''Afro Blue'' is an album by pianist

Harold Mabern Harold Mabern Jr. (March 20, 1936 – September 17, 2019) was an American jazz pianist and composer, principally in the hard bop, post-bop, and soul jazz fields.Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (2007) ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz''. p. 4 ...

. It was released by

Smoke Sessions Records Smoke Sessions Records is an independent record label based in New York City. History Smoke jazz club started the label in 2014.Hovan, C. Andrew (April 23, 2014"Smoke Sessions: A Threesome from Herring, Jackson, & Hazeltine" AllAboutJazz. The co- ...

Background

Mabern frequently worked with vocalists in the 1960s, but this recording was the first album of his to feature singers.Panken, Ted (July 2015) "Harold Mabern – A Million Dollars' Worth of Experience". ''Down Beat''. pp. 31–35. The pianist had previously played with vocalist

Gregory Porter Gregory Porter (born November 4, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He has twice won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album: first in 2014 for ''Liquid Spirit'' and then again in 2017 for '' Take Me to the Alley''. Early l ...

at the

Smoke Smoke is a suspension of airborne particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwanted by-produc ...

jazz club in December 2011, and the idea for the album came out of that and Mabern commenting to the club (and

) proprietor that he would like to record with vocalists.

Recording and music

The album was recorded over two days. Mabern plays with bassist John Webber and drummer

Joe Farnsworth Joseph Allen Farnsworth (born February 21, 1968, Holyoke, Massachusetts) is an American jazz drummer. Farnsworth was one of five sons born to trumpeter and bandleader Roger Farnsworth; one of the brothers played saxophone in Ray Charles's band. ...

on all of the tracks except "Don't Misunderstand", which is a Mabern-

Norah Jones Norah Jones (born Geethali Norah Jones Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. She has won several awards for her music and as of 2012, has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. ''Billboard'' named her the ...

duet. The duet was suggested by the vocalist; the song is played in A-flat major. Guitarist Peter Bernstein is added to the trio for one instrumental number. Tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander plays on 10 of the tracks on the album; trombonist Steve Turre plays on six tracks and trumpeter

Jeremy Pelt Jeremy Pelt (born November 4, 1976, in California) is an American jazz trumpeter. Career Pelt studied classical trumpet as a child and focused on jazz after playing in a high school jazz ensemble. He studied at Berklee College of Music. Among th ...

on four. The guest vocalists appear separately:

, and

Jane Monheit Jane Monheit (born November 3, 1977"Jane Monheit." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 33. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2001. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 2017-05-07.) is an American jazz and pop singer. Early life Monheit was bo ...

for two tracks each;

Kurt Elling Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran church. He sang in cho ...

for three tracks; and

Alexis Cole Alexis Cole is an American jazz singer. Career Cole was born in Queens, New York. Her father and grandmother were both jazz singers and pianists. She grew up in South Florida, where she studied Musical Theater at the New World School of the Arts ...

for one.Mabern, Harold "Afro Blue" (CD liner notes). Smoke Sessions Records. 1503. The opening track – "The Chief" – is a Mabern tribute to saxophonist

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raise ...

.Widran, Jonathan (July 22, 2015
"Harold Mabern"
''Jazziz''. The closing track – "Bobby, Benny, Jymie, Lee, Bu" – is a tribute to Art Blakey's

Jazz Messengers The Jazz Messengers were a jazz combo that existed for over thirty-five years beginning in the early 1950s as a collective, and ending when long-time leader and founding drummer Art Blakey died in 1990. Blakey led or co-led the group from the o ...

. "The Man from Hyde Park" refers to Herbie Hancock, with whom Mabern developed a friendship when they were both in Chicago in the 1950s.

Release and reception

''Afro Blue'' was released by Smoke Sessions Records. The ''

Down Beat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' reviewer wrote: "The band feels restrained and often the arrangements don't feel challenging enough, but throughout Mabern's piano is strong." ''Jazziz'' concluded that: "Throughout a set that encompasses various voices, moods and styles, Mabern and this stellar band provide consistent excellence."

Track listing

#"The Chief" #"Afro Blue" #"The Man from Hyde Park" #"Fools Rush In" #"Don't Misunderstand" #"I'll Take Romance" #"My One and Only Love" #"Billie's Bounce" #"Portrait of Jennie" #"You Needed Me" #"Such Is Life" #"Do It Again" #"Mozzin'" #"Bobby, Benny, Jymie, Lee, Bu"

Personnel

– piano * John Webber – bass (tracks 1–4, 6–14) *

– drums (tracks 1–4, 6–14) * Eric Alexander – tenor sax (tracks 1–4, 6–11) *

– trumpet (tracks 2, 4, 6, 11) * Steve Turre – trombone (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 11) * Peter Bernstein – guitar (track 12) *

– vocals (tracks 2, 3) *

– vocals (tracks 4, 5) *

– vocals (tracks 6, 7) *

– vocals (tracks 8–10) *

– vocals (track 11)

References

{{Harold Mabern, state=autocollapse Harold Mabern albums Smoke Sessions Records albums