Freddie Hubbard (trumpet, flugelhorn), George Benson (guitar), Herbie Hancock (Fender Rhodes), Richard Wyands (piano), Ron Carter (bass), Jack DeJohnette (drums), Airto Moreira (percussion) and Don Sebesky (string arrangements). From the album First Light (1971).
George Benson’s restless guitar superimposed on Hubbard’s warm tone and Hancock’s beautifully modal lines with the Fender Rhodes are made more elegant with Sebesky’s strings. With First Light, his third and final album for CTI Records, Hubbard decided to expand his project and musical perspective by adding strings while continuing the jazz/funk/soul approach. For years, purists and jazz critics have complained about his decision to introduce these arrangements.
George Benson
Although mixing jazz with strings has always been a source of discussion among jazz fans, Sebeski has set a much more subtle direction here than usual. His lightweight introduction with flute, vibraphone, harp and strings offers a warm and attractive contrast to the solid and fierce funkiness of Ron Carter and Jack DeJohnette. Hubbard controls his most energetic tendencies, showing that he can also play lyrical lines and pleasant tones.
Jack DeJohnette
In this musical piece the orchestral ensemble makes the introduction and then Hubbard joins in to expose the theme. It’s very slow and Hubbard interprets the melody spraying gold on each note he plays accompanied only by the ensemble. This is then replaced by the rhythm section of the group at medium tempo and Hubbard makes an agile and creative solo. In the meantime the ensemble also comes in while Hubbard continues with a balanced and well elaborated discourse. After that, the group leaves and the orchestral ensemble outlines a concise passage before Hubbard keeps playing some optimistic phrases. To close, the atmosphere descends as it was at the beginning, Hubbard becomes poetic again and everything ends with a flute fading out.
© CTI Records
