The Cooker

The Cooker is an album by jazz trumpeter Lee Morgan, released on the Blue Note label in 1958 as BLP 1578. It was recorded on September 29, 1957, and features a quintet with Morgan, Pepper Adams, Bobby Timmons, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones.

The Cooker
Studio album by
Lee Morgan
ReleasedEnd of February/Early March 1958[1]
RecordedSeptember 29, 1957
Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack
GenreJazz
Length38:51
LabelBlue Note
BLP 1578
ProducerAlfred Lion
Lee Morgan chronology
City Lights
(1957)		 The Cooker
(1958)		 Candy
(1958)

Recorded and released while Morgan was still just nineteen years old, The Cooker is the first album to feature his own original compositions, as well as the first without any compositions written by Benny Golson.[2]

Music

The Cooker is considered to demonstrate Morgan's early bebop virtuosity, with frequent double time improvisational lines.[3][4] It is also noted for performance trademarks which would later come to typify Morgan's style, such as clipped notes, upward slurs, half-valving, and triple-tonguing.[3]

On the bebop standard "A Night in Tunisia", Morgan avoids being compared with Charlie Parker's famous 4-bar break on the piece by not playing during it; he then plays a rapid solo that is mostly in double time.[5] The second track, Morgan's composition "Heavy Dipper," is "an infectious, medium-tempo swinger."[5] "Just One of Those Things" is another up-tempo piece.[5] "Lover Man" is a ballad.[5]

Reception

The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 3.5 stars, stating: "Morgan plays remarkably well for his age (already ranking just below Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis), making this an essential acquisition."[6]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[6]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide[7]

Track listing
  1. "A Night in Tunisia" (Gillespie, Paparelli) – 9:24
  2. "Heavy Dipper" (Morgan) – 7:05
  3. "Just One of Those Things" (Porter) – 7:18
  4. "Lover Man" (Davis, Ramirez, Sherman) – 6:50
  5. "New-Ma" (Morgan) – 8:14
  6. "Just One of Those Things" [Alternate Take] – 7:50 Bonus track on CD

Personnel

References
  1. Billboard March 3, 1958
  2. van de Linde, François (2019). "Lee Morgan The Cooker (Blue Note 1957)". Flophouse Magazine. flophousemagazine.com.
  3. Chell, Samuel (2007). "Lee Morgan: The Cooker". All About Jazz. Elite CafeMedia. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  4. Waring, Charles (2018). "'The Cooker': How Lee Morgan Became Blue Note's Hottest Teen Star". uDiscoverMusic. uDiscover. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  5. Chell, Samuel (January 29, 2007) "Lee Morgan: The Cooker (2006)". All About Jazz.
  6. Yanow, Scott Allmusic Review accessed September 27, 2011.
  7. Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 147. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
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