Wayne Shorter has written a number of landmark jazz compositions that have found favor among fellow jazz musicians, but Mysterious Shorter marks a rare occasion when an entire CD is devoted to his music.
Trumpeter Nicholas Payton heads a strong quintet, including saxophonist Bob Belden (who doubles on soprano and tenor saxes, like Shorter, and contributed all of the arrangements), organist Sam Yahel, guitarist John Hart, and drummer Billy Drummond.
Since six of the eight songs are from Shorter's early Blue Note CDs prior to his move toward fusion, the substitution of Yahel's laid-back organ for the more striking sound of the piano softens the sound of Belden's charts, giving them a bit more of a mysterious flavor, especially in the brisk, playful setting of "Footprints." Payton is known for his powerful trumpet playing, but displays a quiet lyrical touch in "Teru." Belden's charts also fit Shorter's fusion material well.
Chesky's single-point microphone adds to the intimacy of this rewarding session, issued as a hybrid Super Audio disc.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom ThumbWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 06:41 | 15 MB | 38 MB |
| 2 | FootprintsWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 08:42 | 19 MB | 46 MB |
| 3 | TeruWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 07:49 | 17 MB | 35 MB |
| 4 | Witch HuntWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 07:03 | 16 MB | 42 MB |
| 5 | Beauty and the BeastWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 07:11 | 16 MB | 35 MB |
| 6 | MiyakoWayne Shorter | Nicholas Payton, Bob Belden, Billy Drummond, John Hart, Sam Yahel | Play | 06:10 | 14 MB | 30 MB |
| 7 | Masqalero | Nicholas Payton | Play | 08:21 | 19 MB | 41 MB |
| 51 mins | 118 MB | |||||
| 51 mins | 270 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Belden | Arranger, Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Producer, Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor) |
| 2 | David Chesky | Producer |
| 3 | Norman Chesky | Executive Producer |
| 4 | Billy Drummond | Drums, Main Personnel, Primary Artist |
| 5 | Rick Eckerle | Assistant Engineer, Session Coordinator |
| 6 | Jack Frisch | Art Direction, Design |
| 7 | John Hart | Guitar, Main Personnel, Primary Artist |
| 8 | Lisa Hershfield | Production Assistant |
| 9 | Ted Panken | Liner Notes |
| 10 | Nicholas Payton | Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Trumpet |
| 11 | Nicholas Prout | Editing, Engineer, Mastering |
| 12 | Wayne Shorter | Composer |
| 13 | Sam Yahel | Keyboards, Main Personnel, Organ (Hammond), Primary Artist |
Nicholas Payton
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |