(Fusion, Latin Jazz) [LP] [24/96] Bobby Hutcherson - Montara - 1975/2019, FLAC (tracks)

Record: Bobby Hutcherson "Montara" (2019 AAA reissue via Vinyl Me, Please "The Story of Blue Note Records" anthology)
Condition: NM
Record cleaned with an Okki Nokki RCM prior to ripping.
Equipment used:
Custom Lenco L-75 (heavy birch plinth, PTP6 top plate) on maple isolation platform
Jelco SA-750E tonearm
Audio Technica AT33PTG/II cartridge
Musical Surroundings Phonomena II pre-amp
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 (second generation) ADC
24/96 wav captured in Audacity
Post-processing in Izotope RX7 Advanced
Tags cleaned up in foobar2000

foobar2000 1.6.13 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1
log date: 2022-11-07 16:09:48
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Analyzed: Bobby Hutcherson / Montara
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DR Peak RMS Duration Track
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DR14 -0.28 dB -16.47 dB 5:34 01-Camel Rise
DR12 -3.65 dB -21.18 dB 4:59 02-Montara
DR14 -0.01 dB -17.78 dB 4:17 03-(Se Acabo) La Malanga
DR12 -2.90 dB -19.21 dB 5:35 04-Love Song
DR14 -0.01 dB -19.30 dB 3:55 05-Little Angel
DR15 -1.50 dB -21.15 dB 6:41 06-Yuyo
DR16 -0.28 dB -19.61 dB 5:09 07-Oye Como Va
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Number of tracks: 7
Official DR value: DR14
Samplerate: 96000 Hz
Channels: 2
Bits per sample: 24
Bitrate: 2747 kbps
Codec: FLAC
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With the possible exception of Grover Washington's Feels So Good, no other album captured the spirit of jazz in 1975 like Bobby Hutcherson's Montara. Recorded in his hometown of L.A., Montara is the very sound of groove jazz coming out of fusion, and Latin jazz's tough salsa rhythms coming home to roost in something more warm and effluvial that would meet the populace where it was changing and mellowing out rather than making it sit up and take notice. That said, Montara is, like the Washington record, a masterpiece of the genre even though it isn't celebrated in the same way. Featuring a stellar cast of musicians -- among them Willie Bobo, Blue Mitchell, Bobby Matos, Ernie Watts, Harvey Mason, Plas Johnson, Fred Jackson, Larry Nash, and Chuck Domanico -- Montara is a portrait of Hutcherson's complex gift of subtlety and virtuosity. Whether it's the funky Weather Report dance of "Camel Rise," with Nash's electric piano and the horns weaving around one another in a soulful samba melody, the sweet soulful groove of the title track, where Hutcherson's solo lilts to the point of actually singing, the killer Cuban salsa of "La Malanga," done in complete minor-key frenzy (all the while without losing the easy, slippery grace of soul-jazz), the shimmering echoplexed electric piano and vibes interplay on "Love Song," or the steaming, burning gasoline orgy of Hutcherson's read of Santana's "Oye Como Va," with a killer flute line by Watts winding its way through a knotty bassline and multi-part percussion, the effect is the same: blissed-out moving and grooving for a summer day. Hutcherson's chameleon-like ability to shape-shift is truly remarkable as a sideman and especially as a leader. He never overplays, his charts are tight, and he always creates a band vibe. Almost all of his solo recordings reflect the strengths of the ensemble rather than his strengths as a soloist. Montara is one of the great feel-good jazz albums of the 1970s, one of the great Latin jazz albums of the 1970s, and one of the great groove jazz records. Seek it out without hesitation.

Bobby Hutcherson - vibes, marimba
Oscar Brashear, Blue Mitchell - trumpet
Plas Johnson - flute
Ernie Watts, Fred Jackson, Jr. - tenor saxophone, flute
Eddie Cano - piano
Larry Nash - electric piano
Dennis Budimir - guitar
Chuck Domanico, Dave Troncoso - bass
Harvey Mason - drums
Bobby Matos, Johnny Paloma, Victor Pantoja, Ralph MacDonald, Willie Bobo, Rudy Calzado - percussion
Recorded at The Record Plant, Los Angeles, CA on August 12–14, 1975.
Lacquer cut by Kevin Gray.