Turning Point (Benny Golson album)

Turning Point
Studio album by Benny Golson
Released	1962
Recorded	October 30 & 31 and November 1, 1962 New York City
Genre	Jazz
Length	34:07
Label	Mercury MG 20801
Producer	Kay Norton
Benny Golson chronology
Another Git Together (1962) Turning Point (1962) Free (1962)

Turning Point is an album by saxophonist Benny Golson, featuring performances recorded in late 1962 and originally released on the Mercury label.^[1]

Background

This was the first of a pair of quartet recordings by Golson in two months.^[2] Golson was displeased with his playing at the time: "I was frustrated, because I didn't know how I wanted to sound"; he soon stopped playing, and did not resume for seven or eight years.^[2] The title, according to Golson, "indicates my frustration with [producer] Kay Norton and [[Art Farmer|Art [Farmer]], co-leader of the Jazztet], because we had reached a point where we wanted to go in different directions."^[2]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[3]
Down Beat	[4]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide	[5]

The Allmusic review states, "this quartet set for tenor saxophonist Benny Golson was the beginning of the close of an era. Within a year, Golson would be working full-time as a writer in the studios, and he de-emphasized his playing until making a comeback in the late 1970s".^[3]

Track listing

All compositions by Benny Golson except as indicated

1. "How Am I to Know" (Dorothy Parker, Jack King) - 3:47
2. The Masquerade Is Over"" (Herbert Magidson, Allie Wrubel) - 4:38
3. "Dear Kathy" - 4:48
4. "Three Little Words" (Harry Ruby, Bert Kalmar) - 4:38
5. "Turning Point" - 3:56
6. "Stella by Starlight" (Victor Young, Ned Washington) - 4:50
7. "Alone Together" (Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz) - 7:30

• Recorded in New York City on October 30 (tracks 4, 5 & 7), October 31 (tracks 2 & 6) and November 1 (tracks 1 & 3), 1962

Personnel

• Benny Golson - tenor saxophone
• Wynton Kelly - piano
• Paul Chambers - bass
• Jimmy Cobb - drums

References

1. Benny Golson discography accessed June 27, 2012
2. Blumenthal, Bob (2004) In The Complete Argo/Mercury Art Farmer/Benny Golson/Jazztet Sessions [CD liner notes]. p. 14. Mosaic.
3. Yanow, S. Allmusic Review accessed June 27, 2012
4. Down Beat: August 15, 1963 vol. 30, no. 23
5. Swenson, J. (Editor) (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 85. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.