quarta-feira, 29 de setembro de 2010

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - A Night in Tunisia (1960)

The lengthy title track on this CD easily overshadows the rest of the program for it is one of the most exciting versions ever recorded of Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia." Trumpeter Lee Morgan (then only in his early 20s), tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist Bobby Timmons and bassist Jymie Merritt formed one of the strongest of the many versions of Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers and are actually in fine form during the remainder of the satisfying (if anticlimactic) set.
by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Style:
Hard-Bop

Tracks:
01 - A Night in Tunisia (11:11)
02 - Sincerely Diana (6:47)
03 - So Tired (6:36)
04 - Yama (6:20)
05 - Kozo's Waltz (6:45)
06 - When Your Lover Has Gone (6:43)
07 - Sincerely Diana" (alternative take) (6:51)

Line-up:
Art Blakey — drums
Lee Morgan — trumpet
Wayne Shorter — tenor saxophone
Bobby Timmons — piano
Jymie Merritt — bass

terça-feira, 28 de setembro de 2010

John McLaughlin - My Goal's Beyond (1970)

After bouncing around on a couple of labels (Douglas/Polydor/Ryko,) the CD reissue of this album ultimately ended up on KnitMedia. The startling thing about this record is that it points the way toward two directions McLaughlin would take in the future -- exploring Indian music and the acoustic guitar -- and this while he was in the thick of the burgeoning electronic jazz-rock movement. The first half is a John McLaughlin acoustic guitar tour de force, where he thwacks away with his energetic, single-minded intensity on three jazz standards and five originals (including one genuine self-penned classic, "Follow Your Heart") and adds a few percussion effects via overdubbing. The second half is devoted to a pair of marvelously intricate fusions of Indian rhythms and drones called "Peace One" and "Peace Two," with jazz flights from flutist/soprano saxophonist Dave Liebman, a simpatico encounter with future Mahavishnu cohorts Billy Cobham on drums and Jerry Goodman on violin, and Airto blending his sounds seamlessly with the Indian tambura and tabla. Throughout, McLaughlin's acoustic lines faultlessly straddle the line between the subcontinent and jazz, and the ethereal results still hold up beautifully today.
by Richard S. Ginell in All Music Guide

Styles:
Fusion
World Fusion

Tracks:
01 - Peace One (7:18)
02 - Peace Two (12:15)
03 - Goodbye Pork Pie Hat (3:20)
04 - Something Spiritual (3:29)
05 - Hearts and Flowers (2:10)
06 - Phillip Lane (2:36)
07 - Waltz for Bill Evans (2:01)
08 - Follow Your Heart (3:19)
09 - Song for My Mother (2:34)
10 - Blue in Green (2:38)

Line-up:
John McLaughlin -- acoustic guitar
Billy Cobham -- drums
Jerry Goodman -- violin
Charlie Haden -- bass
Dave Liebman -- flute, soprano saxophone
Airto Moreira -- percussion
Badal Roy -- tabla
Mahalakshmi -- sruti box

domingo, 26 de setembro de 2010

Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie - Hot House

Art Davis Quartet - Life (1986)

Bassist Art Davis, who occasionally played with John Coltrane in the early '60s, has led relatively few sessions throughout his career. A very talented player with complete control over his instrument, Davis contributed all four selections to this impressive outing which is highlighted by "Duo" (matching his bass with tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders) and the 19-and-a-half-minute four-part "Add." Davis' all-star quartet also includes pianist John Hicks and drummer Idris Muhammad.
by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Life (10:32)
02 - Duo (03:26)
03 - Blues for Comcertpie E for Bass (07:12)
04 - Add (19:25)

Line-up:
Art Davis - Bass
Pharoah Sanders - tenor saxophone
John Hicks - Piano
Idris Muhammad - Drums

sexta-feira, 24 de setembro de 2010

The Modern Jazz Quartet - Fontessa (1956)

This LP has a particularly strong all-around set by the Modern Jazz Quartet. While John Lewis' "Versailles" and an 11-minute "Fontessa" show the seriousness of the group (and the influence of Western classical music), other pieces (such as "Bluesology," "Woody 'N You" and a pair of ballads) look toward the group's roots in bop and permit the band to swing hard.
by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Cool
Bop

Tracks:
01 - Versailles (3:22)
02 - Angel Eyes (3:48)
03 - Fontessa (11:12)
04 - Over the Rainbow (3:50)
05 - Bluesology (5:04)
06 - Willow Weep for Me (4:47)
07 - Woodyn You (4:25)

Line-up:
John Lewis - piano
Milt Jackson - vibraphone
Percy Heath - double bass
Connie Kay - drums

quinta-feira, 23 de setembro de 2010

Eric Dolphy - The Illinois Concert (1963)

The 1999 discovery of a previously unknown 1963 concert by Eric Dolphy makes it one of the finds of the decade. Taped for broadcast at the University of Illinois at Champaign, it was mentioned in an Eric Dolphy Internet chat room and eventually relayed to producer Michael Cuscuna. The sound is very good, except for overly prominent drums throughout the concert and an under-miked flute on "South Street Exit." Dolphy's playing is consistently rewarding, including a lengthy workout of "Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise," a miniature of "Something Sweet, Something Tender," and his always superb solo feature of "God Bless the Child." He switches to alto sax for an adventurous new work, "Iron Man" (which he would record a few months later for Douglas International), also inserting a hilarious quote of "Comin' Through the Rye." A 23-year-old Herbie Hancock on piano, Eddie Locke on bass, and drummer J. C. Moses make up the solid rhythm section. The last two tracks, "Red Planet" and Dolphy's "G.W.," add the support of the University of Illinois Brass Ensemble, which included a young Cecil Bridgewater on trumpet. Highly recommended!-
by Ken Dryden in All Music Guide

Styles:
Avant-Garde
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Softly as in a Morning Sunrise (20:17)
02 - Something Sweet, Something Tender (1:28)
03 - God Bless The Child (8:45)
04 - South Street Exit (7:30)
05 - Iron Man (10:57)
06 - Red Planet (12:26)
07 - G.W. (7:40)

Line-up:
Eric Dolphy — flute, bass clarinet, alto saxophone
Eddie Khan — bass
Herbie Hancock — piano
J.C. Moses — drums

domingo, 19 de setembro de 2010

Sun Ra - Lanquidity (1978)

While one can't quite call it the Sun Ra dance album, this 1978 recording, made for a tiny Philadelphia record label, finds the Sun Ra Arkestra's rhythm section settling into a steady groove on each of the lengthy tracks, while horns, reeds, guitars, and Sun Ra's keyboards solo in overlapping patterns on top. The title number recalls Charles Mingus' "Goodbye Porkpie Hat" in its slow pace and elegiac tone, while the middle three tracks have livelier beats with playing that often answers to the style of fusion played by many jazz groups in the late '70s. "There Are Other Worlds (They Have Not Told You Of)," the nearly 11-minute concluding tune, is the closest to more familiar 1960s and early-'70s Sun Ra, with its less cohesive lead work and the "ethnic voices" that speak, sing, and whisper about outer space. Lanquidity was extremely rare in its original vinyl pressing. It was reissued by Evidence Music on September 26, 2000, with liner notes in which John Dilberto discussed Sun Ra's 25-year residence in Philadelphia and Tom Buchler, who organized the recording session, discussed the making of the album.
by William Ruhlmann in All Music Guide

Styles:
Experimental Big Band
Avant-Garde
Fusion
Free Jazz

Tracks:
01 - Lanquidity (08:21)
02 - Where Pathways Meet (06:32)
03 - That's How I Feel (08:05)
04 - Twin Stars of Thence (09:34)
05 - There Are Other Worlds (They Have Not Told You Of) (10:57)

Line-up:
Sun Ra: Organ, Synthesizer, Piano, Arranger, Keyboards, Organ (Hammond), Piano (Electric), Vocals, Bells, Producer, Arp, Fender Rhodes, Orchestra Bells, Mini Moog
John Gilmore: Sax (Tenor)
Danny Ray Thompson: Flute, Sax (Baritone)
Eddie Gale: Trumpet
Michael Ray: trumpet, flugelhorn
Marshall Allen: Flute, Oboe, Sax (Alto)
Luqman Ali: Percussion
Artaukatune: Drums,Tympan
Disco Kid: Guitar
Dale Williams: guitar
Atakatun Odun: Conga
Ego Omoe: Flute, Clarinet (Bass)
Julian Pressley: Sax (Baritone)
Richard Williams: bass
James Jackson: oboe, basson, flute, voices
June Tyson: voices

sábado, 18 de setembro de 2010

Alice Coltrane - Ptah the El Daoud (1970)

Sometimes written off as an also-ran to her more famous husband, Alice Coltrane's work of the late '60s and early '70s shows that she was a strong composer and performer in her own right, with a unique ability to impregnate her music with spirituality and gentleness without losing its edges or depth. Ptah the El Daoud is a truly great album, and listeners who surrender themselves to it emerge on the other side of its 46 minutes transformed. From the purifying catharsis of the first moments of the title track to the last moments of "Mantra," with its disjointed piano dance and passionate ribbons of tenor cast out into the universe, the album resonates with beauty, clarity, and emotion. Coltrane's piano solo on "Turiya and Ramakrishna" is a lush, melancholy, soothing blues, punctuated only by hushed bells and the sandy whisper of Ben Riley's drums and later exchanged for an equally emotive solo by bassist Ron Carter. "Blue Nile" is a case where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts; Coltrane's sweeping flourishes on the harp nestle in perfectly with flute solos by Pharoah Sanders and Joe Henderson to produce a warm cocoon of sound that is colored by evocations of water, greenness, and birds. Perhaps as strong as the writing here, though, are the performances that Coltrane coaxes from her sidemen, especially the horn players. Joe Henderson, who can always be counted on for technical excellence, gives a performance that is simply on a whole other level from much of his other work -- freer, more open, and more fluid here than nearly anywhere else. Pharoah Sanders, who at times with John Coltrane seemed like a magnetic force of entropy, pulling him toward increasing levels of chaos, shows all of the innovation and spiritual energy here that he is known for, with none of the screeching. Overlooked and buried for years in obscurity, this album deserves to be embraced for the gem it is.
by Stacia Proefrock in All Music Guide

Styles:
Post-Bop
Avant-Garde
Free-Jazz

Tracks:
01 - Ptah, the El Daoud (14:00)
02 - Turiya and Ramakrishna (08:21)
03 - Blue Nile (07:05)
04 - Mantra (16:35)

Line-up:
Alice Coltrane — harp, piano
Joe Henderson — alto flute, tenor saxophone
Pharoah Sanders — alto flute, tenor saxophone, bells
Ron Carter — bass
Ben Riley — drums

quarta-feira, 15 de setembro de 2010

Duke Ellington & John Coltrane (1962)

For this classic encounter, Duke Ellington "sat in" with the John Coltrane Quartet for a set dominated by Ellington's songs; some performances have his usual sidemen (bassist Aaron Bell and drummer Sam Woodyard) replacing Jimmy Garrison and Elvin Jones in the group. Although it would have been preferable to hear Coltrane play in the Duke Ellington orchestra instead of the other way around, the results are quite rewarding. Their version of "In a Sentimental Mood" is a high point, and such numbers as "Take the Coltrane," "Big Nick," and "My Little Brown Book" are quite memorable. Ellington always recognized talent, and Coltrane seemed quite happy to be recording with a fellow genius.
by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Mainstream Jazz
Piano Jazz
Jazz Instrument
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 In a Sentimental Mood
02 Take the Coltrane
03 Big Nick
04 Stevie
05 My Little Brown Book
06 Angelica
07 The Feeling of Jazz

Line-up:
Duke Ellington - piano
John Coltrane - tenor and soprano saxophone
Aaron Bell - bass (1, 4, 5, 7)
Sam Woodyard - drums (4, 5, 7)
Jimmy Garrison - bass (2, 3, 6)
Elvin Jones - drums (1, 2, 3, 6)

sábado, 4 de setembro de 2010

Pharoah Sanders - Jewels of Thought (1969)

In 1969, Pharoah Sanders was incredibly active, recording no less than four albums and releasing three. The band on Jewels of Thought is largely the same as on Deaf Dumb Blind and Karma, with a few changes. Idris Muhammad has, with the exception of "Hum-Allah-Hum-Allah Hum Allah," replaced Roy Haynes, and Richard Davis has permanently replaced Reggie Workman and Ron Carter, though Cecil McBee is still present for the extra bottom sound. Leon Thomas and his trademark holy warble are in the house, as is Lonnie Liston Smith. Comprised of two long cuts, the aforementioned and "Sun in Aquarius," Jewels of Thought sees Sanders moving out from his signature tenor for the first time and delving deeply into reed flutes and bass clarinet. The plethora of percussion instruments utilized by everyone is, as expected, part of the mix. "Hum-Allah" begins with a two-chord piano vamp by Smith and Thomas singing and yodeling his way into the band's improvisational space. For 12 minutes, Sanders and company mix it up -- especially the drummers -- whipping it first quietly down into the most pure melodic essences of Smith's solo and then taking the tension and building to ecstatic heights with all manner of blowing and intervallic interaction between the various elements until it just explodes, before coming down in pieces and settling into a hush of melodic frames and the same two-chord vamp. On "Sun in Aquarius," African thumb pianos, reed flutes, sundry percussion, and orchestra chimes are employed to dislocate all notions of Western music. Things get very quiet (though there is constant motion); the innards of the piano are brushed and hammered quietly before Sanders comes roaring out of the tense silence with his bass clarinet, and then the tenor and bass share an intertwined solo and Smith starts kicking ass with impossibly large chords. It moves into another two-chord vamp at the end of 27 minutes, to be taken out as a closed prayer. It's more like a finished exorcism, actually, but it is one of the most astonishing pieces by Sanders ever.
by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Progressive Jazz
Post Bop
Free-Jazz
Yodel

Tracks:
01 - Hum-Allah-Hum-Allah-Hum-Allah (15:04)
02 - Sun in Aquarius (27:51)

Line-up:
Pharoah Sanders - tenor saxophone, contrabass clarinet, reed flute, African thumb piano, orchestra chimes, percussion
Leon Thomas - vocals, percussion
Lonnie Liston Smith - piano, African flute, African thumb piano, percussion
Idris Muhammad - drums, percussion
Roy Haynes - drums
Cecil McBee - bass, percussion
Richard Davis - bass, percussion

quinta-feira, 2 de setembro de 2010

Sam Rivers - Streams (1973)

Since his final Blue Note session in 1967, Sam Rivers' music got freer and freer, as audiences were able to hear when he signed to Impulse at the beginning of the '70s. Streams was the recorded apex of his early-'70s move into full-fledged free jazz, a continuous 50-minute trio improvisation recorded live at the 1973 Montreux Jazz Festival. The music is pure stream-of-consciousness -- no discernible pre-set themes, just free-flowing ideas and interaction among the musicians (who also include bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Norman Connors). What's truly amazing about the set is that Rivers' streams of consciousness are more like, well, rivers. He draws from a seemingly inexhaustible supply of fresh soloing ideas -- on four different instruments -- and his playing is busy and nearly continuous throughout, stopping only to switch instruments or punctuate his lines with an excited shout. The album's title refers to the way the different sections of Rivers' improvisation connect and flow into one another, but more impressive is the fact that there are so many sections in the first place. Rivers' tenor sax playing opens the album, and it's as potent a blend of the visceral and intellectual as usual. His rhythmically and harmonically adventurous flute work follows, then a section of angular piano somewhat indebted to Cecil Taylor; things wrap up with a high-energy soprano sax dialogue that features some fantastically driving, muscular work by McBee. He and Connors color in between Rivers' stunning overflow of ideas very effectively, pushing the leader wherever possible. It's a shame there aren't more documents of this phase in Rivers' career, though that could be said of pretty much all of his phases. If it's Rivers the free improviser you're looking for, Streams is a tour de force and one of the highlights of his extremely distinguished career.
by Steve Huey in All Music Guide

Styles:
Free-Jazz
Avant-Garde

Tracks:
01 - Spoken Introduction (01:18)
02 - Tenor Saxophone Section/Beginning of Flute Section (23:15)
03 - Conclusion of Flute Section/Piano Section/Soprano Saxophone Section (25:14)

Line-up:
Sam Rivers - Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute, Piano
Cecil McBee - Bass
Norman Connors - Drums, Gongs

quarta-feira, 1 de setembro de 2010

Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage (1965)

Less overtly adventurous than its predecessor, Empyrean Isles, Maiden Voyage nevertheless finds Herbie Hancock at a creative peak. In fact, it's arguably his finest record of the '60s, reaching a perfect balance between accessible, lyrical jazz and chance-taking hard bop. By this point, the pianist had been with Miles Davis for two years, and it's clear that Miles' subdued yet challenging modal experiments had been fully integrated by Hancock. Not only that, but through Davis, Hancock became part of the exceptional rhythm section of bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams, who are both featured on Maiden Voyage, along with trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and tenor saxophonist George Coleman. The quintet plays a selection of five Hancock originals, many of which are simply superb showcases for the group's provocative, unpredictable solos, tonal textures, and harmonies. While the quintet takes risks, the music is lovely and accessible, thanks to Hancock's understated, melodic compositions and the tasteful group interplay. All of the elements blend together to make Maiden Voyage a shimmering, beautiful album that captures Hancock at his finest as a leader, soloist, and composer.
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop
Modal

Tracks:
01 - Maiden Voyage (7:53)
02 - The Eye of the Hurricane (5:57)
03 - Little One (8:43)
04 - Survival of the Fittest (9:59)
05 - Dolphin Dance (9:16)

Line-up:
Herbie Hancock — Piano
Freddie Hubbard — Trumpet
George Coleman — Tenor saxophone
Ron Carter — Bass
Tony Williams — drums