Recorded live at Shelly's Manne Hole in Hollywood and the Village Gate in New York City,
Eddie Harris is caught on LP near the peak of his popularity peddling his electric funk thing with his regular quartet --
Jodie Christian (piano), Melvin Jackson (bass) and
Billy Hart (drums). His flair for drama shows in the pounding opening cut "Movin' on Out" where he builds the tension with an escalating series of murky cascades on his Echoplexed electric sax. He can also be playful with the electronics on the repetitively lovely "Children's Song" (which, though credited to
Harris, is actually a South African tune called "Mangwene Mpulele," previously covered by
Harry Belafonte). And then, when you least expect it,
Eddie turns around and adopts a husky
Coleman Hawkins-like tenor stance on the retro ballad "Is There a Place for Us." Fascinating music, and a jazz radio staple in its time. ~ Richard S. Ginell