Horace Parlan – Speakin’ My Piece (Classic Vinyl Series) Blue Note Vinyl

Pianist Horace Parlan is perhaps best known for his work with Charles Minguson the bassist’s seminal 1959 albums Mingus Ah Um and Blues & Roots. That same year Parlan made his first Blue Note appearance with Lou Donaldson and in 1960 he began leading his own sessions for the label with the trio albums Movin’ & Groovin’ and Us Three. For his third Blue Note date Speakin’ My Piece, also recorded in 1960, Parlan expanded his trio with bassist George Tucker and drummer Al Harewood into a quintet with the addition of a frontline horn section featuring Stanley Turrentine on tenor saxophone and his brother TommyTurrentine on trumpet. The result is a quintessential Blue Note hard bop album, adorned with a playful Reid Miles album cover design, and featuring Parlanoriginals like the bluesy “Wadin’” and tuneful “Up In Cynthia’s Room” along with pieces by each of the Turrentine brothers and a show- stopping performance on the ballad “Oh So Blue.”

This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is stereo, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Grayfrom the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.