Cliff Craft - Clifford Jordan

Cliff Craft is tenor saxophonist Clifford Jordan's second album as a leader, recorded on November 10, 1957 at Blue Note's studio and released on Blue Note Records. The quintet features Art Farmer on trumpet, Sonny Clark on piano, George Tucker on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums. The six-track program mixes Jordan originals with Charlie Parker's "Confirmation" and "Anthropology" and Ellington's "Sophisticated Lady." Jordan, a Chicago-born tenor player who had recently moved to New York, was part of a cohort of hard bop saxophonists establishing themselves on Blue Note in the late 1950s. His tone is big and warm, with a rhythmic drive rooted in the Chicago bebop tradition. Farmer's lyrical trumpet provides an effective contrast to Jordan's more muscular approach, and Clark's bluesy, incisive piano comping anchors the rhythm section. The inclusion of two Parker contrafacts signals Jordan's bebop credentials, while his own compositions like the title track and "Laconia" demonstrate his ability to write melodic, swinging hard bop heads. Hayes, who was also playing with Horace Silver's quintet at the time, drives the date with crisp, propulsive drumming. The album documents Jordan early in a career that would span four decades, including long tenures with Charles Mingus and a series of well-regarded recordings on the Muse label.