The Opener - Misplaced Pages

The Opener is an album by American jazz trombonist Curtis Fuller, recorded on June 16, 1957 and released on Blue Note later that year—his debut for the label.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic

The AllMusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine states, "The Opener is trombonist Curtis Fuller's first album for Blue Note and it is a thoroughly impressive affair."

Track listing

All compositions by Curtis Fuller except as indicated

Side 1

"A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening" (Harold Adamson, Jimmy McHugh) – 6:52
"Hugore" – 6:43
"Oscalypso" (Oscar Pettiford) – 5:40

Side 2

"Here's to My Lady" (Rube Bloom, Johnny Mercer) – 6:43
"Lizzy's Bounce" – 5:25
"Soon" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) – 5:33

Personnel

Musicians

Curtis Fuller – trombone
Hank Mobley – tenor saxophone (except "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening", "Here's to My Lady")
Bobby Timmons – piano
Paul Chambers – bass
Art Taylor – drums

Technical personnel

Alfred Lion – producer
Rudy Van Gelder – recording engineer
Reid Miles – design
Francis Wolff – photography
Robert Levin – liner notes

References

"Reviews and Ratings of New Jazz Albums". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. October 7, 1957. p. 65 – via Google Books.
Jazz, All About. "Curtis Fuller: The Opener album review @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz.
Blue Note discography accessed October 22, 2010
Jazzdisco: Curtis Fuller Catalog, accessed October 22, 2019
Fitzgerald, M. Curtis Fuller Leader Entry, accessed October 22, 2019
^ Erlewine, S. T. Allmusic Review accessed October 22, 2010

v t e Curtis Fuller
Studio albums	New Trombone (1957) Curtis Fuller with Red Garland (1957) Curtis Fuller and Hampton Hawes with French Horns (1957) The Opener (1957) Bone & Bari (1957) Jazz ...It's Magic! (1957) Curtis Fuller Volume 3 (1957) Two Bones (1958) Sliding Easy (1959) Blues-ette (1959) The Curtis Fuller Jazztet (1959) Imagination (1959) Images of Curtis Fuller (1960) Boss of the Soul-Stream Trombone (1960) The Magnificent Trombone of Curtis Fuller (1961) South American Cookin' (1961) Soul Trombone (1961) Cabin in the Sky (1962) Crankin' (1971) Smokin' (1972) Four on the Outside (1978) Fire and Filigree (1978) Giant Bones '80 (1980) with Kai Winding Curtis Fuller Meets Roma Jazz Trio (1984) Blues-ette Part II (1993) Up Jumped Spring (2004) Keep It Simple (2005)
Live albums	Monday Night at Birdland (1958) Another Monday Night at Birdland (1959) It's Timeless (1982)

Curtis Fuller

Studio albums

New Trombone (1957)
Curtis Fuller with Red Garland (1957)
Curtis Fuller and Hampton Hawes with French Horns (1957)
The Opener (1957)
Bone & Bari (1957)
Jazz ...It's Magic! (1957)
Curtis Fuller Volume 3 (1957)
Two Bones (1958)
Sliding Easy (1959)
Blues-ette (1959)
The Curtis Fuller Jazztet (1959)
Imagination (1959)
Images of Curtis Fuller (1960)
Boss of the Soul-Stream Trombone (1960)
The Magnificent Trombone of Curtis Fuller (1961)
South American Cookin' (1961)
Soul Trombone (1961)
Cabin in the Sky (1962)
Crankin' (1971)
Smokin' (1972)
Four on the Outside (1978)
Fire and Filigree (1978)
Giant Bones '80 (1980) with Kai Winding
Curtis Fuller Meets Roma Jazz Trio (1984)
Blues-ette Part II (1993)
Up Jumped Spring (2004)
Keep It Simple (2005)

Live albums

Monday Night at Birdland (1958)
Another Monday Night at Birdland (1959)
It's Timeless (1982)

v t e Hank Mobley
Year(s) indicated are for the recording(s), not first release, except for the compilation section
As leader or co-leader	Newark 1953 (1953 ) Hank Mobley Quartet (1955) The Jazz Message of Hank Mobley (1956) Mobley's Message (Prestige, 1956) Mobley's 2nd Message (Prestige, 1956) Jazz Message No. 2 (Savoy, 1956) Hank Mobley Sextet (1956) Hank Mobley and His All Stars (1957) Hank Mobley Quintet (1957) Hank (1957) Hank Mobley (1957) Curtain Call (1957) Poppin' (1957) Peckin' Time (1958) Monday Night at Birdland (1958) Another Monday Night at Birdland (1959) Soul Station (1960) Roll Call (1960) Workout (1961) Another Workout (1961) No Room for Squares (1963) Straight No Filter (1963–65) The Turnaround! (1964) Dippin' (1965) A Caddy for Daddy (1965) A Slice of the Top (1966) Far Away Lands (1967) Third Season (1967) Hi Voltage (1967) Reach Out! (1968) The Flip (1969) Thinking of Home (1970) Breakthrough! (1972)
With others	At the Cafe Bohemia, Vol. 1 (Art Blakey/The Jazz Messengers, 1955) At the Cafe Bohemia, Vol. 2 (Art Blakey/The Jazz Messengers, 1955) The Jazz Messengers (Art Blakey, 1956) Originally (Art Blakey/The Jazz Messengers, 1956 ) At the Jazz Corner of the World (Art Blakey/The Jazz Messengers, 1959) All Night Long (Kenny Burrell, 1956) K.B. Blues (1957 ) Byrd's Eye View (Donald Byrd, 1955) Byrd in Flight (Donald Byrd, 1960) A New Perspective (1963) Mustang! (Donald Byrd, 1966) Blackjack (Donald Byrd, 1967) Dial "S" for Sonny (Sonny Clark, 1957) My Conception (Sonny Clark, 1957) Someday My Prince Will Come (Miles Davis, 1961) In Person Friday and Saturday Nights at the Blackhawk, Complete (Miles Davis, 1961) Miles Davis at Carnegie Hall (1961) Afro-Cuban (Kenny Dorham, 1955) Whistle Stop (Kenny Dorham, 1961) This Is New (Kenny Drew, 1957) Undercurrent (Kenny Drew, 1960) Farmer's Market (Art Farmer, 1956) The Opener (Curtis Fuller, 1957) Sliding Easy (Curtis Fuller, 1959) Afro (Dizzy Gillespie, 1954) Dizzy and Strings (Dizzy Gillespie, 1954) Jazz Recital (Dizzy Gillespie, 1954–55) I Want to Hold Your Hand (Grant Green, 1965) A Blowin' Session (Johnny Griffin, 1957) My Point of View (Herbie Hancock, 1963) Informal Jazz (Elmo Hope, 1956) Goin' Up (Freddie Hubbard, 1960) Blue Spirits (Freddie Hubbard, 1965) The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson Volume 2 (1955) Together! (Elvin Jones and Philly Joe Jones, 1961) Midnight Walk (Elvin Jones, 1966) I Wanna Talk About You (Tete Montoliu, 1980) Introducing Lee Morgan (1956) Lee Morgan Sextet (1956) Cornbread (Lee Morgan, 1965) Charisma (1966) The Rajah (1966) Tenor Conclave (Prestige All Stars, 1957) Star Bright (Dizzy Reece, 1959) The Cool Voice of Rita Reys (1956) Good Move! (Freddie Roach 1963) The Max Roach Quartet featuring Hank Mobley (1953) Max Roach + 4 (1956) The Max Roach 4 Plays Charlie Parker (1957) MAX (Max Roach, 1958) Yasmina, a Black Woman (Archie Shepp, 1969) Poem for Malcolm (Archie Shepp, 1969) Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers (1954–55) Silver's Blue (Horace Silver, 1956) 6 Pieces of Silver (Horace Silver, 1956–58) The Stylings of Silver (Horace Silver, 1957) A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume One (1957) A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume Two (1957) Julius Watkins Sextet (1955)
Compilations	The Complete Blue Note Hank Mobley Fifties Sessions (1998) The Feelin's Good (2013)
Related articles	Discography

v t e Bobby Timmons
Years given are for the recording(s), not first release.
As leader or co-leader	Jenkins, Jordan and Timmons (and John Jenkins, Clifford Jordan, 1957) This Here Is Bobby Timmons (1960) Soul Time (1960) Easy Does It (1961) In Person (1961) Sweet and Soulful Sounds (1962) Born to Be Blue! (1963) Chun-King (1964) From the Bottom (1964) Holiday Soul (1964) Little Barefoot Soul (1964) Workin' Out! (1964) Chicken & Dumplin's (1965) Soul Food (1966) The Soul Man! (1966) Got to Get It! (1967) Do You Know the Way? (1968)
With Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers	1958 – Paris Olympia (1958) Des Femmes Disparaissent (1958) Drums Around the Corner (1958) Moanin' (1958) At the Jazz Corner of the World (1959) Les Liaisons dangereuses (1959) A Night in Tunisia (1960) Meet You at the Jazz Corner of the World (1960) Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers (1961) Pisces (1961) Roots & Herbs (1961) The Freedom Rider (1961) The Witch Doctor (1961)
With others	10 to 4 at the 5 Spot (Pepper Adams, 1958) The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in San Francisco (1959) Them Dirty Blues (Cannonball Adderley, 1960) Work Song (Nat Adderley, 1960) Chet Baker & Crew (1956) Chet Baker Big Band (1956) Blue Lights (Kenny Burrell, 1958) On View at the Five Spot Cafe (Kenny Burrell, 1959) More Party Time (Arnett Cobb, 1960) Movin' Right Along (Arnett Cobb, 1960) 'Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia (Kenny Dorham, 1956) Matador (Kenny Dorham, 1962) Brass Shout (Art Farmer, 1959) The Opener (Curtis Fuller, 1957) Benny Golson and the Philadelphians (1958) The Big Soul-Band (Johnny Griffin, 1960) The Soul Society (Sam Jones, 1960) Nice and Easy (Johnny Lytle, 1962) Hank (Hank Mobley, 1957) The Cooker (Lee Morgan, 1957) Lee-Way (Lee Morgan, 1960) Comin' On! (Dizzy Reece, 1960) Personal Appearance (Sonny Stitt, 1957) The Young Lions (1960)

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