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What we do know is that The Rajah was released 12 years after Morgan was shot by his partner Helen in 1972 at Slug’s Saloon on East 3rd St. in New York by his partner Helen. A snowstorm had prevented the ambulance from arriving quickly and Morgan bled to death. He was 33 years old. The Rajah is characterized by a relaxed, refined sound with a relaxed, pulsating feeling. Many of the songs have a light Latin rhythm, which was synchronized with the Bossa Nova madness of the time. The song line-up included Calvin Massey’s A Pilgrim’s Funny Farm, Morgan’s The Rajah, Duke Pearson’s Is That So?, Walter Davis’ Davisamba and two standards – What Now My Love and Once In a Lifetime. Mobley is particularly sensual here, sailing through these calm waters like a tug in the early morning, while Morgan’s Horn is lyrical, bright and embracing. Walton on piano is exceptional, especially with Chambers’ thick bass and Higgins’ gentle hard bop rhythms. Joe Harley is co-founder and co-producer of the renowned American vinyl label MUSIC MATTERS. His extraordinary feeling for the sound aesthetics of the LP format earned him the title “Tone Poet”. On the occasion of his 80th label anniversary, Blue Note Records commissioned the “Tone Poet” to put together some albums for an exclusive LP edition. These purely analogue, i.e. without any digital intermediate steps, re-mastered from the original master tapes by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and pressed onto 180g vinyl by Record Technology Incorporated (RTI). The original covers are facsimiled as heavy laminated gatefold sleeves. A sleeve production method is used, the name of which should only mean something to LP gourmets: Tip-on-Sleeve. As in the days of the heavy, stable cardboard covers of the fifties and sixties, a stable cardboard base is combined with a glossy laminated surface. |
