A truly wonderful advanced hard bop date,
Wahoo captures pianist
Duke Pearson at his most adventurous and creative. With the exception of
Donald Byrd's closing "Fly Little Bird Fly,"
Pearson wrote all of the material on this six-song album, and his compositions are clever, melodic, and unpredictable without being cloying or inaccessible. He has assembled a first-rate sextet to perform the material, enlisting trumpeter
Byrd, tenor saxophonist
Joe Henderson, bassist
Bob Cranshaw, alto saxophonist/flautist
James Spaulding, and drummer
Mickey Roker. Even the subdued "Wahoo" and "ESP" search out new territory with their subtle themes and exploratory solo sections. The key to the success of
Wahoo is that
Duke Pearson is a gifted arranger, creating nimble, challenging arrangements that are accessible, but reveal more details upon each listen. As a pianist, he has moved beyond his initial
Bud Powell influence and reveals new aspects of his technique.
Henderson,
Byrd, and
Spaulding are equally impressive, helping elevate
Wahoo to one of the finest sophisticated hard bop dates Blue Note released in the mid-'60s. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine