The Congregation

When the tenor player Johnny Griffin recorded *The Congregation* in 1957, he was still known more as a sideman than a bandleader, albeit one who kept rare company—John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, and so on. Backed in part by Miles Davis’ bassist Paul Chambers and the promising pianist Sonny Clark, *The Congregation* is primarily a showcase for Griffin as an instrumentalist, the kind of player who handles brisk hard bop (“It’s You or No One”), R&B (“The Congregation,” “Main Spring”), and ballads (“I’m Glad There Is You”) with an even, unhurried confidence—a professional moving capably through a job he knows he can do. Most apparent, though, is Griffin’s tone—a bold, muscular sound in stylistic lineage with Coleman Hawkins and Dexter Gordon. Within five or six years, Griffin had decamped to Europe, where he spent the rest of his life, playing, occasionally but more or less consistently, until his death in 2008. Bonus historical relevance for the album’s cover, designed in part by a then-rising artist named Andy Warhol. 
 This album is an Apple Digital Master made from a high-definition audio source, designed to cut noise while maximizing clarity and efficiency, bringing you a sound virtually indistinguishable from the original 24-bit studio masters.