Point of Departure

Recording history and tape provenance

Hill arrived in New York in the early 1960s. Alfred Lion rated him a pianist and composer of the same singular stature as Thelonious Monk.

Lion first heard him on Joe Henderson's 1963 session Our Thing and signed him almost immediately. Between November 1963 and June 1964, Hill recorded five leader albums for the label, a pace almost unheard of even by Blue Note's standards.

Those were Black Fire, Smoke Stack, Judgment!, Point of Departure and Andrew!!!, with this one fourth in the run.

Hill had seen Eric Dolphy playing with Charles Mingus at the Five Spot Café and pitched Blue Note on a session together. Joe Henderson stepped in on tenor after the original choice, Charles Lloyd, could not make the date, and Kenny Dorham rounded out the horns.

Davis and Williams had both come off Dolphy's own Out to Lunch! session a month earlier.

All five Hill compositions got their final titles only after recording, and a sixth, "And What If?", went unused. "Refuge" is a 12-bar theme with a triplet-based waltz feel and "New Monastery" an explicit Monk tribute. "Flight 19" is built on a two-tone modal framework.

The closing "Dedication" is a funeral-march elegy. Hill said later it was written to convey a general sense of loss rather than mourn any particular person. Dorham reportedly said the take brought him to tears.

Ten days after the session Dolphy left for Europe with Mingus. He died in Berlin on June 29, 1964 from an undiagnosed diabetic condition, months before the album reached shops. It was his final American studio session.

Reid Miles designed the cover from a Francis Wolff photograph.

The master tapes remain with Blue Note and Universal and are reported in good condition. Every modern cut of this title states it worked from them.

Genuine stereo, and a mono take question

Van Gelder recorded two-track stereo alongside the mono mix at this 1964 session, so there is no fake-stereo issue with this title.

LondonJazzCollector notes that the original mono pressing appears to carry a different take of "Refuge," or at least a different opening, than later reissues. That is worth checking for anyone chasing completeness rather than a good-sounding copy.

Original Blue Note pressings (1965)

BLP 4167 in mono and BST 84167 in stereo are the first pressings. Both carry New York USA labels and the Van Gelder stamp in the dead wax.

Near-mint originals of either are collectible, and stereo generally commands a modest premium over mono.

Liberty and United Artists pressings (1966–73)

Later pressings on Liberty and United Artists labels retain the Van Gelder stamp and are cut from the same metalwork. Collectors regard them as close to the originals in sound, at a fraction of the price.

Music Matters 45rpm (2015)

The 45rpm edition, catalogue MMBST-84167, is a 2×180g gatefold set limited to 2,500 copies. Kevin Gray mastered it at AcousTech from the original master tapes. It is out of print.

Owners call it the best-sounding version available. Several note the extra resolution makes the wide stereo separation especially vivid. Dolphy and Dorham sit on the left, Henderson and Williams on the right.

Music Matters 33rpm (2014)

The 33rpm edition, catalogue 33BST-4167, came out of Music Matters' 75th Anniversary campaign. Kevin Gray mastered it at Cohearent Audio from the original tapes, pressed at RTI.

This is not a slower cut of the same 45rpm lacquer. Music Matters described a significant studio upgrade, with new front-end electronics and cabling. The aim was a 33rpm format that stood on its own rather than a compromise. It is out of print.

Blue Note Classic Vinyl (2022)

The Classic Vinyl edition, catalogue 4535330, was mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio from the original tapes and pressed at Optimal in Germany.

This title has never appeared in the Tone Poet series, so the Classic Vinyl is the only in-print option. Owner reports on its Discogs page rate it highly for balance.

As with other titles in the series, some buyers report warping or distortion on one side alongside many trouble-free copies. A thorough cleaning resolved the apparent defect for at least one owner.

Japanese pressings

Toshiba-EMI issued this title in Japan with Japanese liner notes and an obi. Collectors also reference a King Records pressing, catalogue GXK 8139, with less documentation behind it.

Pressings to avoid

No bootleg or notably compromised pressing of this title is widely documented.

Various 1970s and 1980s European reissues and budget compilation-series pressings circulate, including Planeta DeAgostini. They are licensed but not analog-sourced audiophile cuts, and work as budget listening copies.

Buyer's guide by budget

$: The Blue Note Classic Vinyl edition, an easy recommendation at the price.

$$$: A Liberty or United Artists pressing with the Van Gelder stamp intact, for period metalwork at a lower price.

$$$$: The Music Matters 45rpm 2LP on the secondary market.

$$$$$: A clean original BST 84167 stereo on New York USA labels.

Pressing tier summary

References

• Discogs (master, all versions): https://www.discogs.com/master/140559-Andrew-Hill-Point-Of-Departure
• LondonJazzCollector, "Andrew Hill: Point of Departure (1964) Blue Note": https://londonjazzcollector.wordpress.com/2013/01/15/andrew-hill-point-of-departure-1964-blue-note/
• AllMusic, Thom Jurek's review of "Point of Departure": https://www.allmusic.com/album/point-of-departure-mw0000243448
• Ten-Minute Record Reviews, "Andrew Hill - Point Of Departure (Episode 347)": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tCMyJ_kdx4

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