Herbie Mann: Memphis Underground

A year after Mann, Ayers and Coryell moseyed south to record with the house rhythm section at Stax Records, renowned for its Southern-fried soul groove, Memphis Underground surfaced among the Top 100. Thanks to Eddie Harris's "Listen Here" and Hugh Masekela's "Grazing in the Grass," a monotonous 2-chord vamp was now obligatory for crossover jazz, and Memphis Underground obliged. (Jazzmen once put down rock 'n' rollers for using only three chords!) Combining fuzz-tone, B.B. King-style blues licks and Hendrix-type feedback, Coryell's trendy guitar was a jazz novelty but tame by rock standards. This dated track is more interesting historically than musically.