Vinyl Record

Dorothy Ashby - Dorothy's Harp

Dorothy Ashby - Dorothy's Harp album cover

Dorothy Ashby - Dorothy's Harp on LP vinyl. A 1969 record available from Kilmorna Collection in Listowel, Ireland.

LP ยท 1969

Available from Kilmorna Collection in Listowel.

Buyer notes: 1969 LP, currently available from the Kilmorna Collection vinyl shelf. Pay for pickup in Listowel or ship within Ireland for EUR 5.50.

Dorothy's Harp is Dorothy Ashby stepping fully into the late-60s Cadet sound without surrendering the precision that made her such a singular jazz player. Released in 1969 and recorded at Ter Mar Studios in Chicago, the album follows Afro-Harping and keeps Richard Evans' arranging world close: strings, soul-jazz rhythm, pop color and enough space for Ashby's harp to remain the lead intelligence. The program moves between originals, standards and Brazilian material, with Reza and Canto de Ossanha giving the record a different rhythmic perfume. What makes it work is the balance. Ashby can sound elegant, but she is never merely pretty; the lines have attack, the grooves have body, and the arrangements frame the harp as a voice that can float, jab and dance. Dorothy's Harp is not as mythic as The Rubaiyat, but it is one of the clearest examples of her late-60s gift for making jazz, soul and orchestral pop feel like one language.

Dorothy's Harp matters because it sits at the centre of Ashby's most widely rediscovered period, when Cadet's adventurous production gave her harp a broader rhythmic and textural stage. It helped show that jazz harp could live inside soul-jazz, Brazilian flavor and pop arrangements without becoming background decoration.

For a Dorothy Ashby shelf, this is a crucial companion to Afro-Harping and The Rubaiyat of Dorothy Ashby. It has the accessibility of the Cadet sound but still rewards close listening to Ashby's touch, phrasing and timing. Collectors who love elegant records with real groove should not treat it as secondary.

Soul-jazz harp with lush Chicago arrangements, gentle orchestral color, Brazilian touches and grooves that stay graceful without going soft.

Recommended for: Fans of Dorothy Ashby's Cadet-era sound; Soul-jazz collectors seeking harp-led albums; Listeners who love Richard Evans-style arrangements; Fans of elegant late-60s jazz with rhythmic warmth; Anyone exploring the line between jazz, soul and orchestral pop.

When was Dorothy's Harp released? Dorothy's Harp was released in 1969 on Cadet, with recording taking place in March 1969 at Ter Mar Studios in Chicago. What makes Dorothy's Harp different from Ashby's earlier records? It places her harp in a richer soul-jazz and orchestral setting, giving the music more groove and color than her leaner early trio dates. Which tracks show the album's Brazilian influence? Reza and Canto de Ossanha are the clearest Brazilian-touched pieces, adding rhythmic and melodic variety to the record's Cadet soul-jazz frame.