John Coltrane - Ascension (1965)

Ascension is the single recording that placed John Coltrane firmly into the avant-garde. Whereas, prior to 1965, Coltrane could be heard playing in an avant vein with stretched-out solos, atonality, and a seemingly free design to the beat, Ascension throws most rules right out the window with complete freedom from the groove and strikingly abrasive sheets of horn interplay. Recorded with three tenors (Trane, Pharoah Sanders, Archie Shepp), two altos (Marion Brown, John Tchicai), two trumpet players (Freddie Hubbard, Dewey Johnson), two bassists (Art Davis, Jimmy Garrison), the lone McCoy Tyner on piano, and Elvin Jones on the drums, this large group is both relentless and soulful simultaneously. While there are segments where the ensemble plays discordant and abrasive skronks, these are usually segues into intriguing blues-based solos from each member. The comparison that is immediately realized is Ornette Coleman's Free Jazz of five years previous. However, it should be known that Ascension certainly carries its own weight, and in a strange sense makes Coleman's foray a passive adventure -- mostly due to an updated sonic quality (à la Bob Thiele) and also Trane's greater sense of passionate spiritualism. Timed at around 40 minutes, this can be a difficult listen at first, but with a patient ear and an appreciation for the finer things in life, the reward is a greater understanding of the personal path that the artist was on at that particular time in his development. Coltrane was always on an unceasing mission for personal expansion through the mouthpiece of his horn, but by the time of this recording he had begun to reach the level of "elder statesman" and to find other voices (Shepp, Sanders, and Marion Brown) to propel and expand his sounds and emotions. Therefore, Ascension reflects more of an event rather than just a jazz record and should be sought out by either experienced jazz appreciators or other open-minded listeners, but not by unsuspecting bystanders.
by Sam Samuelson in All Music Guide

Styles:
Free-Jazz
Avant-Garde
Experimental Big-Band

Tracks:
01 - Ascension [Edition II] (40:56)
02 - Ascension [Edition I] (38:30)

Line-up:
John Coltrane – tenor saxophone
Pharoah Sanders – tenor saxophone
Archie Shepp – tenor saxophone
Marion Brown – alto saxophone
John Tchicai – alto saxophone
McCoy Tyner – piano
Freddie Hubbard – trumpet
Dewey Johnson – trumpet
Art Davis – upright bass
Jimmy Garrison – upright bass
Elvin Jones – drums

Sonny Rollins - Sonny Rollins on Impulse! (1965)

In 1965 and 1966 tenor giant Sonny Rollins issued three albums for the Impulse label. They would be his last until 1972 when he re-emerged on the scene from a self-imposed retirement. This date is significant for the manner in which Rollins attacks five standards with a quartet that included pianist Ray Bryant, bassist Walter Booker and drummer Mickey Roker. Rollins, who's been recording for RCA and its Bluebird subsidiary, had spent the previous three years (after emerging from his first retirement) concentrating on standards and focusing deeply on intimate, intricate aspects of melody and harmony. He inverts the approach here, and digs deeply into pulse and rhythm and leaving melody to take care of itself. This is not a "new thing" date but instead focuses on playing according to the dictates of the rhythm section and on interchanging with Booker and Roker, leaving much of the melodic aspect of these tunes to Bryant. Rollins could never quite leave the melody out of anything he played because of his intense gift as a lyrical improviser; he nonetheless stripped his approach back and played tunes like "On Green Dolphin Street" by improvising according to theme rather than strict melody, where his interplay with the rhythm section becomes based on the dynamic and shifting times played by Roker. While things are more intimate and straight on "Everything Happens to Me," he nonetheless plays the edges, filling the space like a drummer. Melody happens throughout, the tune is recognizable, but it is stretched in his solo to a theme set by the shimmering cymbals and brushed snare work of Roker. The oddest cuts in the set are the last two; spaced out readings of "Blue Room," and "Three Little Words"; they sound as if he were preparing the listener for a true change in his approach. Melody gets inverted, with spaces and syncopation taking the place of notes. The swing is inherent in everything here, but it's clear that the saxophonist was hearing something else in his head, the way he squeezes notes tightly into some phrases where they might be placed elsewhere, and substitutes small, lithe lines inside Bryant's solos which dictate the harmonic intervals more conventionally with his singing approach. And speaking of rhythm, the album's hinge piece is the burning calypso "Hold "Em Joe." Here again, as Bryant's changes play it straight, Rollins shoves his horn inside them and draws out the beat on his horn over and over again. As strange and beautiful as this record sounds, it would have been wonderful if he had chosen to explore this track on his later records, but that restless spirit was already moving onto something else, as evidenced by his next offering, which were his original compositions for the film Alfie with arrangements by Oliver Nelson. If anything, Sonny Rollins on Impulse! feels as if it were a recording Rollins had to get out of his system. But thank goodness for us because it's a winner through and through.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop
Post-bop

Tracks:
01 - On Green Dolphin Street (7:10)
02 - Everything Happens to Me (11:14)
03 - Hold 'Em Joe (5:30)
04 - The Blue Room (3:44)
05 - Three Little Words (6:56)

Line-up:
Sonny Rollins – tenor saxophone
Ray Bryant – piano
Walter Booker – bass
Mickey Roker – drums

Miles Davis - Pangaea (1975)

This is the second of two performances from February 1975 at the Osaka Festival Hall in Japan. This is the evening show; the Columbia release Agharta was the afternoon show. Pangaea is comprised either as a double LP or double CD of two tracks, "Zimbabwe" and "Gondwana." Each is divided into two parts. The band here is comprised of Sonny Fortune on saxophones, Pete Cosey (who also played synth) and Reggie Lucas on guitars, Michael Henderson on bass, Al Foster on drums, James Mtume on percussion, and Davis on trumpet and organ. The band, no doubt inspired by their amazing performance earlier in the day, comes out swinging, and I mean like Muhammad Ali, not Benny Goodman. This is a take-no-prisoners set. Davis seems to be pushing an agenda of "What the hell is melody and harmony? And bring on the funk -- and while you're at it, Pete, play the hell outta that guitar. More drums!" If there is anything that's consistent in this free-for-all, as everybody interacts with everyone else in an almighty dirty groove & roll while improv is at an all-time high, it's the rhythmic, or should we emphasize "polyrhythmic," invention. Mtume and Foster are monstrous in moving this murky jam session along ("Zimbabwe" is one set, and "Gondwana" is the second of the evening) some surreal lines. When Cosey's not ripping the pickups out of his guitar, he's adding his hands to various percussion instruments in the pursuit of the all-powerful Miles Davis' inflected voodoo funk. And while it's true that this set is as relentless as the Agharta issue, it's not quite as successful, though it's plenty satisfying. The reason is simple: the dynamic and dramatic tensions of the afternoon session could never have been replicated, they were based on all conditions being right. Here, while the moods and textures are carried and the flow is quite free, the dramatic tension is not as present; the mood is not quite so dark. And while the playing of certain individuals here may be better than it is on Agharta, the band's playing isn't quite at that level. That said, this is still an essential Miles Davis live record and will melt your mind just as easily as Agharta. People would complain on this tour that Davis played with his back to the audience a lot -- Lester Bangs went so far as to say he hated his guts for it. But if you were this focused on creating a noise so hideously beautiful from thin air, you might not have time to socialize either.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Jazz-Rock
Jazz-Funk
Fusion

Tracks:
01 - Zimbabwe (41:18)
02 - Gondwana (46:50)

Line-up:
Miles Davis – electric trumpet with Wah Wah, organ
Sonny Fortune – soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, flute
Pete Cosey – electric guitar, Synthesizer, percussion
Reggie Lucas – electric guitar
Michael Henderson – electric bass
Al Foster – drums
James "Mtume" Forman – conga, percussion, water drum, rhythm box

Alice Coltrane - Lord of Lords (1972)

Lord of Lords, released in 1973, was Alice Coltrane's final album for Impulse! It was the final part of a trilogy that began with Universal Consciousness and continued with the expansive World Galaxy. Like its immediate predecessors, the album features a 16-piece string orchestra that Coltrane arranged and conducted, fronted by a trio in which she plays piano, Wurlitzer organ, harp, and timpani with bassist Charlie Haden and drummer Ben Riley. Riley was familiar with the setting because he had been part of the sessions for World Galaxy. The first two pieces, "Andromeda's Suffering" and "Sri Rama Ohnedaruth" (titled after the spiritual name for her late husband, John Coltrane), are, in essence, classical works. There is little improvisation except on the piano underneath the wall of strings. They are scored for large tone clusters and minor-key drone effects, but also engage in creating timbral overtones. They are quite beautiful, yet have little or nothing to do with jazz except for the seemingly free passages toward the end of the latter track, but even these feel scored, because of the control of tension and dynamic. "Excerpts from The Firebird," which uses the organ to open the piece, features the strings playing almost (because with Alice Coltrane, she interpreted in her own way) directly from Igor Stravinsky's score. The droning organ is so gorgeous underneath those reaching strings that it's breathtaking. As to why she chose this piece as the centerpiece for her own album, she claimed that Stravinsky came to her in a vision and passed something on to her in a glass vial, a liquid that she drank!
Riley and Haden appear in earnest on the title track, a long modal piece where drones, rhythms, and time signatures are registered through the direction of Coltrane's piano and harp, creating a blissful kind of tension and dynamic. It cracks open at about six minutes, and Coltrane (on the organ), Haden, and Riley engage in some lively improvisation, with the strings offering trilling high-end swooping in the background. The set ends with Coltrane's transformation of a gospel hymn called "Going Home." Her harp introduces Riley's brushes and the strings, which in turn offer a root chord for her to play the melody and improvise upon it on the organ. Here the blues make their presence known. It offers a kind of understanding for the listener that Coltrane, no matter where this musical direction was headed (even as it went further toward the Cosmic Music she and her late husband envisioned together), continued to understand perfectly where her musical root was. The interplay between the three principals is lively and engaging, based on droning blues chords, and her soloing -- even amid flurries of notes -- comes right back to the root, and she quotes quite directly from Delta blues riffs and other gospel songs. Haden's bass is a beautiful anchor here (although mixed a bit low), and the strings offer a lovely response to her organ and harp. Riley's cymbals are shimmering shards of light throughout, ending Lord of Lords on a very high note. While it's true that Alice Coltrane's later Impulse! music may not be for everyone, even those who followed her earlier, more jazz-oriented recordings on Impulse!, it was obvious from the beginning that she was seeking to incorporate Indian classical music's drone center into her work, and was literally obsessed with the timbral, chromatic, and harmonic possibilities of strings. She succeeds here, in ending her Impulse! period with elegance, grace, and soul.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Modern Improvisation
Structured Composition

Tracks:
01 - Andromeda's Suffering (09:04)
02 - Sri Rama Ohnedaruth (06:11)
03 - Excerpts from The Firebird (05:45)
04 - Lord of Lords (11:17)
05 - Going Home (09:59)

Line-up:

Alice Coltrane - Harp, Piano, Organ, Timpani [Tympani], Percussion
Charlie Haden - Bass
Ben Riley - Drums, Percussion
Anne Goodman , Edgar Lustgarten , Jan Kelly , Jerry Kessler , Jesse Ehrlich , Raphael Kramer , Ray Kelley - Cello
David Schwartz , Leonard Selic , Marilyn Baker , Myra Kestenbaum , Rollice Dale , Samuel Boghosian - Viola
Bernard Kundell , Gerald Vinci , Gordon Marron , James Getzoff , Janice Gower , Leonard Malarsky , Lou Klass , Murray Adler , Nathan Kaproff , Ronald Folsom , Sidney Sharp , William Henderson - Violin

Grover Washington Jr. - Mister Magic (1974)

For anyone who enjoys taking bites from the now forbidden fruits of jazz, smooth jazz has probably crossed your palate once or twice. Just as rock music fans treat adult contemporary with certain disdain, so do jazz fans in regards to smooth. It is certainly easy to see why. The arrangements are flooded with lush pop undertones and probably even worse; the music lacks jazz's guttural attack. Smooth jazz self-destructed in a storm of cheesy synth and repetitive drum machine beats during the '80s... remember some of David Sanborn's later records-1988's Close-up-or the horrid comatose of Kenny G?
Before all this smooth had been an interesting and driven alternative to fusion. Once the sugar coating is stripped away, the chops are often solid. What we have forgotten is smooth featured some killer players who would be great regardless of their chosen genre. With that idea in mind, we as jazz fans need to revaluate some of these records. There is no better representative than the late Grover Washington, Jr.'s 1974 masterpiece, Mister Magic.
The first record for anyone looking to hear a positive example of smooth is all here. Fused an R&B groove that is produced and arranged by future smooth mogul pianist Bob James, Mister Magic was a spotlight for one jazz's great sax players. Washington absolutely breathed a fluid and caressingly powerful style that was unique to him. Since the style called for easy playing, he could sit back and let the chops glide like water flowing down a river. His melodies and tone are always first rate, but there was a certain magic, if you will, to what this record has said about its artist. Many of the smooth players relied on the direct approach to playing and soloing, but Washington allowed his himself room to open up, and this where his music has the most to offer to the rest of jazz fans. Sure the polish is on there, but the solos are not afraid to take flight either.
The title track harnesses the chrome plated polish of this genre's sound and lets in the tasty bits. It starts out with a funk groove-did someone say Head Hunters?-and slowly builds into some finely gnarled solos by Grover and guitarist Eric Gale. It was a crossover hit that grooved the light rock AM crowd of the '70s and is still a great spin today.
This record is a lighter approach for those who are not willing to check the harder edged sounds that are deliciously spread over Steely Dan's records, but these jazzites don't need rock mixes. If you are still thinking I might be crazy, just think back to the 1980 hit with Bill Withers, "Just the Two of Us," on Washington's Winelight. Godammit, you want to blow it off as easy listening light rock, but that solo is mind blowing. There is a lot more where that came from. Just open up and let the light fluffy background groove fly away and you will be rewarded for your time with Grover Washington because he was truly one of the best we had.
by Trevor McLaren in All About Jazz

Styles:
Crossover Jazz
Soul Jazz

Tracks:
01 - Earth Tones (12:23)
02 - Passion Flower (05:36)
03 - Mister Magic (09:01)
04 - Black Frost (06:06)

Line-up:
Grover Washington, Jr. - saxophone, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone
Phil Bodner - baritone saxophone
Jon Faddis, Marvin Stamm - trumpet, flugelhorn
Randy Brecker - trumpet
Wayne Andre - trombone
Tony Studd - bass trombone
Bob James - piano, electric piano, keyboards
Harvey Mason, Sr. - drums
Ralph MacDonald - percussion
Eric Gale - guitar
Harry Glickman, Joseph Malin, Harold Kohon, David Nadien, Matthew Raimondi, Max Ellen, Paul Gershman, Harry Lookofsky - violin
The Manny Vardi Strings, Al Brown - viola
Charles McCracken, Alan Shulman - cello

Pharoah Sanders - Live... (1981)

This album features Pharoah Sanders playing some no-nonsense tenor in a quartet with pianist John Hicks, bassist Walter Booker, and drummer Idris Muhammad. Sanders performs "It's Easy to Remember" (in a style very reminiscent of early-'60s John Coltrane), an original blues, and two of his compositions, including the passionate "You've Got to Have Freedom." The musicianship is at a high level and, although Sanders does not shriek as much as one might hope (the Trane-ish influence was particularly strong during this relatively mellow period), he is in fine form.

by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Progressive Jazz
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 - You've Got to Have Freedom (14:17)
02 - It's Easy to Remember (06:51)
03 - Blues For Santa Cruz (08:39)
04 - Pharomba (13:26)
05 - Doktor Pitt (21:34)

Line-up:
Pharoah Sanders - Tenor sax
John Hicks - Piano
Walter Booker - Bass
Idris Muhammad - Drums

Idris Muhammad - House of the Rising Sun (1976)

Idris Muhammad's House of the Rising Sun is a legendary soul-jazz album, and for good reason. First there's the fact that, Grady Tate notwithstanding, Idris Muhammad is easily the greatest of all soul-jazz drummers. Next, it is revealed that label boss and producer Creed Taylor was at his most inspired here, and wasn't afraid to err on the rhythm and blues side of the jazz equation. The material is top-notch, and David Matthews, who orchestrated and arranged this date with the exception of one track -- "Sudan" was written by Muhammad and Tom Harrell, and Harrell arranged it -- was on fire. As a bandleader, Muhammad is shockingly effective. Not because one could ever doubt his ability, but because of his reputation as one of the great studio drummers in jazz. Finally, this is the single greatest lineup in Kudu's history, and features the talents of Don Grolnick, Eric Gale, Will Lee, Roland Hanna, Joe Beck, David Sanborn, Michael Brecker, Hugh McCracken, Bob Berg, Fred Wesley, Patti Austin, and a dozen others playing their asses off. From the title track which opens the album, with Austin reaching the breaking point in her delivery, to the stunningly funky groove in Ashford and Simpson's "Hard to Face the Music," to the minor key funk of the Chopin-adapted theme in "Theme for New York City," to "Sudan"'s triple-timed drums and killer Eastern-tinged hooks, and a read of the Meters' "Hey Pocky A-Way," with Eric Gale's dirty finger poppin' bass atop McCracken's bluesed-out slide work, this is a steaming, no let-up album. Add to this a gorgeous version of the Ary Barroso Brazilian jazz classic "Bahia," and you have the set for a classic jazz album. But the complete disregard for the political correctness of "Jazz" itself, in order to get the deeply funky and soulful grooves across, is what makes this set so damn special and even spiritual in its inspiration. Jazz purists lost all credibility when they slagged this one off, caught as they were in tainted, even racist views of the past that made no allowances for jazz musicians to actually follow their time-honored tradition of mining the pop music of the day to extend the breadth and reach of jazz itself. Anybody who wants to believe that George Gershwin is somehow more important than George Porter Jr. is already lost in his own cultural fascism. Muhammad, who understands this better than anyone, pulled out all the stops here and blasted out one amazingly tough, funky slab. Brilliant.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Crossover Jazz
Post-Bop
Soul Jazz
Fusion

Tracks:
01 - The House Of The Rising Sun (04:42)
02 - Baia (Boogie Bump) (04:38)
03 - Hard To Face The Music (04:49)
04 - Theme For New York City (03:26)
05 - Sudan (10:53)
06 - Hey Pock A-Way (06:07)
07 - Pipe Stem (5:29)
08 - I Know You Don't Want Me No More (04:42)

Line-up:
Idris Muhammad - drums, percussion
Eric Gale, Joe Beck, Will Lee, Wilbur Bascomb - guitar, bass
Leon Pendarvis, Don Grolnick, Roland Hanna - piano
George Young - tenor saxophone
Ronnie Cuber - baritone saxophone
David Sanborn - alto saxophone
George Devens - percussion

Cannonball Adderley - Nippon Soul (1964)

Recorded live in Tokyo on July 14th and 15th, 1963, Nippon Soul is not the Asian-jazz fusion suggested by the title (check out Cal Tjader's Several Shades of Jade and Breeze From the East for that), but a solid live set that showcases one of Cannonball Adderley's finest groups, featuring himself, brother Nat Adderley on cornet, bassist Sam Jones, drummer Louis Hayes, and most notably pianist Joe Zawinul and reedsman Yusef Lateef. Both near the beginnings of their careers, Zawinul and Lateef nonetheless dominate this set; two of the original tracks are by Lateef, including the centerpiece "Brother John," for John Coltrane and featuring an astonishing extended Lateef solo on oboe, an instrument not normally associated with jazz, but which takes on an almost Middle Eastern fluidity and grace in its approximation of Coltrane's "sheets of sound" technique. Zawinul arranged the standards for the group, reinterpreting Cole Porter's warm "Easy to Love" as a fleet bebop vehicle for a wicked Adderley solo and working the "Come Sunday" section of Duke Ellington's "Black, Brown and Beige" into a full gospel-style call and response between himself and Jones. Often overlooked, this is one of Adderley's finest albums.

by Stewart Mason in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Nippon Soul (Nihon No Soul) (9:34)
02 - Easy to Love (3:49)
03 - The Weaver (10:50)
04 - Tengo Tango (2:40)
05 - Come Sunday (7:03)
06 - Brother John (13:03)

Line-up:
Cannonball Adderley - alto saxophone
Nat Adderley - cornet
Yusef Lateef - tenor saxophone, flute, oboe
Joe Zawinul - piano
Sam Jones - bass
Louis Hayes - drums

Yusef Lateef - Eastern Sounds (1961)

One of multi-instrumentalist and composer Yusef Lateef's most enduring recordings, Eastern Sounds was one of the last recordings made by the band that Lateef shared with pianist Barry Harris after the band moved to New York from Detroit, where the jazz scene was already dying. Lateef had long been interested in Eastern music, long before John Coltrane had ever shown any public interest anyway, so this Moodsville session (which meant it was supposed to be a laid-back ballad-like record), recorded in 1961, was drenched in Lateef's current explorations of Eastern mode and interval, as well as tonal and polytonal improvisation. That he could do so within a context that was accessible, and even "pretty," is an accomplishment that stands today. The quartet was rounded out by the inimitable Lex Humphries on drums -- whose brushwork was among the most deft and inventive of any player in the music with the possible exception of Connie Kay from the Modern Jazz Quartet -- and bass and rabat player Ernie Farrow. The set kicks off with "The Plum Blossom," a sweet oboe and flute piece that comes from an Eastern scale and works in repetitive rhythms and a single D minor mode to move through a blues progression and into something a bit more exotic, which sets up the oboe-driven "Blues for the Orient." Never has Barry Harris' playing stood up with more restraint to such striking effect than it does here. He moves the piece along with striking ostinatos and arpeggios that hold the center of the tune rather than stretch it. Lateef moans softly on the oboe as the rhythm section doubles, then triples, then half times the beat until it all feels like a drone. There are two cinematic themes here -- he cut themes from the films Spartacus and The Robe, which are strikingly, hauntingly beautiful -- revealing just how important accessibility was to Lateef. And not in the sense of selling out, but more in terms of bringing people to this music he was not only playing, but discovering as well. (Listen to Les Baxter and to the early-'60s recordings of Lateef -- which ones are more musically enduring?) However, the themes set up the deep blues and wondrous ballad extrapolations Lateef was working on, like "Don't Blame Me" and "Purple Flower," which add such depth and dimension to the Eastern-flavored music that it is hard to imagine them coming from the same band. Awesome.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard Bop
World Fusion

Tracks:
01 - The Plum Blossom (5:03)
02 - Blues for the Orient (5:40)
03 - Chinq Miau (3:20)
04 - Don't Blame Me (4:57)
05 - Love Theme from Spartacus (4:15)
06 - Snafu (5:42)
07 - Purple Flower (4:32)
08 - Love Theme from The Robe (4:02)
09 - The Three Faces of Balal (2:23)

Line-up:
Yusef Lateef — flute, oboe, tenor saxophone, xun (called "Chinese globular flute" in liner notes)
Barry Harris — piano
Ernie Farrow — double bass, Rabaab (called rabat in liner notes)
Lex Humphries — drums

George Russell Sextet - Ezz-Thetics (1961)

This is a true classic. Composer/pianist George Russell gathered together a very versatile group of talents (trumpeter Don Ellis, trombonist Dave Baker, Eric Dolphy on alto and bass clarinet, bassist Steve Swallow, and drummer Joe Hunt) to explore three of his originals, "'Round Midnight" (which is given an extraordinary treatment by Dolphy), Miles Davis' "Nardis," and David Baker's "Honesty." The music is post-bop and although using ideas from avant-garde jazz, it does not fall into any simple category. The improvising is at a very high level and the frameworks (which include free and stop-time sections) really inspire the players. Highly recommended.

by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Post-Bop
Mainstream Jazz

Tracks:
01 - Ezz-thetic (8:57)
02 - Nardisv (4:34)
03 - Lydiot (8:06)
04 - Thoughts (5:26)
05 - Honesty (8:55)
06 - Round Midnight (6:29)

Line-up:
George Russell - piano, arranger
Don Ellis - trumpet
Dave Baker - trombone
Eric Dolphy - alto sax and bass clarinet
Steve Swallow - bass
Joe Hunt - drums

Wynton Kelly Trio/ Wes Montgomery - Smokin' at the Half Note (1965)

Smokin' at the Half Note is essential listening for anyone who wants to hear why Montgomery's dynamic live shows were considered the pinnacle of his brilliant and incredibly influential guitar playing. Pat Metheny calls this "the absolute greatest jazz guitar album ever made," and with performances of this caliber ("Unit 7" boasts one of the greatest guitar solos ever recorded) his statement is easily validated. Montgomery never played with more drive and confidence, and he's supported every step of the way by a genuinely smokin' Wynton Kelly Trio. In 1998, Verve reissued the complete show on disc two of Impressions: The Verve Jazz Sides, although the scrambled track order and some non-essential cuts don't diminish the appeal of the original album.

by Jim Smith in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop

Tracks:
CD 1:
01 - No Blues (12:59)
02 - If you could see me now (08:23)
03 - Unit 7 (06:46)
04 - Four on Six (06:45)
05 - What's New (06:12)

CD 2:
01 - No Blues (12:58)
02 - If you could see me now (08:22)
03 - Willow weep for me (07:52)
04 - Impressions (05:02)
05 - Pursuit of Jennie (02:57)
06 - The Surrey with the fringe on (05:33)
07 - Oh, You Crazy Moon (05:36)
08 - Four on Six (09:29)
09 - Misty (07:01)

Line-up:
Wes Montgomery – guitar
Wynton Kelly – piano
Paul Chambers – bass
Jimmy Cobb – drums

Archie Shepp - Four for Trane (1964)

From 1964, Archie Shepp's first date as a leader featured -- as one would expect from the title -- four tunes by John Coltrane, his mentor, his major influence, and his bandleader. The fact that this album holds up better than almost any of Shepp's records nearly 40 years after the fact has plenty to do with the band he chose for this session, and everything to do with the arranging skills of trombonist Roswell Rudd. The band here is Shepp on tenor, John Tchicai on alto, Rudd on trombone, Trane's bassist Reggie Workman, and Ornette Coleman's drummer Charles Moffett. Even in 1964, this was a powerhouse, beginning with a bluesed-out wailing version of "Syeeda's Song Flute." This version is ingenious, with Shepp allowing Rudd to arrange for solos for himself and Tchicai up front and Rudd punching in the blues and gospel in the middle, before giving way to double time by Workman and Moffett. The rawness of the whole thing is so down-home you're ready to tell someone to pass the butter beans when listening. Rudd's arrangement of "Naima" is also stunningly beautiful: He reharmonizes the piece for the mid-register tone of Shepp, who does his best Ben Webster and adds a microtonal tag onto the front and back, dislocating the tune before it begins and after it ends, while keeping it just out of the range of the consonant throughout. Wonderful! The only Shepp original here is "Rufus (Swung, His Face at Last to the Wind, Then His Neck Snapped)." It's not a terribly sophisticated tune, but it works in the context of this band largely because of the soloing prowess of all the members -- particularly Tchicai -- here. There is barely any melody, the key changes are commensurate with tempo shifts, and the harmonics are of the sliding scale variety. Still, there are the blues; no one can dig into them and honk them better than Shepp. When it came to sheer exuberance and expression, he was a force to be reckoned with in his youth, and it shows in each of the tunes recorded here. Four for Trane is a truly fine, original, and lasting album from an under-celebrated musician.

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Avant-Garde
Free Jazz
Hard Bop

Tracks:
01 - Syeeda's Song Flute (8:30)
02 - Mr. Syms (7:41)
03 - Cousin Mary (7:14)
04 - Naima (7:09)
05 - Rufus (Swung His Face At Last To The Wind, Then His Neck Snapped) (6:25)

Line-up:
Archie Shepp - tenor saxophone
Alan Shorter - flugelhorn
Roswell Rudd - trombone
John Tchicai - alto saxophone
Reggie Workman - bass
Charles Moffett - drums

Chick Corea - Inner Space (1966)

This double album reissues Chick Corea's first album as a leader, Tones for Joan's Bones, adding two previously unissued tracks from the same session plus a pair of performances from a Hubert Laws date of the period that feature Corea's piano and writing. With such players as Joe Farrell on tenor and flute, trumpeter Woody Shaw, bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Joe Chambers on this Corea date, the pianist performs five of his originals plus "This Is New" while The Laws cuts include Corea's "Windows." Throughout, this advanced hard bop music, which keeps an open attitude toward the avant-garde innovations of the period, is consistently stimulating. Even at this early stage, Chick Corea's playing is quite recognizable.

by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide

Styles:
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Straight Up and Down (12:36)
02 - Litha (13:31)
03 - Inner Space (09:20)
04 - Windows (08:47)
05 - Guijira (12:20)
06 - Trio for Flute, Bassoon and Piano (05:07)

Line-up:
Chick Corea - piano, keyboards
Joe Farrell - flute, tenor saxophone, wind
Hubert Laws - flute
Karl Porter - bassoon, wind
Woody Shaw - trumpet
Grady Tate - drums
Joe Chambers - drums
Herbie Mann - percussion
Joel Dorn - percussion

Eric Dolphy - Out There (1960)

The follow-up album to Outward Bound, Eric Dolphy's second effort for the Prestige/New Jazz label (and later remastered by Rudy Van Gelder) was equally praised and vilified for many reasons. At a time when the "anti-jazz" tag was being tossed around, Dolphy's nonlinear, harshly harmonic music gave some critics grist for the grinding mill. A second or third listen to Dolphy's music reveals an unrepentant shadowy side, but also depth and purpose that were unprecedented and remain singularly unique. The usage of bassist George Duvivier and cellist Ron Carter (an idea borrowed from Dolphy's days with Chico Hamilton) gives the music its overcast color base, in many ways equally stunning and uninviting. Dolphy's ideas must be fully embraced, taken to heart, and accepted before listening. The music reveals the depth of his thought processes while also expressing his bare-bones sensitive and kind nature. The bluesy "Serene," led by Carter alongside Dolphy's bass clarinet, and the wondrous ballad "Sketch of Melba" provide the sweetest moments, the latter tune identified by the fluttery introspective flute of the leader, clearly indicating where latter-period musicians like James Newton initially heard what would form their concept. Three pieces owe alms to Charles Mingus: his dark, moody, doleful, melodic, and reluctant composition "Eclipse"; the co-written (with Dolphy) craggy and scattered title track featuring Dolphy's emblematic alto held together by the unflappable swing of drummer Roy Haynes; and "The Baron," the leader's dark and dirty, wise and willful tribute to his former boss, accented by a choppy and chatty solo from Carter. "17 West," almost a post-bop standard, is briefly tonal with a patented flute solo and questioning cello inserts, while the unexpected closer written by Hale Smith, "Feathers," is a haunting, soulful ballad of regret where Dolphy's alto is more immediately heard in the foreground. A somber and unusual album by the standards of any style of music, Out There explores Dolphy's vision in approaching the concept of tonality in a way few others -- before, concurrent, or after -- have ever envisioned.

by Michael G. Nastos in All Music Guide

Styles:
Avant-Garde
Post-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Out There (6:55)
02 - Serene (7:01)
03 - The Baron (2:57)
04 - Eclipse (2:45)
05 - 17 West (4:50)
06 - Sketch of Melba (4:40)
07 - Feathers (5:00)

Line-up:
Eric Dolphy — flute, bass clarinet, alto saxophone
Ron Carter — bass, cello
George Duvivier — bass
Roy Haynes — drums

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Moanin' (1958)

Moanin' includes some of the greatest music Blakey produced in the studio with arguably his very best band. There are three tracks that are immortal and will always stand the test of time. The title selection is a pure tuneful melody stewed in a bluesy shuffle penned by pianist Bobby Timmons, while tenor saxophonist Benny Golson's classy, slowed "Along Came Betty" and the static, militaristic "Blues March" will always have a home in the repertoire of every student or professional jazz band. "Are You Real?" has the most subtle of melody lines, and "Drum Thunder Suite" has Blakey's quick blasting tom-tom-based rudiments reigning on high as the horns sigh, leading to hard bop. "Come Rain or Come Shine" is the piece that commands the most attention, a highly modified, lilting arrangement where the accompanying staggered, staccato rhythms contrast the light-hearted refrains. Certainly a complete and wholly satisfying album, Moanin' ranks with the very best of Blakey and what modern jazz offered in the late '50s and beyond.

by Michael G. Nastos in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Warm-Up and Dialogue Between Lee and Rudy (00:35)
02 - Moanin' (09:30)
03 - Are You Real (04:47)
04 - Along Came Betty (06:08)
05 - The Drum Thunder Suite: First Theme: Drum Thunder/Second Theme: Cry a Blue (07:30)
06 - Blues March (06:13)
07 - Come Rain or Come Shine (05:45)

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

Yellow Magic Orchestra - Live at Greek Theater (1979)

Tracks:
01 - Behind the Mask
02 - Cosmic Surfin
03 - Rydeen
04 - 1000 Knives
05 - Tong Poo

Line-up:
Ryuichi Sakamoto - Keyboard
Akiko Yano - Keyboard
Yukihiro Takahashi - Drums
Haruomi Hosono - Bass
Kazumi Watanabe - Guitar
Hideki Matsutake - Synthesizer

Wayne Shorter - Speak no Evil (1965)

On his third date for Blue Note within a year, Wayne Shorter changed the bands that played on both Night Dreamer and Juju and came up with not only another winner, but also managed to give critics and jazz fans a different look at him as a saxophonist. Because of his previous associations with McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, and Reggie Workman on those recordings, Shorter had been unfairly branded with the "just-another-Coltrane-disciple" tag, despite his highly original and unusual compositions. Here, with only Jones remaining and his bandmates from the Miles Davis Quintet, Herbie Hancock and Ron Carter on board (with Freddie Hubbard filling out the horn section), Shorter at last came into his own and caused a major reappraisal of his earlier work. The odd harmonic frameworks used to erect "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum," with its balladic structure augmented with a bluesy regimen of hard bop and open-toned modalism, create the illusion of a much larger band managing all that timbral space. Likewise on the title track, with its post-bop-oriented melodic line strewn across a wide chromatic palette of minors and Hancock's piano pushing through a contrapuntal set of semi-quavers, the avant-garde meets the hard bop of the '50s head on and everybody wins. The loping lyric of the horns and Hancock's vamping in the middle section during Shorter's solo reveals a broad sense of humor in the saxophonist's linguistics and a deep, more regimented sense of time and thematic coloration. The set ends with the beautiful "Wild Flower," a lilting ballad with angular accents by Hancock who takes the lyric and inverts it, finding a chromatic counterpoint that segues into the front line instead of playing in opposition. The swing is gentle but pronounced and full of Shorter's singular lyricism as a saxophonist as well as a composer. [The CD reissue adds a fine alternate take of "Dance Cadaverous."]

by Thom Jurek in All Music Guide

Styles:
Hard-Bop

Tracks:
01 - Witch Hunt (8:07)
02 - Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum (5:50)
03 - Dance Cadaverous (6:45)
04 - Speak No Evil (8:23)
05 - Infant Eyes (6:51)
06 - Wild Flower (6.00)
07 - Dance Cadaverous (alternate take) (6:35)

Line-up:
Wayne Shorter — tenor saxophone
Freddie Hubbard — trumpet
Herbie Hancock — piano
Ron Carter — bass
Elvin Jones — drums

Sun Ra - The Magic City (1965)

The boundaries of Sun Ra's self-proclaimed "space jazz" underwent a transformation in the mid-'60s. The Magic City is an aural snapshot of that metamorphic process. Many enthusiasts and scholars consider this to be among Ra's most definitive studio recordings. Although the "city" in the album's title was thought to have been New York -- where the disc was recorded -- it is actually Ra's earthly birthplace of Birmingham, AL. The Magic City consists of four free jazz compositions: the album side-length title track, "The Shadow World," "Abstract Eye," and "Abstract I" -- two variants of a common work. These pieces are essentially ensemble improvisations recorded live. Any direction from Ra, indicating the order of soloists for instance, would be given either through his playing or with hand signals. Sun Ra & His Solar Myth Arkestra took up residency in Manhattan's East Village in the early to mid-'60s. Their neighbors included Pharaoh Sanders as well as Babatunde Olatunji. In fact, "The Shadow World," "Abstract Eye," and "Abstract I" were actually recorded in Olatunji's loft. The title track begins with weaving distant and frenetic lines from Ronnie Boykins (bass) and Ra (piano, clavoline), connected by intermittent eruptions from Roger Blank (drums). All the while, Marshall Allen's dreamlike piccolo randomly maneuvers through the sonic haze. The piece also contains an ensemble onslaught that abruptly contrasts with everything experienced up through that point. In the wake of the innately earthbound "Magic City" are three comparatively shorter pieces with subtle undercurrents that return Ra to space motifs. For example, the importance of sonic contrast defines "The Shadow World" by juxtaposing the lightly churning bass and cymbal into some surreal keyboard interjections from Ra. The Magic City also comes with an insightful liner notes essay from Ra scholar John F. Szwed, aiding in understanding the circumstances surrounding this piece of free jazz genius.

by Lindsay Planer in All Music Guide

Styles:
Experimental Big Band
Avant-Garde
Free-Jazz

Tracks:
01 - The Magic City (27:22)
02 - The Shadow World (10:55)
03 - Abstract Eye (2:51)
04 - Abstract "I" (4:08)

Line-up:
Sun Ra - piano, clavioline
Pat Patrick - baritone saxophone, flute, tympani
John Gilmore - tenor saxophone
Marshall Allen - alto saxophone, flute, oboe, piccolo
Danny Davis - alto saxophone, flute
Harry Spencer - alto saxophone
Robert Cummings - bass clarinet
Walter Miller - trumpet
Chris Capers - trumpet
Ali Hassan - trombone
Teddy Nance - trombone
Bernard Pettaway - trombone
Roger Blank - Percussion
Ronnie Boykins - bass
Jimhmi Johnson - Percussion