If it weren’t for his being in prison at the early part of his career, tenor saxist Jimmy Heath (who recently left us for his reward) would probably be spoken of in the same breath as Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane. These eight records have him catching up with his late start with a vengeance, and stand up very well under the test of time
His 1959 debut at 33 has him in a swinging session with Nat Adderley/ct, Curtis Fuller/tb, Wynton Kelly/p, Paul Chambers/b and brother Tootie Heath/dr. His classic “For Minors Only” is debuted here, while his treatment of the standard “For All We Know” is a delight. Next year has Heath putting together some nifty charts for a tentet that includes both Nat and Cannonball Adderley, Cedar Walton-Tommy Flanagan/p and Clark Terry/fh and brothers Tootie and Percy/b for a soulful “Dat Dere” and introducing two of Heath’s stronger pieces “Picture of Heath” and “Big ‘P’”. In 1961, Heath is joined by his brothers as well as trumpet master Freddie Hubbard, who’s in vintage form on “The Quota” and “When Sunny Gets Blue”. For 1962’s session, Heath plays flute and soprano sax as well as his tenor, still with Hubbard, his brothers and with the addendum of Julius Watkins on French Horn. The textures are rich for “Make Someone Happy” and “The More I See You” with Heath’s own “Gemini” a classy highlight. In 1963, Heath puts together a team that included Herbie Hancock/p, Donald Byrd/p and the unorthodox French horn and tuba of James Buffington and Don Butterfield, respectively for a richly textured straight-ahead session that included a clever read of “Nutty” and a lovely “More Than You Know”. Next year he brings ina classic rhythm section of Wynton Kelly/p, Paul Chambers, brother Al Heath/dr and the classy Kenny Burrell/g, debuting his classic tune “Gingerbread Boy” (later to be covered by Miles Davis), and almost as classic “Project S” Timeless toe-tapping.