Horace Silver - Finger Poppin’

Pianist Horace Silver is one of the most influential pianists in jazz and the very personification and creator of what has been called soul jazz, composing what are now standards such as ‘Sister Sadie’ and ‘Señor Blues’ and piloting a distinctive direction the Blue Note records sound would take. Initially making an impact with Art Blakey, who “borrowed” the name of Silver’s group to form The Jazz Messengers, Silver went on produce a series of classic albums for Blue Note in the 1960s, including the timeless Song For My Father with the infectious bossa style of its much sampled title track and Silver’s own inimitable sense of the Cape Verdean blues. Keith Shadwick surveys the great man’s 1950s/60s heyday, as a previously unissued 50-year-old Silver live album is released for the first time. 25.01.08