Dexter Gordon had been living in Europe for several years when he recorded One Flight Up, one of his acknowledged masterpiece albums, in Paris in June of 1964. It’s all here: Dexter’s magnificently huge sound, Donald Byrd in peak form on trumpet, the subtle sophistication of pianist Kenny Drew, the utter brilliance of the then-teenaged bass phenom Niels-Henning Orsted Pederson, and the rock-steady swing of drummer Art Taylor. The opening track “Tanya” takes up the entire first side of this album at 18+ minutes, and it is a performance for the ages. Blue Note Records’ Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series is produced by Joe Harley and features all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering is by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio), and vinyl is manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI).
