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After Dark * [Hank Crawford]

Hank Crawford
1 disc

1. My Babe
2. Share Your Love With Me
3. Git It!
4. TAin't Nobody's Bizness If I Do
5. Our Day Will Come
6. Mother Nature
7. That's All
8. St. Louis Blues
9. Beale Street After Dark
10. Amazing Grace
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Additional Info

Manufacturer Part Number (MPN): 9279
Credits

Producer Bob Porter
Engineer Rudy VanGelder
Personnel: Hank Crawford (alto saxophone); Danny Mixon (piano, organ); Melvin Sparks (guitar); Stanley Banks, Wilbur Bascomb (bass); Bernard Purdie (drums).
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on February 23 & 24, 1998. Includes liner notes by Dick Shurman.
Personnel: Hank Crawford (alto saxophone); Melvin Sparks (guitar); Danny Mixon (piano, organ); Bernard "Pretty" Purdie (drums).
Liner Note Author: Dick Shurman.
Recording information: Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, NJ (02/23/1998-02/24/1998).
Photographer: John Abbott .
Recorded when he was 63, After Dark finds Hank Crawford excelling by sticking to what he does so well: uncomplicated, blues-drenched, gospel-minded soul-jazz. Warmth and accessibility continued to define the veteran alto saxophonist, who sounds like he's still very much in his prime on everything from "Amazing Grace" to W.C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues" and the standard "T'aint Nobody's Business If I Do." Crawford reminds us how appealing and sentimental a ballad player can be on "That's All," and he demonstrates that Ruby & The Romantics' early-1960s soul-pop gem "Our Day Will Come" can work quite well in a jazz setting. The saxman's noteworthy support includes producer Bob Porter (who, true to form, is smart enough to step aside and let Crawford do his thing), guitarist Melvin Sparks and drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie. It's been said that Crawford is jazz's equivalent of a charismatic soul singer like Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye or his former employer Ray Charles, and After Dark makes it very hard to disagree with that assertion. ~ Alex Henderson