Lee Morgan (1938-72) was one of the major jazz trumpeters of the 1950s and ‘60s, gaining fame for his mastery of hard bop and for developing his own sound out of the Clifford Brown tradition.

Morgan, who was recording by the time he was 18, had two stints with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers.

During his second period with Blakey, Lee Morgan was featured in a quintet with tenor-saxophonist John Gilmore, pianist John Hicks, bassist Victor Sproles, and drummer-leader Blakey.

“Theme For Stacey” is a mellow Morgan ballad that the Messengers performed for a BBC telecast in 1964, and it showcases the trumpeter at his most tender and melodic.

-Scott Yanow