Blue Note presents... The Tone Poet Series
The Audiophile vinyl reissue series is now in its 5th year!
Blue Note Records turned 80 years old in 2019, and to mark this momentous occasion, they unveiled the Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series. Think of it as the ultimate sonic time machine. Blue Note President Don Was teamed up with "Tone Poet" Joe Harley, a legend in the audiophile vinyl world, to bring us the purest listening experience.
Every album in this series is all-analog, mastered directly from the original master tapes and pressed onto 180g virgin vinyl. It's like hearing these iconic recordings for the first time, with every nuance, every whisper, and every note crystal clear. The deluxe gatefold packaging is just the cherry on top. Kevin Gray is at the helm of the mastering process, ensuring the highest fidelity, while RTI, renowned for their impeccable vinyl pressing, is handling all the manufacturing.
This is more than just a reissue series; it's a love letter to the music, the artists, and the fans who have made Blue Note Records a legend. While the records are beautiful and packed well, they come with a price tag north of $39 for the newer releases, but you can start to find a few of these titles in used bins across the U.S. and Canada. Dust off your turntable, cue up the needle, and get ready to experience the magic of modern jazz like never before. Blue Note sure has come a long way since Alfred Lion produced his first recording session in New York City with two boogie-woogie pianists almost 85 years ago.
Here’s the list of all the Blue Note Tone Poet vinyl reissues by year:
2024:
Lou Donaldson – Midnight Creeper (Blue Note, 1968)
Elvin Jones – Poly-Currents (Blue Note, 1969)
Blue Mitchell – Down With It (Blue Note, 1965)
Joe Lovano – Trio Fascination: Edition One (Blue Note, 1997)
Jackie McLean – Action (Blue Note, 1964)
Booker Ervin – Tex Book Tenor (Blue Note, 1968)
Horace Silver – Silver’s Serenade (Blue Note, 1963)
Anthony Williams – Life Time (Blue Note, 1964)
Donald Byrd – Byrd’s Eye View (Transition, 1955)
Bobby Hutcherson – Total Eclipse (Blue Note, 1968)
Doug Watkins – Watkins At Large (Transition, 1956)
Kenny Dorham & Jackie McLean – Inta Somethin’ (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
Donald Byrd – Byrd Blows On Beacon Hill (Transition, 1956)
Wayne Shorter – Odyssey of Iska (Blue Note, 1970)
Lee Morgan – Taru (Blue Note, 1968)
Bobby Hutcherson – Medina (Blue Note, 1969)
September 6, 2024
The Modest Jazz Trio (Jim Hall/Red Mitchell/Red Kelly) – Good Friday Blues (Pacific Jazz, 1960)
Jackie McLean – Let Freedom Ring (Blue Note, 1962)
October 4, 2024
Booker Little – Booker Little 4 & Max Roach (United Artists, 1958)
Donald Byrd – Kofi (Blue Note, 1969-70)
November 1, 2024
Clifford Jordan – Cliff Jordan (Blue Note, 1957)
Bobby Hutcherson – Dialogue (Blue Note, 1965)
December 6, 2024
Freddie Roach – Good Move (Blue Note, 1963)
Hank Mobley – A Slice of the Top (Blue Note, 1966)
2023:
ScoLoHoFo (Scofield-Lovano-Holland-Foster) – Oh! (Blue Note, 2002)
Donald Byrd – At The Half Note Cafe, Vol. 1 (Blue Note, 1960)
Carmell Jones – The Remarkable Carmell Jones (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
Andrew Hill – Dance With Death (Blue Note, 1968)
Chet Baker – Chet Baker Sings and Plays (Pacific Jazz, 1955)
Stanley Turrentine – Mr. Natural (Blue Note, 1964)
Gil Evans Orchestra – Great Jazz Standards (Pacific Jazz, 1959)
Freddie Hubbard – Blue Spirits (Blue Note, 1965)
Donald Byrd – Slow Drag (Blue Note, 1967)
McCoy Tyner – Time For Tyner (Blue Note, 1968)
Sonny Clark Trio – Sonny Clark Trio (Blue Note, 1957)
Hank Mobley – A Caddy For Daddy (Blue Note, 1965)
Lee Morgan – Infinity (Blue Note, 1965)
Duke Pearson – The Right Touch (Blue Note, 1967)
Big John Patton – Let ‘Em Roll (Blue Note, 1965)
Wayne Shorter – Schizophrenia (Blue Note, 1967)
Herbie Nichols Trio – Herbie Nichols Trio (Blue Note, 1955-56)
Jackie McLean – Demon’s Dance (Blue Note, 1967)
Kenny Burrell – K.B. Blues (Blue Note, 1957)
Jack Wilson – Easterly Winds (Blue Note, 1967)
Grant Green – I Want To Hold Your Hand (Blue Note, 1965)
McCoy Tyner – Extensions (Blue Note, 1970)
2022:
Stanley Turrentine – Rough ‘N Tumble (Blue Note, 1966)
Joe Pass – For Django (Pacific Jazz, 1964)
Grant Green – The Latin Bit (Blue Note, 1962)
Sonny Red – Out of the Blue (Blue Note, 1959-60)
Jackie McLean – Tippin’ The Scales (Blue Note, 1962)
Hank Mobley – Curtain Call (Blue Note, 1957)
Gerald Wilson – Moment of Truth (Pacific Jazz, 1962)
Freddie Hubbard – Breaking Point! (Blue Note, 1964)
Kenny Burrell – Kenny Burrell (Blue Note, 1956)
Grant Green – Feelin’ The Spirit (Blue Note, 1962)
Harold Vick – Steppin’ Out (Blue Note, 1963)
Bobby Hutcherson – Stick Up! (Blue Note, 1966)
Chet Baker & Art Pepper – Picture of Heath (Pacific Jazz, 1956)
Blue Mitchell – Bring It Home To Me (Blue Note, 1966)
2020-21:
Bobby Hutcherson – The Kicker (Blue Note, 1963)
Jackie McLean – It’s Time (Blue Note, 1964)
Joe Henderson – The State of the Tenor: Live at the Village Vanguard, Volume 1 (Blue Note, 1985)
Stanley Turrentine – That’s Where It’s At (Blue Note, 1962)
Horace Silver – Further Explorations (Blue Note, 1958)
Jimmy Smith – Prayer Meetin’ (Blue Note, 1963)
Herbie Hancock – My Point of View (Blue Note, 1963)
Bobby Hutcherson – Oblique (Blue Note, 1967)
Duke Pearson – The Phantom (Blue Note, 1968)
Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers – Roots & Herbs (Blue Note, 1961)
McCoy Tyner – Tender Moments (Blue Note, 1967)
Donald Byrd – Byrd In Flight (Blue Note, 1960)
Tina Brooks – The Waiting Game (Blue Note, 1961)
Paul Chambers – Bass On Top (Blue Note, 1957)
Lee Morgan – The Rajah (Blue Note, 1966)
John Scofield & Pat Metheny – I Can See Your House From Here (Blue Note, 1993)
Charles Lloyd & The Marvels – Tone Poem (Blue Note, 2021)
Dexter Gordon – One Flight Up (Blue Note, 1964)
Andrew Hill – Passing Ships (Blue Note, 1969)
Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers – The Witch Doctor (Blue Note, 1961)
Curtis Amy & Dupree Bolton – Katanga! (Pacific Jazz, 1963)
Sonny Clark – My Conception (Blue Note, 1959)
McCoy Tyner – Expansions (Blue Note, 1968)
Lee Konitz & Gerry Mulligan – Lee Konitz Plays With The Gerry Mulligan Quartet (Pacific Jazz, 1953)
Wayne Shorter – The All Seeing Eye (Blue Note, 1965)
2019:
Wayne Shorter – Etcetera (Blue Note, 1965)
Chick Corea – Now He Sings, Now He Sobs (Solid State, 1968)
Sam Rivers – Contours (Blue Note, 1965)
Gil Evans – New Bottle Old Wine (World Pacific, 1958)
Cassandra Wilson – Glamoured (Blue Note, 2003)
Joe Henderson – The State of the Tenor: Live at Village Vanguard, Vol 2 (Blue Note, 1985)
Lou Donaldson – Mr. Shing-A-Ling (Blue Note, 1967)
Lee Morgan – Cornbread (Blue Note, 1965)
Baby Face Willette – Face To Face (Blue Note, 1961)
Dexter Gordon – Clubhouse (Blue Note, 1965)
Kenny Burrell – Introducing Kenny Burrell (Blue Note, 1956)
Andrew Hill – Black Fire (Blue Note, 1963)
Donald Byrd – Chant (Blue Note, 1961)
Stanley Turrentine – Hustlin’ (Blue Note, 1964)
Grant Green – Born to Be Blue (Blue Note, 1962)
Tina Brooks – Minor Move (Blue Note, 1958)
How many will you collect? Let me know.