Maiden Voyage is the fifth album led by jazz musician Herbie Hancock, and was recorded by Rudy Van Gelder on March 17, 1965, for Blue Note Records. It was issued as BLP 4195 and BST 84195. It is a concept album aimed at creating an oceanic atmosphere. Many of the track titles refer to marine biology or the sea, and the musicians develop the concept through their use of space. The album was presented with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1999.
Overview
According to Bob Blumenthal's 1999 liner notes, "Blue Note logs indicate that an attempt had been made to record 'Maiden Voyage', 'Little One', and 'Dolphin Dance' six days earlier, with Hubbard on cornet and Stu Martin in place of Williams. Those performances were rejected at the time and have been lost in the ensuing years." A different version of "Little One" was also recorded around the same time by Miles Davis and his quintet for the albumE.S.P., also released in 1965. Hancock cites Count Basie's "Shiny Stockings" as the main source of inspiration for "Dolphin Dance".
Reception
designated the album as part of its Core Collection with a four star rating, calling it "a colossal achievement from a man still just 24 years old." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic describes the album as "arguably his finest record of the '60s, reaching a perfect balance between accessible, lyrical jazz and chance-taking hard bop."
Legacy
"Maiden Voyage", "The Eye of the Hurricane" and "Dolphin Dance" have now become jazz standards and are featured in Hal Leonard'sNew Real Book vol. 2. While being interviewed for KCET TV in 2011, Hancock considered "Maiden Voyage" to be his favorite of all of the compositions he had written. Hancock rerecorded "Maiden Voyage" and "Dolphin Dance" on his 1974 album Dedication and updated the title track on his 1988 album Perfect Machine. "Dolphin Dance" was rerecorded in 1981 for the Herbie Hancock Trio album. Hancock has released live concert versions of "Maiden Voyage" on CoreaHancock and ' . Hancock recorded "Maiden Voyage" and "Eye of the Hurricane" with the VSOP Quintet on '.
The rock band Phish performed the song in their early concerts. A live version was released on their album Colorado '88.
Toto, on their 2002 album Through the Looking Glass. This recording included elements of Hancock's 1974 song "Butterfly".
Robert Glasper, on his 2004 albumMood. He recorded it again on his 2007 album In My Element, this time as a medley with Radiohead's "Everything in Its Right Place".
Artists who have covered "Dolphin Dance" include:
Ahmad Jamal, on his 1971 album The Awakening
Grover Washington Jr., on his 1976 album A Secret Place
Bill Evans, on the 1980 album I Will Say Goodbye
Kazumi Watanabe, on his 1989 album Kilowatt
Other covers include:
Christian McBride, Nicholas Payton, and Mark Whitfield recorded a version of "The Eye of the Hurricane" on their 1997 album Fingerpainting: The Music of Herbie Hancock.
Madlib remixed "Dolphin Dance" and combined it with the song "Peace" by Horace Silver on his 2003 album "Shades of Blue"
In 2008, jazz pianistJohn Beasley released a tribute to Hancock called Letter to Herbie, which features a re-working of "Maiden Voyage" called "Bedtime Voyage". The album also features a recording of "Eye of the Hurricane".
