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Recorded in February and March 1967 and released in the following year when in the USA the tectonic plates of jazz had already started to shift, Mexican Green was a tour de force recording for Edward Brian ‘Tubby’ Hayes. It is certainly one of the most significant jazz albums recorded in Britain by British musicians. It was a landmark album for Hayes, who was already well-established as the premier jazz star of the UK. (AllAboutJazz).

AllMusic Review by Jason Ankeny:
Mexican Green heralded the final creative milestone of Tubby Hayes’ brilliant but all-too-brief career, signaling the maturation of his compositional skills as well as his entrance into the free jazz stratosphere. A quartet session recorded in collaboration with bassist Ron Matthewson, pianist Mike Pyne, and drummer Tony Levin, the album’s seven titles are all Hayes’ originals, and stretch out in a series of directions spanning from ballads to blues. Hayes’ tenor sax crackles with startling energy and power, achieving maximum velocity on the scalding opener “Dear Johnny B,” written in honor of late drummer Johnny Butts. Most remarkable of all is the title cut, which forces Hayes outside his modernist comfort zone to embrace the improvisational spirit (https://goo.gl/tsaMcZ).

Track listing:

A1 Dear Johnny B 0:00
A2 Off The Wagon 7:16
A3 Trenton Place 15:52
A4 The Second City Steamer 21:13
B1 Blues In Orbit 26:43
B2 A Dedication To Joy 30:11
B3 Mexican Green 37:22

Personnel:

Ron Mathewson – bass
Tony Levin – drums
Mike Pyne – piano
Tubby Hayes – tenor saxophone, flute

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Recorded: 2nd February, 1967, and 7th March, 1967, in London.

Released: 1968

Label: Fontana