Jump to content

The Opening Round

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Opening Round
Studio album by
ReleasedJuly 1, 1997
RecordedFebruary 5, 1997
StudioVan Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ
GenreJazz
Length55:20
LabelSavant
SCD 2005
ProducerHouston Person
Houston Person chronology
Person-ified
(1996)
The Opening Round
(1997)
My Romance
(1998)

The Opening Round, subtitled The Groove Masters Series Vol. 1 is an album by saxophonist Houston Person which was recorded in 1997 and released on the Savant label.[1][2][3]

Reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[4]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings[5]

In his review on Allmusic, Stewart Mason states "A fun and personable mix of jazz and soul classics plus a couple of originals by guitarist Rodney Jones, Houston Person's The Opening Round: Groove Masters Series, Vol. 1 isn't a jazz album for the ages, but it's start-to-finish entertaining. It's a straight-up groove album, with Person in front of a four-piece organ combo".[4] In JazzTimes, Stanley Dance wrote: "Person’s thick, unmannered tone, love of melody and swing, together give his music an odd sobriety that he seems compelled to relieve with fast flurries of notes".[6]

Track listing

[edit]
  1. "Sweet Sucker" (Johnny Griffin) – 1:27
  2. "Let's Stay Together" (Al Green, Al Jackson Jr., Willie Mitchell) – 3:56
  3. "Can't Help Lovin' That Man" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) – 4:06
  4. "What's Going On?" (Marvin Gaye, Renaldo Benson, Al Cleveland) – 2:32
  5. "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Calvin Lewis, Andrew Wright) – 3:41
  6. "Blue Spring" (Rodney Jones) – 4:35
  7. "Song for a Rainbow" (Jones) – 3:57
  8. "Shenandoah" (Traditional) – 4:55

Personnel

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Jazz Depot: Savant discography accessed March 7, 2018
  2. ^ Payne, D. Houston Person Discography accessed March 7, 2018
  3. ^ Enciclopedia del Jazz: Houston Person accessed March 12, 2018
  4. ^ a b Mason, Stewart. Houston Person – The Opening Round: Groove Masters Series, Vol. 1: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  5. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1149. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  6. ^ Dance, S. JazzTimes Review, accessed March 7, 2018