Inner City Blues (Grover Washington Jr. album)
Inner City Blues | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | January 3, 1972 | |||
Recorded | September 1971 | |||
Studio | Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ | |||
Genre | Jazz fusion, smooth jazz | |||
Length | 35:07 | |||
Label | Kudu Records KU-03 | |||
Producer | Creed Taylor | |||
Grover Washington Jr. chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Record Collector | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Inner City Blues is the debut studio album by saxophonist Grover Washington Jr.[5] It was recorded at the Van Gelder Studio in September 1971 and released in 1972 via Kudu Records label.[6]
Background[]
The title track was a cover of the recent hit by Marvin Gaye released in June 1971. The album also includes a cover of Bill Withers' hit "Ain't No Sunshine", released shortly before recording this album. In 2008, it was reissued on CD by Verve Records.
Reception[]
Thom Jurek of AllMusic stated "This is an amazing debut in so many ways, and it was followed by a run of albums for the label through the end of the '70s when Washington left for Elektra. Inner City Blues remains standing today as a landmark and a turning point in jazz".[1]
Track listing[]
- "Inner City Blues" (Marvin Gaye, James Nyx Jr.) – 7:10
- "Georgia on My Mind" (Hoagy Carmichael, Stuart Gorrell) – 4:38
- "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (Gaye) – 5:07
- "Ain't No Sunshine" (Bill Withers)/"Theme from Man and Boy" (AKA "Better Days") (J.J. Johnson) – 8:32
- "Until It's Time for You to Go" (Buffy Saint-Marie) – 4:35
- "I Loves You Porgy" (Gershwin, Gershwin, DuBose Heyward) – 5:05
Personnel[]
- Grover Washington Jr. – alto saxophone, tenor saxophone
- Bob James – electric piano, arrangements and conductor
- Richard Tee – organ
- Eric Gale – guitars
- Ron Carter – basses
- Idris Muhammad – drums
- Airto Moreira – percussion
- Donald Ashworth – baritone saxophone
- Wayne Andre – trombone
- Thad Jones – trumpet, French horn
- Eugene Young – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Hilda Harris – vocals
- Marilyn Jackson – vocals
- Maeretha Stewart – vocals
- Tasha Thomas – vocals
String Section
- Maurice Brown, Charles McCracken, Alan Shulman and Anthony Sophos – cello
- Julius Brand, Paul Gershman, Julius Held, Leo Kahn, Harry Katzman, Raoul Poliakin, Max Pollikoff and Paul Winter – violin
Production[]
- Creed Taylor – producer
- Rudy Van Gelder – engineer
- Bob Ciano – album design
- Steve Salmieri – photography
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b Inner City Blues at AllMusic
- ^ Waring, Charles. "Inner City Blues - Record Collector Magazine". Record Collector. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. pp. 203. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
- ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1468. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- ^ "Grover Washington, Jr. – Inner City Blues". Discogs. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
- ^ Payne, Doug. "Kudu Records Catalogue". Retrieved 30 October 2018.
Categories:
- 1972 debut albums
- Grover Washington Jr. albums
- Albums produced by Creed Taylor
- Kudu Records albums
- Albums recorded at Van Gelder Studio