High Pressure

Notes

Red Garland Quintet: Red Garland (piano); John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Donald Byrd (trumpet); George Joyner (bass); Arthur Taylor (drums). Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey on November 15 and December 13, 1957. Originally released on Prestige (7209). Includes liner notes by Joe Goldberg. Digitally remastered by Phil De Lancie (Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California). One of the '50s great underrated albums, the distinctive piano playing of Red Garland, and the inspired tenor work of John Coltrane make HIGH PRESSURE a true jazz classic. In addition, Donald Byrd's deep, full trumpet tone adds refinement and sting to each track, and Art Taylor's sensitive yet hard-swinging drumming gels flawlessly with bassist George Joyner. This is a supergroup playing at its very finest. Every note seems perfectly placed, and the improvisatory skill of each player is simply outstanding. From the hard-bop burning of "Soft Winds," to the beautiful and introspective ballad, "What Is There to Say," HIGH PRESSURE delivers a plethora of emotion and virtuosity, capturing these musicians in their creative prime; one can hardly wait to hit the CD player's "repeat" button.