Is It In
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Album Summary
"Is It In" came sliding out of Atlantic Records in 1974, and baby, it was Eddie Harris doing what Eddie Harris did best — refusing to be put in a box. Recorded during that glorious mid-70s stretch when the whole music world was getting loose and electric, Harris brought his signature tenor saxophone into a session soaked in funk grooves, soul rhythms, and the kind of electric instrumentation that was reshaping jazz from the inside out. The production wore its era proudly, sitting right at that sweet intersection of soul-jazz and funk where Harris had been staking his claim, and the result was an album that felt as comfortable in a late-night club as it did coming through your car speakers on a warm summer night.
Reception
- The album found modest footing on the soul and jazz charts of its day, holding its own in a mid-1970s landscape that was crowded with funk and soul-jazz talent all fighting for the same ears.
- Critical reception landed somewhere in the middle — those who had been riding with Harris through his fusion journey appreciated the direction, while purists who treasured his earlier acoustic work raised an eyebrow or two at the funk-forward approach.
Significance
- "Is It In" stands as a genuine artifact of the soul-jazz and funk fusion movement of the mid-1970s, with Harris threading his tenor saxophone through contemporary grooves in a way that felt both natural and adventurous.
- The album is a testament to Eddie Harris's gift as a bandleader and instrumentalist, weaving electric bass, drums, and modern production values into a framework that never lost its jazz soul.
- In the broader arc of Harris's career, this record represents his sustained commitment to evolution — proving that a jazz musician of his stature could embrace the funk era not as a compromise, but as a genuine creative conversation.
Tracklist
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A1 Funkaroma 107
5:00
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A2 Happy Gemini 138
2:58
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A3 Is It In 122
3:35
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A4 It's War 105
6:20
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A5 Space Commercial 107
5:28
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B1 Look Ahere 161
3:48
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B2 These Lonely Nights 75
5:46
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B3 House Party Blues 183
8:03
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B4 Tranquility & Antagonistic 83
4:15
Artist Details
Eddie Harris was a Chicago-born jazz saxophone genius who came up in the late 1950s and early '60s, blending hard bop with soul, funk, and electric experimentation in a way that made the purists nervous and the people on the dance floor absolutely electric — his 1961 recording of "Exodus" became one of the best-selling jazz singles of all time, and he never looked back from there. His fearless willingness to plug in, funk it up, and cross genre lines laid serious groundwork for jazz-fusion and soul-jazz, making him a pioneer that cats like Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis certainly took notice of. Harris was the kind of artist who didn't fit neatly into any box, and that restless creative spirit — captured on landmark albums like *Eddie Harris/Les McCann: Swiss Movement* — cemented his place as one of the most innovative and soulful voices in American music history.
