Clifford Jordan - Repetition (Soul Note, 1984)

 This post is by Dan

Clifford Jordan (ts); Barry Harris (p); Walter Booker (b); Vernel Fournier (d)

Recorded February 9, 1984.

Not all records issued by the Italian Soul Note label were recorded in Italy. Clifford Jordan's Repetition was recorded in New York by renowned sound engineer David Baker. The jazz people (Jordan and consultant Melba Liston) were involved in the mixing of the tracks to produce one of Soul Note's best recordings of the 1980s. 

Jordan emerged in the mid-1950s as a regular session player and leader for Blue Note. He was remarkably consistent throughout his career, both as a first-call side man and as a leader. Thirty years after he "blew in from Chicago," he continued to perform some of his best work. Besides Repetition, his 1980s output includes his featured role in Art Farmer's series of recordings on Contemporary Records. We will be reviewing these albums later in this blog. In all, Jordan appears on seven albums in our survey. Need we admit that we are Clifford Jordan fans?

Repetition benefits tremendously from the work of Barry Harris on piano. I sometimes speculate that Harris single-handedly kept recorded jazz going during the 1970s and 1980s since he contributed to so many outstanding albums by so many different performers. Here he comps and solos with a master's touch, driven on by his partners in the rhythm section. This solid backing makes Jordan's contributions shine and makes the whole album a delight from beginning to end.