New Direction (Vinyl)

The seminal ‘New Direction’ was the first album that pianist Gene Russell released on the legendary Black Jazz label that he established in 1971.

Backed by a band that included double bassist Henry Franklin and drummer Steve Clover, Russell nestles into slow blues, rattles through forceful Latin grooves and even puts a new slant on Stevie Wonder’s ‘My Cherie Amour’. With this album and the rest of Black Jazz’s small output, Russell helped redefine ‘soul jazz’.