Father Herrera & The Trio ESP

[BbM7]

Note: I have not posted this in the Recommendations area.

The following review from Soul Strut sums it up pretty well:

Father Herrera & the Trio ESP "Jazz Goes to Church" (Enterprise) 1968

Where there is a flute on an experimental religious record there is something interesting. Too bad the cover LIES! Father Herrera starts things off on the wrong foot, without a flute, and proceeds to tell us a biblical tale as boring and stale as actually being in church. Not only that but he does it for almost seventy percent of the album. The jazz isn't even that hot, despite Jimmy Hopps on the drums. It's generic and typical but interesting considering its context (I guess). Father Herrera does redeem himself by spouting off some hot improv on the clarinet during one track. But is it enough to redeem his soul in the eyes of our lord? Watch your ass Father.

Not sure I'm with the "hot improv", if they're speaking of the rather ill-formed, wandering clarinet solo on the never-more-appropriately-titled "So What".

Anyone else heard this deservedly obscure - though superficially/conceptually interesting - album?

[mikeweil]

I sold this many years ago - I liked the accompanying trio (Gene Rush, Steve Novosel & Jimmy Hopps, who played with Lloyd McNeill, too) very much, but neither Herrera's clarinet doodlings nor his preaching. Not enough music on this, for my taste, but the use of a jazz trio to back the choir and some of the lecture was nice.

[JSngry]

Father Tom Vaughn spooked me away from any and all records by cats like this.

Besides, after Fatha Hines, where ya' gonna go?

[BbM7]

Father Tom Vaughn spooked me away from any and all records by cats like this.

Besides, after Fatha Hines, where ya' gonna go?

←

Well, I've been told both where to go and where I'm going to go.