The Essential Herbie Hancock

The first 2cd collection to span herbie hancock's entire career, from 1962 debut lp to 2000 collaboration with stevie wonder. Includes previously unreleased 1978 live concert duet with joni mitchell on "goodbye pork pie hat" from mingus plus appearances with dexter gordon, freddie hubbard, sonny rollins, ron carter, tony williams, miles davis, wayne shorter, joe henderson, harvey mason, bill laswell, and more!

This 2-CD, 21-track compilation shows how keyboardist/composer/bandleader Herbie Hancock successfully crossed the boundaries of jazz and pop for four decades. Compiled from five record labels, from 1962 to 2000, tracks like "Circle" showcase his legendary stint in Miles Davis' mid-'60s acoustic combos, and "Maiden Voyage," and "Cantaloupe Island" are but two of his historic jazz compositions from his Blue Note period. But hits like his smash soul-fusion, 70s Headhunters cut, "Chameleon," the evocative "Come Running to Me," which featured the vocoder voice synthesizer, and the hip-hop anthem "Rockit," which broke through the MTV video barrier, garnered younger generations of fans. Not to be forgotten are his excellent movie themes, including his eerie 1986 Oscar-winning soundtrack "Round Midnight," his poppin' collaboration with bassist Jaco Pastorius on "4 A.M.," and his rhythmic rendezvous with Stevie Wonder on W.C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues." Herbie Hancock is essential, in any time or style. --Eugene Holley, Jr.