Kenny Burrell — Kenny Burrell

Thank you for buying this record. What follows is its documentation: the pressing identified, the matrix / runout transcribed by hand from the dead wax, and the condition as assessed before it was listed. It is yours to keep with the record.

— Paul, Vinyl Curator

Kenny Burrell

2022 (Blue Note Tone Poet Series reissue; sessions recorded 1956, first issued as BLP 1543 in 1957) · Blue Note BLP 1543 (correct number on jacket; labels misprint BLP 1523) · Mono · US (Blue Note Tone Poet Series reissue, pressed at RTI, Camarillo, CA) · LP, gatefold, mono · 33 1/3 RPM

Pressing details

Label	Blue Note
Catalogue number	BLP 1543 (correct number on jacket; labels misprint BLP 1523)
Year	2022 (Blue Note Tone Poet Series reissue; sessions recorded 1956, first issued as BLP 1543 in 1957)
Mono / Stereo	Mono
Country	US (Blue Note Tone Poet Series reissue, pressed at RTI, Camarillo, CA)
Format	LP, gatefold, mono
Speed	33 1/3 RPM
Genre	Jazz - Bebop/Hard Bop
Producer	Alfred Lion (original 1956 sessions); Joe Harley (2022 Tone Poet reissue production)
Musicians	Kenny Burrell (guitar), Tommy Flanagan (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), Kenny Clarke (drums), Candido (conga drums) - Get Happy; Kenny Burrell (guitar) - But Not For Me (solo); Kenny Dorham (trumpet), J.R. Monterose (tenor sax), Kenny Burrell (guitar), Bobby Timmons (piano), Sam Jones (bass), Arthur Edgehill (drums) - Mexico City; Kenny Burrell (guitar), Tommy Flanagan (piano), Oscar Pettiford (bass), Shadow Wilson (drums) - Moten Swing; Frank Foster (tenor sax), Kenny Burrell (guitar), Tommy Flanagan (piano), Oscar Pettiford (bass), Shadow Wilson (drums) - Cheeta, Now See How You Are, Phinupi, How About You

Matrix / Runout

Side A:  B0033486-01-A2 37302.1(3) KCCCA
Side B:  B0033486-01-B2 37302.2(3) KCCCA

Condition

Cover: NM
Vinyl: NM

Variant chronology

1957 - US Blue Note BLP 1543, Lexington Ave deep-groove label, Warhol cover, mono
1959 - US Blue Note BLP 1543, 63rd St address reissue, mono - no documented sale of this specific variant
1966 - US Blue Note BLP 1543, New York USA/Liberty-era reissue, mono - no documented sale of this specific variant
1967 - US Blue Note BLP 1543, mono reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
1967 - US Blue Note BST 81543, stereo reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
1979 - Japan Blue Note GXK 8115(M)/BLP-1543, mono reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
1984 - Japan Blue Note BLP 1543, promo/reissue, mono - no documented sale of this specific variant
1994 - Japan Blue Note BN 1543/BLP 1543, limited reissue, mono - no documented sale of this specific variant
2004 - Japan Blue Note TOCJ-6466, remastered reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
2010 - Spain Blue Note 1543/BLP-1543, reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
2012 - France Blue Note BLP 1543, reissue - no documented sale of this specific variant
2022 - Worldwide Blue Note Tone Poet B0033486-01 (BLP 1543), 180g mono, RTI/Kevin Gray, labels misprint BLP 1523  <- this copy

This Pressing

2022 Blue Note Tone Poet Series mono reissue (BLP 1543) - all-analog, Kevin Gray/Cohearent Audio mastering, produced by Joe Harley, pressed at RTI; labels carry a documented factory misprint of the earlier catalogue number BLP 1523.

The Album

Recorded in 1956 across several dates - two studio sessions at Van Gelder's Hackensack studio and a live date at Café Bohemia - this was guitarist Kenny Burrell's second Blue Note leader album, first issued as BLP 1523 'Introducing Kenny Burrell' and reissued the following year under the self-titled BLP 1543 with the now-famous Andy Warhol cover illustration, one of only three Blue Note jackets Warhol contributed. Burrell, a Detroit-trained bebopper who would soon become one of the defining guitar voices of soul-jazz, moves fluidly here between small combos featuring Kenny Dorham, J.R. Monterose, Frank Foster, Tommy Flanagan and Oscar Pettiford, and a Latin-tinged opener with Candido on congas. The material mixes standards (Get Happy, But Not For Me, How About You) with originals and lesser-known vehicles (Cheeta, Phinupi), giving a picture of a versatile young guitarist already assured in multiple settings. Critically the record is viewed as transitional and somewhat episodic - drawn from disparate sessions rather than a single unified date - but it remains valued for strong individual performances, particularly Foster's tenor work and the interplay on the Café Bohemia track, and for its place at the start of Burrell's decades-long, influential run as a leader and first-call sideman.

Tracklist

Side 1

1. Get Happy
2. But Not For Me
3. Mexico City
4. Moten Swing

Side 2

1. Cheeta
2. Now See How You Are
3. Phinupi
4. How About You

The Label

The label on this copy is a modern replica of the original Lexington Avenue design: white field, blue rim reading BLUE (left) / NOTE (bottom), the '33 1/3 MICROGROOVE LONG PLAYING' arc, and hand-lettered script reading 'BLUE NOTE RECORDS 767 LEXINGTON AVE NYC' - the same wording used on Blue Note's original 1956-59 New York address labels. However fine print along the rim ('UMG Recordings, Inc., 1750 N. Vine Street, Hollywood, CA 90028', barcode B0033486-01A) and the small credit 'A Blue Note Records release; Originally released in 1957' identify it unmistakably as a 2022 manufacture, not a vintage pressing. Notably the label prints catalogue number 'BLP 1523' (the number of the earlier, differently-titled 'Introducing Kenny Burrell'), a documented factory error carried over from source material - the jacket correctly reads BLP 1543. This retro-address label design is a modern homage; it does not indicate an original Lexington-era manufacture, which would show period-correct paper stock, a flat or deep-groove pressing, and RVG/ear stamps in the deadwax rather than the etched code seen here.

Fidelity

This Tone Poet edition was mastered all-analog from the original tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio and pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, a combination collectors on the forums consistently rate as quiet, dynamic and among the best-sounding modern jazz vinyl available. It sits well above the many thin 1970s-90s Blue Note/Liberty/Capitol reissues and above standard modern Blue Note '75th/80th Anniversary' pressings, and is regarded as the practical sonic equal of a clean original for most listeners, since very few playable original Lexington-label copies survive in top condition. It ranks below only a truly premium original NY/Lexington first pressing with Van Gelder stamp and Plastylite ear in exceptional condition, and stands alongside other Tone Poet and Music Matters titles as the modern gold standard for this catalogue.

Notes

This is the 2022 Blue Note Tone Poet Series mono reissue of BLP 1543 'Kenny Burrell,' not a vintage pressing. Etched runouts B0033486-01-A2/B2 with KCCCA codes, all-analog Kevin Gray mastering credited on the jacket, and Joe Harley's production credit (the Tone Poet series producer) confirm the modern edition; RTI pressed the vinyl. The labels reproduce the vintage Lexington Ave address text but misprint the catalogue number as BLP 1523 (the earlier 'Introducing Kenny Burrell' issue) - a known, documented error for this specific reissue, with the jacket correctly showing BLP 1543.

Documenting collections

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