Personnel:
Phil Upchurch (g), Wallace Davenport (tp), Ed Pazant, John Gilmore, Pat Patrick (saxes), Wynton Kelly (p), Al Williams (p, celeste), Richard Davis, Chuck Rainey (b), Jimmy Cobb, Bernard Purdie (d), Montego Joe, Warren Smith (perc), Ed Band (arr)
Reference: OJCCD-1100
Bar code: 090204923939
By the time he recorded Feeling Blue in 1967, Phil Upchurch was a rhythm and blues veteran as an electric bassist and guitarist. He had worked with some of the best artists in the field, including Jimmy Reed, Otis Rush, B.B. King, and Curtis Mayfield. His versatility also led to recordings with Woody Herman, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, and other jazz artists. Still, he had never been featured as the principal figure in a jazz recording. Orrin Keepnews of Milestone Records thought it was about time and put Upchurch into the studio on guitar with two groups, an octet that combined R&B and jazz elements, and a dream rhythm section made up of Wynton Kelly, Richard Davis, and Jimmy Cobb, with Montego Joe added on congas.
Among the pieces are two 1960s pop items that survived to become part of the standard repertoire, "Corcovado" and "Up, Up and Away." It is the first time on CD for this Milestone in Upchurch's career.
