Kenny Burrell - God Bless The Child (2026 Repress) Kenny Burrell

2026 repress of Pure Pleasure's acclaimed reissue of guitarist Kenny Burrell's 1971 CTI album, God Bless the Child.

Remastered by Ray Staff at Air Mastering, Lyndhurst Hall, London, from the original analogue tapes, this AAA edition is pressed on 180g vinyl and housed in a deluxe gatefold sleeve.

Kenny Burrell's guitar artistry is well documented through his work with Oscar Peterson and his celebrated Blue Note recordings, but God Bless the Child—his only album for CTI—is one of the hidden masterpieces of his catalogue.

Burrell is joined by an exceptional ensemble featuring bassist Ron Carter, percussionist Ray Barretto, pianist Richard Wyands, flautist Hubert Laws, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, and drummer Billy Cobham. CTI's renowned arranger Don Sebesky provides elegant string arrangements that perfectly complement Burrell's understated style, creating a moody, atmospheric backdrop that is both impressionistic and deeply expressive.

The album effortlessly balances soulful grooves—heard on Burrell's own Love Is the Answer and Do What You Gotta Do—with the graceful lyricism of the title track, the sublime Be Yourself, and Thad Jones' A Child Is Born. The result is a showcase not only of Burrell's exceptional guitar playing, but also of his gifts as a composer and bandleader.

As Jason Kennedy of The Ear noted: “As ever, Pure Pleasure has done an excellent job of the mastering and pressing of this album, one that does full justice to Rudy Van Gelder's original recording as well as the artistry of the musicians at work.”