A self-taught pianist and a West Coast jazz figure, Hampton Hawes recorded For Real! in 1958 with Scott LaFaro (double bass) and drummer Frank Butler.
Finally released in 1961, his eleventh album as a leader also features for the first time a saxophonist (Harold Land, the tenor saxophonist from the Roach/Brown band) and offers original compositions and inspired reinterpretations of standards popularized by Charlie Parker ("Crazeology") and Cole Porter ("I Love You").
This reissue is part of the "Contemporary Records Acoustic Sounds" audiophile collection and features new analog mastering from the master tapes by Bernie Grundman, as well as the original artwork and liner notes in meticulous packaging.