Harold Vick - Steppin' Out - 180g [Tone Poet Series]

Tenor saxophonist Harold Vick was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina and played with R&B bands coming up before working as a sideman with soul jazz organ greats including Jack McDuff and Big John Patton. Vick made his first Blue Note appearance in April 1963 on Patton’s Along Came John, and a month later Alfred Lion brought the saxophonist back into the studio to record his own debut as a leader, the underrated soul jazz gem Steppin’ Out. For the session Vick assembled the same band with Patton on organ, Grant Green on guitar, Ben Dixon on drums, and added Blue Mitchell on trumpet. The record finds its groove from the very first soul drenched notes of the opener “Our Miss Brooks” and stays firmly in the pocket throughout this 6-song set including the hard-charging “Trimmed In Blue,” a deeply felt rendition of the ballad “Laura,” the swaggering minor blues “Vicksville,” and the buoyant title track which closes the album.

Blue Note Tone Poet Series

The Blue Note Tone Poet Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was’ admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley (from Music Matters), a.k.a. the “Tone Poet,” on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180 gm audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology Inc. Every aspect of these Blue Note/Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

Blue Note Records’ Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series is produced by Joe Harley and features all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering is by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and vinyl is manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI).

Tracklist:

Our Miss Brooks
Trimmed In Blue
Laura
Dotty's Dream
Vicksville
Steppin' Out