HERBIE HANCOCK - CHAMELEON WATERMELON MAN 12L (COLUMBIA)

Major Keys is a brand-new audiophile label focusing on fully licensed reissues of jazz classics, pressed on 12” for a fuller, louder version compared to the original album cut. What better way to kick of the series than housing Herbie Hancock’s inimitable ‘Chameleon’ and ‘Watermelon Man’, loud and proud on either side of a 12” - remastered and cut by the engineer of the original Head Hunters LP from 1973.

They don’t get much more iconic than ‘Chameleon’. Nestled on the incredible 1973 ‘Head Hunters’ album it’s a 16-minute exploration of legendary jazz funk – having all the sensibilities and solos of a jazz record, yet grounding its rhythms in funk, soul and R&B. Even, as its title suggests, morphing from a low slung slow jam into a full-on, fast paced spiritual gem. Lock in for one of the most iconic basslines around courtesy of Paul Jackson, alongside some of the sweetest synth and Rhodes playing you’re likely to hear from Herbie, all tied together with Harvey Mason’s mythical drumming. Sampled the world over by the biggest and the best this is a truly timeless and hugely influential piece of music.