"One Finger Snap" opens Herbie Hancock's 1964 masterpiece Empyrean Isles with a burst of kinetic energy, the 20-bar form hurtling along at nearly 270 beats per minute. Freddie Hubbard leads the solo charge with eight blistering trumpet choruses, his technical command and melodic daring fully on display as he navigates the tune's compressed structure with exhilarating fluency. Hancock follows with ten choruses of piano improvisation that reveal his gift for combining post-bop harmonic sophistication with rhythmic vitality, each chorus building on the last with architectural precision. Tony Williams closes the improvisation section with five explosive drum choruses that redefined what jazz drumming could sound like, his polyrhythmic inventiveness and sheer power marking him as one of the most important percussionists in the music's history, despite being only eighteen years old at the time of this recording. Ron Carter's bass anchors the proceedings with unfailing swing and harmonic clarity. Empyrean Isles was a pivotal album in Hancock's transition from promising Blue Note sideman to visionary bandleader, and this opening track establishes the session's adventurous spirit while maintaining the hard-swinging energy that made his quartet one of the most exciting small groups of the 1960s.
