The Hawk Flies High - Coleman Hawkins (1LP Vinyl)

The Hawk Flies High by Coleman Hawkins.

Few instruments in jazz carry the weight of history quite like the tenor saxophone in the hands of Coleman Hawkins, and on this 1957 session he reminds everyone why. Recorded at Reeves Sound Studios in New York across two dates, March 12 and 15, "The Hawk Flies High" captures a master at a moment of confident, expansive artistry, ranging comfortably across original material and standards alike.

The album opens with "Chant," a title that sets the tone for the record's blend of soulful introspection and swinging assurance. It moves into "Juicy Fruit," a piece with a name as playful as the phrasing it invites, before closing out the first side with "Think Deep," a track that lives up to its billing with a reflective, considered mood.

Flip the record over and Hawkins turns to "Laura," one of the most beloved ballads in the American songbook, a showcase for the warmth and gravity that defined his tone across decades. It is the kind of performance that rewards close, unhurried listening, the tenor unfolding a melody line with unmistakable authority.

From there the second side gathers momentum with "Blue Lights," leaning into the darker, bluesier corners of Hawkins' vocabulary, and finishes with "Sancticity," a spirited closer that sends the listener off on a high note. Together the six tracks make for a well balanced program, alternating between the contemplative and the celebratory, the original and the interpreted.

This pressing comes distributed by Fantasy, Inc., out of Tenth and Parker in Berkeley, California, 94710, placing it within the catalog of one of the most storied names in the reissue and jazz distribution world. For collectors, that lineage adds a satisfying layer of provenance to an already essential recording.

More than half a century on, "The Hawk Flies High" endures as a document of Coleman Hawkins doing what he did better than nearly anyone: bending the tenor saxophone to his will, whether the song called for tenderness or fire. It belongs on the shelf of anyone serious about the roots and reach of jazz, and it plays as vividly today as the days it was captured in that New York studio.

Pressing Details:
Recorded at Reeves Sound Studios, New York on March 12 and 15, 1957

Distributed by Fantasy, Inc., Tenth and Parker, Berkeley, CA. 94710

Track Listing:
A1. Chant
A2. Juicy Fruit
A3. Think Deep
B1. Laura
B2. Blue Lights
B3. Sancticity

Artist: Coleman Hawkins

Format: 1LP

Genre: Jazz

Label: Original Jazz Classics

Catalog Number: OJC-027

Release Year: 2011

Country: United States

Condition: Sealed (New)