In honor of Blue Note Records’ 80th Anniversary, the legendary jazz label is launching the Blue Note 80 Vinyl Reissue Series. Distinct from the Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series, this second series curated by Don Was and Cem Kurosman features 180g vinyl LP releases in standard packaging with albums spanning the many eras of the label’s history presented by themes: Blue Note Debuts, Blue Grooves, Great Reid Miles Covers, Blue Note Live, and Blue Note Drummer Leaders. The series launches in May 2019 with the reissue of three remarkable Blue Note debuts – Herbie Hancock Takin’ Off, Dexter Gordon Doin’ Allright, and Robert Glasper Canvas – and will continue with three albums released each month for the coming year.

Though he first recorded in the late-1940s, Dexter Gordon’s Blue Note debut Doin’ Allright – recorded and released in 1961 – marked a rebirth for the great tenor saxophonist after a decade in which drug addiction and legal troubles limited his output. But his Blue Note years put him back on top with a run of essential albums that stand as classics of the jazz canon. Doin’ Allright featured a top flight quintet with trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, pianist Horace Parlan, bassist George Tucker, and drummer Al Harewood on a set that presented bluesy hard bop originals like “Society Red” and highlighted Gordon’s stunning balladry on the standard “You’ve Changed.”

Musicians:
Dexter Gordon, tenor saxophone
Freddie Hubbard, trumpet
Horace Parlan, piano
George Tucker, bass
Al Harewood, drums