At 27 years old, tenor saxophonist and composer Joe Henderson was already in his full artistic stride by the time he made Inner Urge, his 4^th Blue Note album which was recorded in November 1964. His first 3 albums—Page One, Our Thing, and In ‘N Out—were quintet dates where Henderson had his frequent collaborator trumpeter Kenny Dorham by his side, but on Inner Urge, Henderson opted instead for a quartet setting with his the lone horn out in front.

The extraordinary line-up included two members of the trailblazing John Coltrane Quartet—pianist McCoy Tyner and drummer Elvin Jones—as well as Blue Note stalwart Bob Cranshaw on bass. Side 1 consists of 2 timeless Henderson compositions of differing temperaments that would go on to become standards: the intense title track “Inner Urge” and the jovial blues “Isotope,” which was an homage to Thelonious Monk. Side 2 opens with a 3^rd Henderson original, the evocation “El Barrio” which opens with Henderson’s plaintive cry. A stunningly gorgeous ballad performance of Duke Pearson’s piece “You Know I Care” follows before the album concludes with a brisk, up-tempo dash through the Cole Porter standard “Night and Day.”

This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is stereo, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

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