About

With some musicians, it is obvious from the start that they are going to make a major impact on jazz. Wayne Shorter had only been with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers for a short time when Miles Davis made him an offer to join his group, although he would not join until 1964. By then he had been with Blakey for four years and developed his own unique musical language and logic, both as a tenor-saxophonist and as a composer.

Shortly before joining Davis, Shorter recorded his first Blue Note album, Night Dreamer, in a quintet also featuring Lee Morgan, McCoy Tyner and Elvin Jones. Listening to this brilliant set makes it obvious why Davis wanted Shorter. A very distinctive soloist, Shorter contributes five highly original pieces (including "Virgo" and "Black Nile") plus a version of "Oriental Folk Song." His playing does not fit into any particular style and his writing does not hint at any of his predecessors. Night Dreamer shows that by 1964, Wayne Shorter was a jazz master. – Press Release

Musicians:

Wayne Shorter, tenor sax

Lee Morgan, trumpet

McCoy Tyner, piano

Reggie Workman, bass

Elvin Jones, drums

“With compositions that were sparer, and an equally economical playing style in direct contrast to John Coltrane's, Night Dreamer signalled a change without completely neglecting his hard bop roots. Despite a more cerebral method, Night Dreamer still swings hard…

Night Dreamer, which also features Blakey band mate Lee Morgan on trumpet, gives Shorter the opportunity to shift his focus away from the more straightforward hard bop of his early recordings, and towards a more open post bop sensibility. While harmonically challenging—as most of Shorter's compositions were and still are to this day—these six Shorter compositions adhered more rigidly to form than either his future work with Miles or his Blue Note recordings from later in the decade.” – All About Jazz

Item description: