Joe Henderson - The State of the Tenor: Live at the Village Vanguard, Vols. 1 and 2 (Blue Note, 1985)

This post is by Dan

Joe Henderson (ts); Ron Carter (b); Al Foster (d)

Recorded November 14-16, 1985

This much celebrated pair of albums helped to fuel the resurgence of straight-ahead jazz in the 1980s. The obvious comparison is to Sonny Rollins' Village Vanguard trio album from 1957, and it's a fair comparison as to both format and substance. Joe Henderson is a worthy keeper of the flame, but his contributions go far beyond revivalism. He was a consistently active and probing voice on the tenor for more than 20 years by the time these tracks were recorded. The State of the Tenor did much to resuscitate Blue Note Records and prolong Henderson's recording career.

The program consists of three compositions by Henderson, one by Ron Carter, eight by other jazz artists (Monk, Ellington, Mingus, Silver, Rivers, and Parker), as well as two show tunes ("Stella by Starlight" and "All the Things You Are"). It hardly matters which song is being played; the same high level of art remains on display for the whole length of two volumes. This is serious music that avoids extreme blowing while never becoming smooth or sweet.

The recording is up close and detailed, whether heard in analog or digital format. The most recent pressings in the Blue Note Tone Poet reissue series are exquisite. 

Henderson died in 2001. Both Al Foster and Ron Carter, pictured below, continue to record. 

Other trio recordings by Henderson are worth investigating. They include:

Henderson with Charlie Haden and Al Foster in a concert at the Genova Jazz Festival in Italy. The resulting recording, An Evening with Joe Henderson (Red Records, 1987) is just as good as State of the Tenor and even includes two of the songs from the Vanguard sessions ("Beatrice" and "Ask Me Now"). 

Henderson with Haden and Foster at the 1989 Montreal Jazz Festival, released posthumously in 2003 as The Montreal Tapes (Tribute to Joe Henderson) (Verve, 2003).

A studio album with Rufus Reid and Al Foster: The Standard Joe (Red Records, 1991). The title is misleading because it is not a set of standards but rather a mix including Henderson's own compositions.