Happy 55th: Hank Crawford, More Soul

55 years ago today, saxophonist Hank Crawford released an album with a slightly misleading title: it wasn't a second helping of soul, it was his first outing as leader of his own music outfit.

In 1961, Crawford was arguably best known for his work with Ray Charles, who'd first encountered the sax man in 1958 while Crawford was attending Tennessee State University, playing in the Tennessee State Jazz Collegians, and - perhaps most importantly to this piece - heading up a rock 'n' roll four-piece called Little Hank and the Rhythm Kings. Yes, Crawford was a busy boy, so it probably sounded comparatively relaxing when Charles asked Crawford to play baritone sax in his band. By the following year, Crawford has switched over to alto sax, and a year after that, he'd built up enough confidence to release his debut solo endeavor.

More Soul is a jazzy good time, featuring one of Crawford's signature tracks - “Misty” - as well as “The Story,” which Charles was kind enough to arrange for his resident sax man, while Crawford himself arranged the additional six tracks. The other members of Crawford's band included saxophonists David 'Fathead' Newman and Leroy 'Bog' Cooper, bassist Edgar Willis, drummer Milton Turner, all of whom worked with Charles, too, plus trumpeters Phillip Guilbeau and John Hunt. The end result was an album which was rapturously received by Ralph Gleason, who raved about it and delivered a five-star review, and jazz fans have continued to speak warmly about it ever since.