Author(s): Hancock Herbie

Vinyl

Try to imagine the 1960s jazz scene without Herbie Hancock—-the pianist who anchored the rhythm section for Miles Davis’ dynamic quintet, the composer who wrote “Maiden Voyage” and several other jazz standards, the leader who made impressive, exploratory albums such as Inventions And Dimensions and The Prisoner, the sideman who seemed to be everywhere, recording with numerous Blue Note Records label stalwarts such as Grant Green, Lee Morgan, Jackie McLean, and many others. Hancock’s sound, described by writer Len Lyons as “a very improvisational modern jazz typified by superimposing rich keyboard harmony over modal, or scale-based, patterns,” became a defining aspect of many of the era’s greatest jazz recordings.