Eric Dolphy: Outward Bound

Analogue Productions (Prestige)

Part of the ultimate audiophile Prestige stereo reissues from Analogue Productions — 25 of the most collectible, rarest, most audiophile-sounding Rudy Van Gelder recordings ever made. All cut at 33 1/3 and also released on Hybrid SACD

All mastered from the original analog master tapes by mastering maestro Kevin Gray. 180-gram LPs pressed at Acoustic Sounds' state-of-the-art pressing plant, Quality Record Pressings, plated by Gary Salstrom

Tip-on jackets on thick cardboard stock

Eric Dolphy has sometimes been described as an iconoclast, but in Outward Bound, he was not overturning his idol, Charlie Parker; he was building on Bird’s legacy. So deep was Dolphy’s musicianship, so free his imagination, that he enchanted trailblazers like John Coltrane and Charles Mingus. Partnering in this collection with the brilliant trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and a stunning rhythm section, Dolphy is at a peak of energy and creativity on alto saxophone, bass clarinet, and flute. He and Hubbard work with empathy reminiscent of the young Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. Pianist Jaki Byard, bassist George Tucker, and drummer Roy Haynes were ideal accompanists and co-conspirators in this widely influential work.