By late 1961, the Twist was all the rage, but casual consumers were probably a little put out when they had a listen to
Shirley Scott's
Hip Twist; it's impossible to imagine anyone gyrating to the slinky soul of the
Stanley Turrentine-penned title track, which was probably the point. It's hip, dig? Actually,
Hip Twist is exceedingly hip, with its glorious bop-influenced tenor sax work by
Turrentine (
Scott's husband) and
Scott's own gospel-inspired but hardly churchbound Hammond organ work. In fact,
Hip Twist is probably a better album than its companion,
Hip Soul;
Turrentine's originals make up more of the album, and they're unfailingly great, with the aptly titled "Violent Blues" showing a more aggressive side to his usual fluid style. Bassist
George Tucker and drummer
Otis Finch hold down the bottom without drawing too much attention to themselves, and honestly, a flashier rhythm section (say,
Sam Jones and
Philly Joe Jones) probably would give the songs even more of a kick in the pants. However,
Hip Twist, like nearly all of the
Shirley Scott and
Stanley Turrentine albums, is an underappreciated gem.