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Thom Jurek of allmusic gives the album a three-and-a-half star rating (of a possible five), noting that "he material is swinging, front-ended, soul-inflected hard bop with tunes arranged by Crawford" and that "Crawford's tone as a soloist is sweet yet edgy and raw, full of emotion and warmth." The Penguin Guide to Jazz describes the album as "sonorous and churchy in the Brother Ray mode…" and gives the album a three-star rating (of a possible four).
In his five-star 1961 review for DownBeat, Ralph J. Gleason praised the album, saying, "I played it more than 20 times in the first 48 hours it was in my possession." He called it "one of the very best small-band albums in years and by all odds the best one this year."
Track listing
All titles arranged by Hank Crawford, except where indicated.
Crawford, Hank (2 February 2009) . "Hank Crawford, Memphis Rhythm King". Fresh Air (Interview). Interviewed by Terry Gross. NPR. Retrieved 24 April 2014. The musical turning point in his life came in 1958 when Ray Charles asked him to play baritone in his band. Crawford eventually switched to alto and in 1960 became the band's music director. Three years later, he left Ray Charles to lead his own band.
