Baby Face Willette - Face To Face - 180g Vinyl LP

2019 reissue

Hammond B-3 organ soul jazz fans know and love the music of Jimmy Smith, but lesser known is the tragically short life and career of Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette who produced some of the deepest grooves ever recorded on the B-3 on just two Blue Note albums recorded in 1961. Willette’s debut Face to Face is a showcase for his blues-drenched organ pyrotechnics. Joined by the brilliant guitarist Grant Green, tenor sax master Fred Jackson and the rock-solid drums of Ben Dixon.

Nicknamed "Baby Face" on account of his fresh features and youthful visage, soul jazz organist Roosevelt Willette played his instrument with a sanctified fervour that reflected his roots in gospel music.

Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series: "Tone Poet" Joe Harley—co-founder and co-producer of the acclaimed Music Matters audiophile vinyl series—is the producer of this new series of all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering was done by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and vinyl was manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI). The titles were handpicked by Harley and cover lesser-known Blue Note classics, modern era standouts, and albums from other labels under the Blue Note catalog.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180 gm audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology Inc. Every aspect of these Blue Note/Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

The so-called Tone Poet (Joe Harley) is confident that his audiophile reissues will allow 21st-century listeners to hear what the musicians heard as the master tape was played back on the studio monitors in Rudy Van Gelder’s studio 50 or 60 years ago. He believes that, in terms of quality, Blue Note albums have never sounded or looked better. "Every aspect of these Blue Note releases is done to the highest possible standard," he says. "It means that you will never find a superior version."