Doin' The Thang! (Vinyl LP)

Ronnie Mathews' first session as a leader appeared in the jazz racks in the '60s, it would have been logical to assume that he was providing funky, down-home, R&B-drenched soul-jazz. Doin' the Thang sounds like the title of a soul-jazz release; also, one of the tracks is titled "Let's Get Down." And when jazz improvisers used that much African-American slang in the '60s, it often meant that they were going after the soul-jazz/organ combo market (which was relatively lucrative at a time when commercially, jazz had lost a lot of ground to rock and R&B).

But this 1963 session is more than soul-jazz. Rather, the LP's focus is modal post-bop and hard bop. But even though the material isn't soul-jazz, Mathews' quintet is certainly soulful. That is true on "The Thang" (a blues) as well as two Asian-influenced post-bop offerings that Mathews wrote: "The Orient" and "Ichi-Ban."

There's no shortage of soulfulness on the acoustic pianist's interpretation of Duke Ellington's "Prelude to a Kiss." The cohesive, hard-swinging quintet that Mathews leads on this LP employs Charles Davis on baritone sax, Eddie Kahn on bass, Albert "Tootie" Heath on drums, and a young Freddie Hubbard on trumpet. Hubbard, who was only 25, brings not only fire, guts, and passion, but also a big, highly appealing tone. One that owed a lot to Clifford Brown and Fats Navarro, but still quite distinct and original.

With Doin' the Thang, Mathews' recording career as a leader was off to an impressive start.

Condition
Media: Mint (M)
Sleeve: Mint (M)

Our Grading Standards
We grade all vinyl using the Goldmine standard:
Mint (M): Perfect, unplayed condition.
Near Mint (NM): Nearly perfect with minimal signs of handling.
Very Good Plus (VG+): Shows light signs of play but plays with minimal surface noise. The most common grade for collectable vinyl.
Very Good (VG): Noticeable marks and some surface noise, but still an enjoyable listen.
Good (G): Heavy wear — for collectors only.

All records are graded visually and by play. Media and sleeve are graded separately.

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We're a specialist vintage vinyl shop with roots in Peckham, London. From our Swedish store we ship across Europe and the EU. Every record in our collection is individually sourced, inspected, and graded. We stock soul, funk, jazz, reggae, punk, indie, psych and beyond — always original pressings, always honestly described.

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