Walter Davis Jr. – Davis Cup LP (Tone Poet Society Exclusive)

This is a Tone Poet Society Exclusive release, limited to 1,000 individually numbered copies, adorned with a Tone Poet Society Exclusive gold foil stamp, and comes with a lithographic print of a photo by Francis Wolff.

Walter Davis Jr. was a wonderful yet underrecognized pianist who was possessed of a brightly swinging style. Lyrical when the situation called for it, Davis was also capable of conjuring intricate lines in the manner of his heroes Art Tatum and Bud Powell. In the early 1950s he played with bebop legends including Max Roach, Charlie Parker, and Dizzy Gillespie and later had a stint in Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. After appearing on Blue Note albums by saxophonist Jackie McLean and trumpeter Donald Byrd, Davis made his own bandleader debut in 1959 with the joyous hard bop offering Davis Cup. The quintet that the pianist assembled for the date featured a frontline of McLean and Byrd with the rhythm section rounded out by bassist Sam Jones and drummer Art Taylor. The album was also a showcase for Davis’ compositional abilities consisting entirely of his own spirited originals from the exuberant opener “‘Smake It” and the irrepressible “Rhumba Nhumba” to the tender ballad “Sweetness.”

Blue Note Tone Poet Series

The Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was’ admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley, a.k.a. the “Tone Poet,” on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180g audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology Inc. Every aspect of these Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology Inc. (RTI), and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket including a lithographic print of a Francis Wolff photograph from the session.

Tracklist:

A1: 'Smake It
A2: Loodle-Lot
A3: Sweetness

B1: Rhumba Nhumba
B2: Minor Mind
B3: Millie's Delight