis' own protean output, Herbie Hancock has explored hard-bop, soul-jazz, fusion, funk-rock, soundtracks, hip-hop-inflected pop ("Rockit"), and many permutations in between. His early work for Blue Note, though, offers the best entrie for newcomers. Compiled from five of his albums for the label and covering a period from 1962-1968, this fine sampler includes highlights off his debut, Takin' Off ("Watermelon Man"), the classic Maiden Voyage (the title track and "Dolphin Dance"), and the early electric album Speak Like a Child (the title track and "Riot"). Add to this more indelible cuts like "Cantaloupe Island" and "One Finger Snap," not to mention the presence of numerous '60s jazz legends (Dexter Gordon, Freddie Hubbard, Thad Jones, Hank Mobley, Billy Higgins, et al.), and you have perfect way to get a taste of some of the best modern jazz.
3rdeadly3rd | Brisbane, Queensland Australia | 06/09/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I got switched on to Herbie Hancock via his sample on Us3's "Cantaloop" and haven't looked back since. This album really shows what a talented pianist/composer he is.Coming as I do from a rap background, I didn't think that instrumentals clocking up to 9 minutes could really hold my interest - ths CD proves me wrong. A lot of the tracks are really songs with no words, a "chorus" is played, then one of the instruments does a solo/verse, then back to the chorus again. What's more, the talent and love with which these people play is incredible to hear.I must have listened to tracks like "Watermelon Man", "One Finger Snap", "Driftin'" and "Canteloupe Island" a bit too much because I can hear them even now when writing the review. Every single one of these pieces is great in so many ways. Not being a musician myself, I can't really express it very well. Suffice to say that the music here really is moving.Some of the standout moments here (all the tracks are standouts) are as follows:The intro/chorus on "Driftin'"The sax solo on that same trackMost of "Watermelon Man"The horn playing on "Canteloupe Island"The drum solo on "One Finger Snap"I'm not entirely certain whether these show Hancock at his best (having composed the pieces) or the other players at their best playing them - but it certainly shows talent. Hancock seems to have had a knack of surrounding himself and his brilliant piano skills with other performers of comparable talent.After listening to this so many times, I only have one question in my mind - what on earth is a fluglehorn?That aside, this is a truly great album by one of the best artists in the business. Well worth the money."
His Best Early Work
Alf Kremer | Denver CO | 07/02/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"OK, there's only so many hours in a day, and some of it (supposedly) has to be spent sleeping and working. Therefore we can't listen to all of the albums we want to. Thankfully, there are albums like this one, which distill most of the best of Herbie Hancock's early work into an easy to carry 5" CD. Any gripe I could give are minor - f'r'instance, a track from PRISONER wouldn't've hurt. But for anyone who's interested in the jazz work of Herbie Hancock - oh, heck, anyone who's interested in jazz at all - would do well to pick this up."
An Essential Compilation
negu | Athens, GA USA | 11/24/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I think this compilation is fantastic. The extent of my knowledge of jazz is Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk, John Coltrane and a few others- the most popular artists- and Herbie Hancock is definately among the greatest. Each of these songs is catchy, moody, thematic and wonderful. The disc is one of my favorites, and it's made me excited to learn more about jazz music."
The man who helped reinvent jazz in the 60s
Todd Ebert | Long Beach California | 04/20/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I like to think of Herbie Hancock during the sixties Blue Note period as Bill Evans with more swing. One can definitely hear Bill's influence on Herbie in these compositions, which on the surface seem mellow and smooth, but down under burn a strong flame. But to say that Herbie was just a shadow of Bill would be quite wrong, for these compositions prove his own uniqueness and mastery at jazz composition. "Maiden Voyage" is simply one of the best pieces of music I've ever heard. After the first time hearing it through its entirety, I had to get this cd!
Finally, I also highly recommend Nicholas Payton, Mark Whitfield, and Christian McBride's brilliant interpretation of many of the recordings here on their "Fingerpainting: The Music of Herbie Hancock" 1996 release. "Brilliant" is a fair description for both of these recordings."
A Good Investment
Scott McFarland | Manassas, VA United States | 03/29/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's a great place to investigate Herbie's jazz work and see what you think. I'd recomend purchasing most of the albums that this is culled from too, but the better tracks from some of those records are encapsulated on here."