Lee Morgan- Leeway (Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series)

Label: Blue Note

Reissued 7/17/2026, Originally released 1961

Lee Morgan hadn't cut a Blue Note session for more than two years when he entered Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs on April 28, 1960 to record Leeway. What was produced that day was vintage hard bop of the highest quality with the trumpeter leading a top-flight quintet featuring Jackie McLean on alto saxophone, Bobby Timmons on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Blakey on drums. The four-song set includes Morgan's hard-driving tribute to Blue Note's founders "The Lion and the Wolff," McLean's emphatic "Midtown Blues," and two pieces by composer Cal Massey: the easy-swinging "These Are Soulful Days" and rousing "Nakatini Suite."

Track listing:

1. These Are Soulful Days
   
2. Lion and the Wolff
   
3. Midtown Blues
   
4. Nakatini Suite