{"title":"Tina Brooks","description":"\u003cp\u003eBorn Harold Floyd Brooks on 7 June 1932 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, the tenor saxophonist and composer remains one of Blue Note Records' most brilliant yet tragically unrecognised talents.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBrooks' first professional work came in 1951 with R\u0026amp;B pianist Sonny Thompson, followed by stints with Charles Brown, Joe Morris, Amos Milburn (1953-1954), and Lionel Hampton's orchestra in spring and summer 1955, though he found it offered little room to stretch out beyond R\u0026amp;B. In 1956, he met trumpeter and composer Little Benny Harris at the Blue Morocco, a Bronx jazz club, who took the young tenor player under his wing and taught him the vocabulary and intricacies of modern jazz. Brooks also developed a close friendship with brilliant pianist and composer Elmo Hope. In late 1957, Harris recommended Brooks to Blue Note producer Alfred Lion, who heard him at a Harlem club and immediately began recording him. His first Blue Note session came on 25 February 1958 with organist Jimmy Smith, playing on three lengthy sextet tunes including \"The Sermon\", one of Smith's most important and popular albums. On 16 March 1958, Lion gave Brooks his first recording date as leader featuring Lee Morgan, Sonny Clark, Doug Watkins, and Art Blakey, though for unknown reasons the excellent \u003cem\u003eMinor Move\u003c\/em\u003e session sat in the vaults until 1980, several years after Brooks' death.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDuring 1959 and 1960, Brooks was understudy for Jackie McLean in Jack Gelber's play \u003cem\u003eThe Connection\u003c\/em\u003e at the Living Theater in New York City, with pianist and composer Freddie Redd as musical director, leading to three more Blue Note dates including two Redd sessions and a wonderful McLean sextet date where Brooks wrote three of six tunes including \"Street Singer\", \"Medina\", and \"Isle of Java\". Through Blue Note, Brooks met another underrated tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec, who introduced him to Freddie Hubbard, and on 19 June 1960 Brooks recorded on Hubbard's debut album \u003cem\u003eOpen Sesame\u003c\/em\u003e, contributing two originals including the title composition and \"Gypsy Blue\". Less than a week later on 25 June 1960, Hubbard recorded on Brooks' \u003cem\u003eTrue Blue\u003c\/em\u003e session with Duke Jordan, Sam Jones, and Art Taylor, the only album Brooks released during his lifetime. Brooks recorded five sessions as leader for Blue Note between 1958 and 1961, but only \u003cem\u003eTrue Blue\u003c\/em\u003e was issued contemporaneously, with \u003cem\u003eMinor Move\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBack to the Tracks\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThe Waiting Game\u003c\/em\u003e remaining unreleased during his lifetime. After 1961, Brooks never recorded again, having become addicted to heroin and spiralling steadily downward over the next dozen years until his death from liver failure on 13 August 1974, aged 42.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTrue Blue\u003c\/em\u003e is now regarded as a hard bop masterpiece and one of Blue Note's greatest albums, ensuring that despite his tragically short time in the spotlight, Tina Brooks will never be forgotten.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"tina-brooks-true-blue-1981-japanese-blue-note-first-stereo-pressing-lp","title":"Tina Brooks - True Blue (1981 Japanese Blue Note First Stereo Pressing LP)","description":"\u003cp data-start=\"1061\" data-end=\"1214\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eVinyl\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan\u003e: NM\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSleeve\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan\u003e: EX\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObi:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e None\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOur grading system explained \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/dpbg4u-d1.myshopify.com\/pages\/secondhand-grading-guide\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ehere\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePhoto is of the actual item.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTina Brooks - \u003cem\u003eTrue Blue\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eVinyl LP - 1981 Japanese Blue Note Collectors' Item Series First Stereo Pressing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFirst stereo pressing ever\u003c\/strong\u003e - originally released mono only in 1960, this 1981 Japanese edition reveals new sonic detail\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eUnderappreciated hard bop masterpiece\u003c\/strong\u003e - Brooks' finest hour with young Freddie Hubbard\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHistoric Japanese pressing\u003c\/strong\u003e - first stereo and first Japanese edition of this Blue Note classic\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTenor saxophonist Tina Brooks' masterpiece, recorded on 25 June 1960 at Rudy Van Gelder's Englewood Cliffs studio. Featuring 22-year-old trumpeter Freddie Hubbard (months before his own Blue Note debut), pianist Duke Jordan, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Art Taylor, the sextet performs six Brooks compositions demonstrating his gift for memorable melodies and sophisticated harmonic movement. Brooks' tenor saxophone sound, influenced by Sonny Rollins yet distinctly his own, combines technical command with deeply personal expression, his playing on tracks like the title composition \"True Blue\" and \"Miss Hazel\" revealing why fellow musicians revered him despite his lack of commercial recognition. Released in Japan in 1981 by King Record Co. Ltd. as part of Blue Note's Collectors' Item Series, this represents the album's first stereo pressing—Blue Note's original issue was monaural only—and its first Japanese pressing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBrooks' compositional voice emerges fully formed across these six tracks, each theme balancing accessibility with harmonic sophistication. His playing demonstrates the influence of Rollins' thematic development alongside his own darker, more introspective approach. The frontline pairing with the young Hubbard creates ideal contrast, Hubbard's bright, assertive trumpet meeting Brooks' more brooding tenor sound. Duke Jordan's piano, drawing from bebop traditions, provides both harmonic support and melodic invention, while Jones and Taylor's rhythm section swings with authoritative precision.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTrue Blue\u003c\/em\u003e revealed Brooks as one of hard bop's most distinctive and accomplished voices, his premature death in 1974 at age 42 robbing jazz of a major talent. This 1981 Japanese pressing represents historic significance as the album's first stereo edition, Van Gelder's original stereo recording finally available after two decades of mono-only availability. Manufactured by King Record Co. Ltd. as part of Blue Note's Collectors' Item Series, this pressing documents a lost classic finally receiving its due recognition.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Blue Note","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43226608697403,"sku":null,"price":130.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0630\/3203\/3339\/files\/IMG_6153.jpg?v=1771589172"}],"url":"https:\/\/lushliferecords.com.au\/collections\/tina-brooks.oembed","provider":"Lush Life Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}