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“I Hear Music” consists of recordings that mostly came from two different sessions led by Bud Shank, one session from the mid-50s and the other from a few years later. The Sunset label slapped these songs together in the mid-60s and released them with a contemporary pop looking album cover to try and capitalize on Shank’s then growing popularity that had risen due to him forsaking his 50s jazz roots and going in a more pop direction. This album may have been a bit misleading at the time of its release, but fortunately the music is very good. Although many of the songs on here show up on various Shank CD re-issues, due to its thrown together nature, this album will probably never show up on a CD.
The best songs on here come from the mid-50s session that has Shank working with fellow woodwinds player Bill Perkins plus a hard driving rhythm trio that often includes Hampton Hawes and either Mel Lewis or Shelly Manne. Perkins and Shank’s ability to play together and intertwine is sublime, plus the all around playing on these sessions is just hotter. The later sessions lean more towards Shank’s classic west coast “cool” sound and feature some of his smoothest playing. Although these tunes are from different sessions, it seems care was taken to give the album a nice flow, particularly on side two where the 3rd stream influenced “Noctune for Flute” is followed by an equally sophisticated arrangement of “A Sinner Kissed an Angel”.
The nice thing about this vinyl is that its not particularly collectable and can be picked up for a low price from used record vendors. It can make a nice introduction for someone wanting to explore Shank’s 50s jazz before he went in a more commercial direction in the 60s. If one wanted just the music from one session or the other, then the CD “Pacific Jazz Records 93159” contains the mid 50s session, while the later cooler sessions can be found on Shank’s early quartet albums. One song on here, “You don’t Know what Love is”, is from “Bud Shank and Three Trombones”.