Personnel:
Freddie Hubbard, Marcus Belgrave (tp), Roland Alexander (ts), Ronnie Mathews (p), Ron Carter, Gene Taylor (b), Charles Persip, Clarence Stroman (d)
Reference: FSRCD 687
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When Charlie Persip formed The Jazz Statesmen in 1959 he was already one of the best drummers around, a status anointed by his time with Dizzy Gillespies big band and quintet from 1953-1958 and subsequently by his numerous sideman appearances on recordings with such diverse talents as Gil Evans, Don Ellis, Eric Dolphy and Dinah Washington.
So he was able to call on some of the finest young players on the scene for the new group; trumpeters Freddie Hubbard or Marcus Belgrave and, in the rhythm section, the great bassist Ron Carter and piano stalwart Ronnie Mathews. They brought exuberance, skill and dynamism to the music, much of which was composed by a young writer, Roland Alexander, who also contributes his robustly individual tenor to the band. And, in contrast to Persips frequent avant garde associations, the music was essentially post-bop mainstream.
But, with both the writing and the playing reflecting the leaders determination to make it fresh and exciting, the results, including the very rare follow-up quintet recording with Alexander as leader and Belgrave in for Hubbard, have stood the test of time surprisingly well.
