Grant Green - Feelin' The Spirit (1979 Japanese Blue Note Masterpiece Selection LP)

Grant Green - Feelin' The Spirit Vinyl LP - 1979 Japanese Blue Note Masterpiece Selection 150 Stereo Reissue

• Unique spiritual jazz concept - Grant Green transforms African-American spirituals into soul-jazz
• Classic quartet with young Herbie Hancock - Billy Higgins, Butch Warren complete legendary lineup
• Japanese Blue Note Masterpiece Selection 150 - prestigious 1979 King Records pressing

Guitarist Grant Green's 1962 Blue Note session presents a unique concept: reimagining traditional African-American spirituals as hard bop and soul-jazz instrumentals. Recorded on 21 December 1962 at Rudy Van Gelder's Englewood Cliffs studio with a quartet featuring 22-year-old pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Butch Warren, drummer Billy Higgins, and tambourine player Garvin Masseaux, the album transforms "Just A Closer Walk With Thee", "Joshua Fit De Battle Ob Jericho", "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen", "Go Down Moses", and "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child" into swinging jazz statements. Released in Japan in 1979 as part of Blue Note's Masterpiece Selection 150 series and manufactured by King Record Co. Ltd., this stereo pressing captures Green's bluesy single-note lines meeting the spiritual power of material rooted in slavery and emancipation.

Green's guitar approach, influenced by Charlie Christian and rooted in blues tradition, proves ideal for this material. His single-note melodic lines state the familiar melodies before developing them through improvisation, his phrasing maintaining connection to the spirituals' emotional core while transforming them into modern jazz. Hancock's piano work, recorded early in his Blue Note tenure (before joining Miles Davis' quintet), demonstrates the harmonic sophistication and blues feeling that would characterize his career. Warren's bass and Higgins' drums provide foundation that swings effortlessly, while Masseaux's tambourine on selected tracks adds rhythmic colour suggesting gospel church services.

The album's conceptual strength lies in Green's respectful yet transformative approach to sacred material. Rather than merely using spirituals as jazz vehicles, he honours their spiritual dimension while demonstrating their musical sophistication and emotional power. The five tracks span approximately 36 minutes, each spiritual receiving patient development that respects the source material's gravity. Van Gelder's recording captures Green's warm guitar tone and the quartet's interaction with characteristic clarity.