Broadcast on 30-Mar-2009

Pianist/composer Andrew Hill was Alfred Lion's last great discovery. Lion,of course was Blue Note's head man and a lover of original pianist/composers. Lion was the first to record Thelonious Monk as a leader and the first to record Horace Silver and was responsible for the many recordings as a sideman and leader of the ill-fated Sonny Clark who died as a result of a drug overdose on January 13,1963 at age 32. Lion heard Andrew Hill on a Joe Henderson session and a Hank Mobley session in late 1963 and was impressed with the young pianist's originality. Hill had played with many people before coming into the Blue Note fold; people like Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Dinah Washington and many others so he was very well-rounded. Lion began to record Hill playing his own unique and sometimes difficult compositions and his first effort for the label was the astounding "Black Fire" with Joe Henderson. His second was a quartet effort with two bassists and the third was this classic called "Judgement!" Hill used the young, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes and his favourite bassist, Richard Davis and the great and dynamic Elvin Jones on drums in six Hill compositions. This album stands with "Black Fire" and "Point of Departure" as one of Hill's finest and is the Feature for tonight.