The Opening Round Explained

The Opening Round, subtitled The Groove Masters Series Vol. 1 is an album by saxophonist Houston Person which was recorded in 1997 and released on the Savant label.^{[1] [2] [3]}

Reception

In his review on Allmusic, Stewart Mason states "A fun and personable mix of jazz and soul classics plus a couple of originals by guitarist Rodney Jones, Houston Person's The Opening Round: Groove Masters Series, Vol. 1 isn't a jazz album for the ages, but it's start-to-finish entertaining. It's a straight-up groove album, with Person in front of a four-piece organ combo". In JazzTimes, Stanley Dance wrote: "Person’s thick, unmannered tone, love of melody and swing, together give his music an odd sobriety that he seems compelled to relieve with fast flurries of notes".^[4]

Track listing

1. "Sweet Sucker" (Johnny Griffin) – 1:27
2. "Let's Stay Together" (Al Green, Al Jackson Jr., Willie Mitchell) – 3:56
3. "Can't Help Lovin' That Man" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) – 4:06
4. "What's Going On?" (Marvin Gaye, Renaldo Benson, Al Cleveland) – 2:32
5. "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Calvin Lewis, Andrew Wright) – 3:41
6. "Blue Spring" (Rodney Jones) – 4:35
7. "Song for a Rainbow" (Jones) – 3:57
8. "Shenandoah" (Traditional) – 4:55

Personnel

• Houston Person – tenor saxophone
• Joey DeFrancesco – Hammond B3 organ
• Rodney Jones – guitar
• Tracy Wormworth – electric bass
• Bernard Purdie – drums

Notes and References

1. http://www.jazzdepot.com/h_person/2005.html Jazz Depot: Savant discography
2. Payne, D. Houston Person Discography accessed March 7, 2018
3. https://enciclopediadeljazz.wordpress.com/2014/03/17/houston-person/ Enciclopedia del Jazz: Houston Person
4. Dance, S. JazzTimes Review, accessed March 7, 2018