Meet You At The Jazz Corner Of The World (Volume 1)

Captured live at Birdland – long hailed as “the jazz corner of the world” – this is one of two volumes that find Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers on fire. Recorded in 1960 and released separately in the years that followed, they spotlight a band in full flight: Lee Morgan on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor, Bobby Timmons on piano, Jymie Merritt on bass, and Blakey driving it all from behind the kit.

Across both volumes, the group tear through standards and hard bop favourites, with three tunes penned by former Messenger Hank Mobley and one apiece from Shorter and Morgan. The set is anchored by a pair of storming versions of The Theme – the Miles Davis staple that here serves as both a closer and a nod to the wider jazz lineage.

The playing is vibrant, loose, and crackling with energy. On Night Watch, Shorter is particularly inspired, showing early flashes of the improvisational mastery that would later reshape modern jazz. Timmons lays down his signature soul-infused comping while Morgan is as bright and brash as ever.