Atlantic Records Stereo 1966
On May 24, 1965, 35-year-old Herbie Mann's septet recorded a very enjoyable set at one of New York City's premier jazz clubs. For a boisterous crowd gathered to hear Mann, up-and-coming pianist Chick Corea, bassist Earl May, vibist Dave Pike, drummer Bruno Carr, conga drum master Carlos "Patato" Valdes and trombonists John Hitchcock and Mark Weinstein, it was a memorable "Monday Night At the Village Gate."
The album gets off to a raucous start with "Away From the Crowd," by Attila Zoller, a guitarist collaborator of Mann's who is not heard here. It's a virile, dramatic theme, dominated as much by the trombones' playing of a bombastic three-note phrase as Mann's gymnastics on the flute.
"Motherless Child," the second track, is "Monday Night's" tour de force, featuring an arrangement by the great saxophonist-composer Oliver Nelson. Mann's flute makes a lonely opening statement, and then the band gives the traditional melody a shifting, head-swaying beat that evokes the mid-'-60s as much as any performance of the period. Mann takes almost all of the solo time, always knowing when to elongate his phrasing, when to let it hew more closely to the tune, when to move away from it. A highlight comes around the song's midpoint, when the trombones punch out a powerful stanza. I keep mentioning the trombones because throughout the album, the heft they give to the music gives it an insistent quality that's hard to resist.
Side 1.
1. Away From The Crowd 6:41
2. Motherless Child 8:04
Side 2.
3. In Escambrun 5:40
4. The Young Turks 5:24
5. You're Gonna Make It With Me 6:47
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