Herbie Hancock - Speak Like A Child (1968)

Note: the CD I listened to was the 2004 Rudy Van Gelder Edition with an 3 alternate takes added as bonus tracks.

The focus here is truly on Hancock's wonderful playing and composing. There's horns in the background texture, but they're just to add to the overall color of the pieces - they never solo, so it's Hancock that almost always has the spotlight on him (and that's a good thing). Add to that some swinging interplay between Hancock and legendary bassist Ron Carter and some deceptively subtle trap work from Mickey Roker and you've got an album that's definitely in the top quarter of Hancock's massive catalog.

Complete liner notes.

Hancock - piano
Thad Jones - flugelhorn
Peter Phillips - bass trombone
Jerry Dodgion - alto flute
Ron Carter - bass
Mickey Roker - drums

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "A warm swinging collection"
• Downbeat (★★): "Hancock is a puzzle. He is a generally good and sometimes excellent accompanist, but his solo work here is dull."
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000) (★★★): "An easy record to overlook; well worth hearing."
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★½
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #14
• Record World Jazz: #10

Tracks: Tunes so good they've been covered many times, including recordings by such artists as Miles Davis and Joe Henderson. My favorite cut is the beautiful title track, followed closely by the swinging First Trip. First Trip was composed by legendary bassist Ron Carter and is the only cut written by someone other than Hancock.

This RVG edition includes three bonus tracks: an alternate take of Goodbye To Childhood and two alternate takes of Riot. It can be fun to hear the different solos, but not of much interest beyond one or two plays.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Best of Herbie Hancock: The Blue Note Years (1988)
Round Midnight - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1986)
Lite Me Up (1982)
Sunlight/Feets Don't Fail Me Now (1978/1979)
Head Hunters (1973)