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copy. One thing noted, if you can, avoid the RVG re-issue and try and get the original issue on CD or an import. Fortunately a friend laid a Japanese copy (24 bit) on me and it was far superior than the Van Gelder re-issue in terms of sound imagery and separation which is practically non-existent on the U.S. If you're tired of the usual organ-sax-guitar combo, then the classic "Unity" by the Coltrane of the organ, Larry Young, fits the bill. The later RVG releases are far better sonically than "Unity" or "Out to Lunch" such as "Song for My Father", "Adam's Apple", "JuJu" ,"Inner Urge" and "Maiden Voyage". Young would go further into the avant garde with his later albums such as "Of Love and Peace", "Mother Ship" but this classic was the one that pointed the way. Along with other progressive musicians such as Joe Henderson on tenor, Woody Shaw on trumpet and Elvin Jones on drums, "Unity" leaps out of the standard blues progressions into the modal vein with tunes such as Shaw's "Zoltan" and "The Moontrane" plus a smok'ng Henderson solo on "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" to make this album a classic of its type. I've listened to this album as far as back as the '60s when it was issued, I believe in '66 and have never grown tired of it.
There's a serious shortage of great jazz organ recordings, but this is the one they will all be judged by, so go ahead and add this to your collection to see how high the bar is set. Of course, when you are pounding and moving the notes like Young does, the listener can be forgiven for focusing on the music and not on the sound, but if one takes a moment to hear it, the production is really excellent and original. This is a wonderful recording. As a former church organist converted to jazz piano over a thirty year period, I didn't think there was anything that could get me interested in the organ again, but I was wrong. The organ of Larry Young in Unity has a bold, crisp sound that is hard to get without a lot of old equipment, like the church organ speaker my band and I used to carry to gigs to get the leslie sound.
During the era that this recording was made, jazz organ on Blue Note was dominated by Jimmy Smith, whose success helped keep Blue Note afloat financially. This date from 1965, really showcased his advanced harmonic and melodic style.
This was truly a date for the ages; it sounds just as fresh today as it did when released over 40 years ago. Additionally, the supporting cast was truly world class; Woody Shaw on trumpet (one of his first dates), Joe Henderson, and the legendary Elvin Jones.
Larry Young has been referred to as the "Coltrane of the B-3 organ". Larry Young, on the other hand, had a totally different conception.
This recording should be in everyone's basic jazz library. While I applaud those who appreciate his artistry, I believe that this description does not really do him justice.
Jimmy played in a blues and boppish style.
Woody Shaw is a very fine trumpeter who sounds like a combonation of Blue Mitchell and Freddie Hubbard. The closer, also by shaw, is a smoker and uses even more complex harmonies and chord patterns that "Moontrane" not to mention the odd number of 5o bars. Jimmy Smith is the king of the Organ but Young took what Smith had done and refined it. The form is standard 32 bars but the harmonies and Chordal structure are much different than that of many standard jazz compositions. "Unity" is an album that belongs in the post-Hardbop category.
"If" is a Henderson tune resembling the blues but many of the chords are replaced with altered voicings that make it very unique sounding. Joining the "Young" organ master is the masterful Elvin Jones with his complicated Rhythmic drumming, Elvin had just left the Coltrane group and, if you have heard any of his earlier sessions with the Coltrane group, you will start to hear his playing change in a way that he is more open to what the soloist is doing yet still keeping the beat and Enhancing the feeling. The group plays a reworking of the standard "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" and features excellent solos from all around. If you want to hear extremely good jazz, this is one of the best examples. The players are in top form, the Compositions are played with intensity. Young and Jones play a Duo on "Monks Dream" which is obviously by Thelonious Monk.
Larry Young was the first Organist to start to break away from the Jimmy Smith tradition. Larry played the Organ more like a piano so he constructs his solos on lines more than sticking to the more chordal improvisation that was so heavily used by Smith and others. "Moontrane", another Shaw original, was written for John Coltrane since he was one of Shaws, Youngs, and Hendersons biggest influences. If you have experienced any of his first few sessions for the Prestige label, you will hear the undeniable Jimmy Smith influence in his playing. "Zoltan", the opening tune, was composed by Woody Shaw and the solo work done on this song alone is worth the price of the album. Hendersons solos are constructed of broken up phrases that are loud but meaningful statements.
He also added his own material to start a whole new way to look at an instrument that was handicapped by it's own size, but stood out with it's incredible sound. Joe Henderson, a very talented Tenor Saxophonist is often considered to be incredibly original yet you will hear an almost direct relation between him and fellow sax men Junior Cook and Sonny Rollins.
Elvin Jones, Woody Shaw and Joe Henderson do some of their best work on this session. Like Miles' Kind of Blue, Coltrane's A Love Supreme and Horace Silver's Song For My Father, this album -- although unfairly unheralded -- is one of those magical musical occasions. A classic. For fans of post-bop jazz, Larry Young's Unity is, quite simply, essential. Young has been called the Coltrane of the Hammond B-3 organ for his progressive, modal, accessible music.
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