John Mayall - Jazz Blues Fusion (1972)

Superb 1972 live offering from British blues legend John Mayall throwing in some Clifford Jordan-style jazz for good measure expertly aided by trumpet giant Blue Mitchell in one of their classic collaborations.

personnel:

john mayal
blue mitchell
clifford solomon
larry taylro
freddie robinson
ron selico

rec. 1972

John Zorn's Masada - Live in Middelheim (1999)

Every album by John Zorn's Masada seems better than the last, and this one is no exception. By the time of this recording the group was a tightly cohesive unit, performing at an extremely high and satisfying level, with Zorn and Douglas playing comfortably at a blistering pace. The songs are tinged with hints of Eastern European harmony, but the heat generated, while perhaps related to the raucous dancing at a Jewish wedding, is firmly rooted in the ways of Avant Garde Jazz. Zorn takes some of his best solos on disk, sounding like silly putty on speed, while the more proper Dave Douglas lags only slightly behind. With a recording time nearing eighty minutes, and substantial contributions from the entire quartet, the recording marks not so much a milestone in the life of the group as a symbol of its ability to constantly expand upon itself and draw on its not inconsequential roots, proving again that you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy Jewish-tinged culture. ~ Steven Loewy, All Music Guide

In addition to Mr. Lowey's very knowledgeable review, I have to say that this is one of the best jazz albums in recent years, it grabs you by the balls and never lets go, enjoy. ~d3lta

track listing:

1. Nevuah
2. Sippur
3. Hath-Arob
4. Kedushah
5. Ne'eman
6. Karet
7. Kochot
8. Piram
9. Paran
10. Ashnah
11. Tahah

personnel:

john zorn as
dave douglas t
greg cohen b
joey baron d

rec. 1999

Bobby Broom - Modern Man (2001)

Guitarist Bobby Broom has been playing profesionally for more than 30 years. He's worked, with Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins, Dr. John, Art Blakey, Kenny Burrell, Charles Earland et al. Modern Man brings to mind the urgent, smoking energy of a young, unbridled George Benson, circa 1966's Cookbook. Indeed, fire-breathing baritone sax ace Ronnie Cuber and Hammond B-3 marvel Dr. Lonnie Smith - both key elements of that ferocious mid-60's Benson quartet - are both aboard here to ignite the fire beneath Broom's guitar in a set so diverse that it even includes pop-funk standards as Stevie Wonder's Superstition and Eric Clapton's rock anthem Layla. Great stuff.

Tracklisting:

1. Dance For Osiris
2. Ponta Grossa
3. Superstition
4. Mo'
5. I'll Never Fall in Love Again
6. Blues For Modern Man
7. Old Devil Moon
8. A Peck A Sec
9. After Words
10.Layla



personnel:

Bobby Broom - guitar

Dr. Lonnie Smith - Hammond B-3 organ

Ronnie Cuber - baritone sax

Idris Muhammad - drums

rec 2000

The Paul Bley Quartet w/J. Surman B. Frisell P. Motian (1988)

This 1988 release was the second by this quartet (Fragments, their first, was released two years earlier). The set features compositions written by each of the players, with two contributions from Bley. The ensemble is well matched and the absence of a traditional rhythm section allows the musicians to play in and around open spaces (an approach in keeping with the group members' own releases). Bill Frisell's long and lingering notes peek out from behind Bley's piano, while John Surman's reeds wrap the whole in a rich, gauzy cloth. All the while drummer Paul Motian plays his kit with the quiet majesty of volcanic ash settling onto horizontal surfaces. Recorded in Norway at one of the producer's preferred studios, the sonic clarity is gorgeous (a hallmark of ECM releases). The title of Bley's "Interplay" invokes the key word that makes this music work so well.

track listing:

Interplay
Heat
After Dark
One In Four
Triste

personnel:

Payl Bley piano
John Surman soprano sax bass clarinet
Bill Frisell guitar
Paul Motian drums

Recorded at Rainbow Studio, Oslo, Norway in November 1987 ECM 1365

Paul Bley - Films · Jazz 'n (e)motion

Sumptuous out-of-print solo Bley offering from RCA France's 1997 Jazz 'n (e)motion series where this master of understatement takes a peek at favorite film themes that have entered the jazz canon in the form of standards. Exquisite stuff.

track listing:

Laura
All The Things You Are
As Time Goes By
I Got Rhythm
Someday My Prince Will Come
What Is This Thing Called Love
It Might As Well Be Spring
Married Alive

Paul Bley - piano

rec. Paris 1997

Paul Bley Trio - Closer (1965)

If the strident experimentation of free-jazz pioneers such as Cecil Taylor and Albert Ayler railed against conventional ideas of chord voicing and fixed rhythmic accompaniment, pianist Paul Bley took a decidedly more understated approach to musical innovation. Bley's classic 1966 trio album for ESP-Disk, Closer, is a study in restraint. Moving confidently from melodic lyricism to explosive bursts of tone color, Bley and his compatriots--drummer Barry Altschul and bassist Steve Swallow--strike a pleasing balance between order and chaos, creating music as evocative as it is challenging. This offering, along with Barrage (see previous post) are Bley's classic free-form statements of the era.


personnel:

Paul Bley (piano); Steve Swallow (bass); Barry Altschul (drums)

track listing:

1. Ida Lupino
2. Start
3. Closer
4. Sideways in Mexico
5. Batterie
6. And Now the Queen
7. Figfoot
8. Crossroads
9. Violin
10.Cartoon

rec. in NYC, December 12, 1965

Down Beat (6/93, p.48) - 4 Stars - Very Good - "...Compared to the previous year's ESP date, it is the calm after the storm, highlighting Bley's oblique lyricism, as well as his will-to-wail. Those twin attributes have stood Bley in good artistic stead over the years..."

Paul Bley Quintet - Barrage (1964)

What a difference in an artist's development a decade makes. Released originally in 1964, Paul Bley's Barrage is a creative, thoroughly satisfying free-jazz outing. For these six compositions, all by Carla Bley, the leader is joined by drummer Milford Graves, bassist Eddie Gomez, trumpeter Dewey Johnson and saxophonist Marshall Allen (of the Sun Ra Arkestra) for improvisations of an intense yet deeply considered nature.

In his piano playing, Bley seems to draw inspiration from Cecil Taylor, while the skittering dialogues between the instruments owe a debt to Ornette Coleman's early ensemble work. Yet there is something quite fresh and distinctive about the music on Barrage, thanks largely to the distinctive voices of each player, and the way these voices play off each other in skilled, thrilling ways.

personnel:

Paul Bley (piano); Marshall Allen (alto saxophone); Dewey Johnson (trumpet); Eddie Gomez (bass); Milford Graves (percussion)

track listing:

1. Batterie
2. Ictus
3. And Now the Queen
4. Around Again
5. Walking Woman
6. Barrage

rec. in NYC October 20, 1964

Paul Bley - Introducing (1953)

Paul Bley was 21 years old when he recorded his first album in 1953. With Art Blakey on drums and Charles Mingus on bass (it was originally released on his Debut Records label), this finds Bley still working within the framework of bebop. This CD reissue adds four extra tracks and the alternate take it includes of Bley's own "Opus 1" is fascinating for what it reveals. In his soloing--different on each of the two takes--he can be heard using forceful but brief melodic fragments with little harmonic embellishment. He's continued to explore those possibilities on through the decades. However, it is remarkable to notice here, at the beginning of the young pianist's career, to hear Bley stepping out of the confines of the genre and to witness the development of his distinctive individual voice.

personnel:

Paul Bley (piano); Charles Mingus (bass); Art Blakey (drums)

track listing:

1. Opus One
2. (Teapot) Walkin'
3. Like Someone in Love
4. Spontaneous Combustion
5. Split Kick
6. I Can't Get Started
7. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
8. Opus One [Alternate Take]
9. Theme
10. This Time the Dream's on Me
11. Zootcase

rec. 1953

Kenny Burrell - Guitar Forms (1964)

"I didn't want to put out an album with a variety of sounds and persuasions just as a showcase, without having depth to it." So Kenny Burrell, master of so many guitar forms, remembers. His caution -- as well as his choice of arranger, Gil Evans -- paid off with this classic record that integrates his vast array of techniques in a timeless, artistic whole.

"I'd like to play many types of music. Guitar Forms is probably the best reflection of that of any album I've done, in terms of the variety of things I truly love."

Track listing:

1. Downstairs
2. Lotus Land
3. Terrace Theme
4. Prelude #2 - excerpt
5. Moon and Sand
6. Loie
7. Greensleeves
8. Last Night When We Were Young
9. Breadwinner


personnel:

Kenny Burrell Guitar
Jimmy Cleveland Trombone
Jimmy Knepper Trombone
Steve Lacy Soprano Saxophone
Lee Konitz Alto Saxophone
Roger Kellaway Piano
Grady Tate Drums

Gil Evans Arranger




Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, on December 4, 1964, December 15, 1964, April 6, 1965 and April 12, 1965.

Original recordings produced by Creed Taylor

(flac with scans)

The Mar-Keys - The Great Memphis Sound (1966)

The Mar-Keys, formed in 1958, were a studio session band for the Stax label from Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1960s. As the first house band for the label, their backing music formed the foundation for the early 1960s Stax sound. The Mar-Keys was a play on the word "marquee" referring to the marquee outside of Stax studios (at the time called Satellite Records). They also recorded organ and saxophone oriented singles of their own, scoring a number three hit nationally with "Last Night" in 1961. Keyboard was played by Jerry Lee "Smoochy" Smith. Other singles of theirs from the early 1960s include "Philly Dog" and "Pop-eye Stroll." Members of this rhythm section later formed other nationally prominent Memphis studio session groups, including the Memphis Horns, the Packers, and Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Each of these offshoot groups also recorded popular instrumental albums of their own, in addition to serving as the backing band on albums by dozens of rock, r&b, and soul music stars on Stax, Volt and other national labels. The legacy of the Mar-Keys and later groups was that of having been key players in the development of soul music styles like Southern soul and Memphis soul. This 1966 out-of-print date is fun, feelgood music, perfect for those spring Sunday nights, enjoy.

Members

* Steve Cropper - guitar
* Donald "Duck" Dunn - bass
* Charles "Packy" Axton - tenor sax
* Don Nix - saxophone
* James Terry Johnson - piano
* Wayne Jackson - trombone, trumpet
* Jerry Lee "Smoochie" Smith - keyboards
* Booker T. Jones - keyboards
* Isaac Hayes - organ
* James Terry Johnson - drums
* Al Jackson - drums

Discography

* The Last Night!, 1961
* Do the Pop-Eye, 1962
* The Great Memphis Sound, 1966
* Back to Back, 1967
* Mellow Jelly, 1968
* Damnifiknow!, 1969
* Memphis Horns, 1970
* Memphis Experience, 1971
* High on Music, 1976

track listing

Honey Pot
Plantation Inn
Loving You Too Long
Cleo's Back
Grab This Thing
Philly Dog
Walking With The Duke
The Girl From Ipanema
In The Mood
"Dear James" Medley (Night Train, Papa's Got A Brand New Bag, I Got You, Good Loving, I'll Go Crazy)

rec. 1966