Kenny Burrell - Blue Lights, Volume 1

Kenny Burrell's Blue Lights, Volume 1 returns on 180-gram vinyl, a loose, late-night 1958 Blue Note blowing session wrapped in a cover drawn by a young Andy Warhol.

Cut in a single day in 1958 with Alfred Lion producing and Rudy Van Gelder engineering, the date gathered a superb cast around the Detroit guitarist. Louis Smith plays trumpet, Tina Brooks and Junior Cook share tenor saxophone duties, Duke Jordan sits at the piano, and Sam Jones and Art Blakey hold down bass and drums. With that many strong voices in the room, the tunes stretch out and everyone gets space to talk.

"Yes Baby" opens the record with more than eleven minutes of unhurried blues, Burrell's warm, clean lines setting the table before the horns take turns. Jordan's "Scotch Blues" keeps the groove simmering with a little more bite, and Vernon Duke's "Autumn in New York" slows things to a tender ballad that shows off Burrell's elegant, singing tone.

Blakey's drumming keeps everything grounded and alive, nudging soloists forward without crowding them. With Reid Miles's design framing Warhol's illustration, it is as handsome an object as it is a listen, and a natural fit for anyone building a Blue Note shelf with real character and history.