Pat Martino - El Hombre
Prestige: OJCCD-195-2 (P-7513) {1967}
Original Jazz Classics

01  Waltz For Geri        06:25 
02  Once I Loved          05:45 
03  El Hombre             06:00 
04  Cisco                 04:32 
05  One For Rose          04:58 
06  A Blues For Mickey-O  08:04 
07  Just Friends          05:49 
                7 tracks, 41:33 

Musicians 
Guitar Pat Martino 
Organ Trudy Pitts 
Percussion Vance Anderson 
Percussion Abdu Johnson 
Flute Danny Turner 
Drums Mitch Fine 

Credits 
Producer Cal Lampley 
Engineer Rudy Van Gelder 
Liner Notes Christopher Peters 
 
Details 
Place Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 
Recording Date 5/1/1967 
Sound Stereo 
UPC/EAC 025218619523 
Spars AAD 
 
Review/Notes
AMG review by Scott Yanow
Guitarist Pat Martino's debut as a leader finds the 22-year-old showing off his roots in soul-jazz organ groups while looking ahead at the same time. Joined by organist Trudy Pitts, flutist Danny Turner, drummer Mitch Fine, and both Abdu Johnson and Vance Anderson on percussion, Martino primarily plays a straight-ahead set (five of his originals, "Just Friends," and "Once I Loved"), but already displays a fairly distinctive sound. This CD reissue brings back Martino's impressive start to what would be a productive solo career. 

PENGUIN, 5th ed.
**(*) After graduating from soul-jazz organ combos and the John Handy group, Martino led his own bands on a series of records for Prestige, all of which have now been reissued in the OJC series. Both El Hombre and Strings! depend on blues-based formulas and are typical of the genre, but Martino's maturing style -- heavily indebted to Grant Green and Wes Montgomery, but built for greater speed than either of those masters -- is good enough to transcend the settings.