Keith Jarrett - Eyes of the Heart

Keith Jarrett Eyes of the Heart

Keith Jarrett - Piano, OSI Drums, Soprano Saxophone, Tambourine
Dewey Redman - Tenor Saxophone, Tambourine, Maracas
Charlie Haden - Bass
Paul Motian - Drums, Percussion

1. Eyes of the Heart (part 1)
2. Eyes of the Heart (part 2)
3. Encore (a-b-c)






So this is the second Keith Jarrett review in a row. This probably will not be the last Jarrett review, as I have recently discovered how amazing some of his recordings are. I recently purchased this album at Stardust records, which I have alluded to in previous posts. I am very glad that I found this record store, as it has hooked me up with some great, make that fantastic, jazz recordings.

Keith Jarrett is a well known jazz pianist. He gained attention in the 1960's as the pianist in the Charles Lloyd quartet. After this, he joined Miles Davis' electric ensemble for a few years, and then Jarrett really started to record a lot for the ECM label (I know, I have reviewed quite a few ECM discs on this blog. I will try in the future to focus on other music labels).

Jarrett recorded primarily in one of three settings in the 1970's. One was solo (check Facing You, or Koln Concert). He also recorded with two quartets; one was American, and one was European. The American quartet consisted of Jarrett, Charlie Haden, Dewey Redman, and Paul Motian, and they are heard one The Eyes of The Heart. All of their repertoire consisted of originals, and most were written by Jarrett. Eyes of the Heart, apparently, is completely written by Keith Jarrett. Some of the magic of Keith Jarrett in the 1970's, however, was his ability to improvise magnificent melodies (For example, it is said that Jarrett improvised many of his solo piano concerts). I wonder how much of Eyes of the Heart was improvised by the ensemble. Take these notes written on the inside of the album cover:

"Improvisation is at its best when everyone involved in the music is aware of an intent greater than his own; therefore more his own."

This leads me to believe that the majority of this "untitled" material (all of the titles are either "Eyes of the Heart", or "encore''...)was improvised on the spot. Much of the music is based on vamps, which was a key component to Jarrett's improvised albums. Also, many of Jarrett's tunes composed in the 1970's consist of long winding melodies played in unison by the piano and the saxophonist. Most of the melodies that I hear, are played by individuals (Mostly Jarrett or Redman). (I am currently listening to the encore, and alas! part b appears to contain a melody played by Jarrett and Redman; however, Jarrett plays his soprano saxophone for this part! He is a talented saxophonist, if I do say so myself.)

The track I have been digging the most is "Eyes of the Heart part two." This piece is fantastic! The first half of the 15:43 long piece is a piano solo ala Jarrett's solo improvised concerts that he would have been performing around the same time as this (Eyes of the Heart was recorded in May 1976, and was released by ECM in 1979). The piece is a g minor masterpiece. The piano repeats a haunting ostinato throughout. The ensemble joins in and collaborates on a meditative theme.

My one complaint about this album is a small complaint, and I probably would have nothing to complain about had I bought the compact disc. The album is a double album, meaning it consists of two records. The first record contains "Eyes of the Heart part one" on side one and "Eyes of the Heart part two" on side two. The second record has "Encore a-b-c" on side one, and side two is completely blank! I wish that Jarrett could have found some extra material to take up the fourth side of this record. Even if he needed to record a solo piano performance, a fourth side would be greatly appreciated!

I think this album is great; however, I would not proclaim it a must-buy for the lay-jazzer. Anyone interested into the improvisatory nature of 1970's Keith Jarrett, though, needs to check this music out anyway possible.

Keith Jarrett - Luminessence

Keith Jarrett Luminessence

Sudfunk Symphony Orchestra - Strings
Jan Garbarek - Tenor and Soprano Saxes

1. Numinor
2. Windsong
3. Luminessence





While this is a great album, it would be difficult to classify the music as "jazz." Keith Jarrett has been one of the top performing jazz pianists of the past 30 plus years. This recording was made in 1974, when Jarrett was mostly working with either of his influential quartets (American and European). Jarrett has also done quite a bit of work in the "classical" world of music as well (compared to other jazz musicians, at least). Jarrett released an album of some of his compositions for various classical ensembles called In the Light. I checked out In the Light from Northern Michigan University's L.R.C. a couple summers ago. I had high hopes listening to it, as their was a piece featuring Ralph Towner on guitar. After listening (admittedly, only once), I was somewhat disappointed with Jarrett's first compositional themed album.

When I was at Stardust record store in Thiensville, WI this past weekend, I came accross Luminessence. I decided to give it a try, if not only for the fact it was two dollars. The record is really good. One quality that I appreciate in music is if it can be satisfying background noise, but also reward close listening. While I just read on Wikipedia that many people in the classical community are somewhat dismissive of this recording, I feel that Keith's string parts and Jan Garbarek's sax improvisations are creative, accessible, and interesting. I would really be interested to see what kind of directions Keith gave Jan for his improvisations. I wonder if Garbarek was just going off of the melody, as he often bases his improvisations off of melodies stated in string sections.

My favorite track has been "Luminessence," but I must say the other two are good as well. "Numinor" contains an incredibly fiery sax cadenza a la John Coltrane or Albert Ayler. There is a lot of great interplay going on throughout "Luminessence." I really like the way the soloist, Garbarek, works with the string section with his improvisations. Throughout the whole album, Garbarek does a wonderful job of connecting his otherworldly outside playing into very smooth legato phrases to match what feeling the strings provoke. Much of the music sounds like it may fit well as incidental music in a play or a movie.

This is a good album, but it is not an essential purchase for a casual jazz listener. I would have linked some of the tracks to YouTube clips, but there are no samples on YouTube. That's too bad, because I feel most people would benefit from hearing the music, but I feel that many people would not end up playing this album a lot. I know there isn't really an option for renting music, but if you see this at a library, check it out and give it a few listens. Otherwise, you can always ask me to loan you my album, provided you have a record player to listen to the music on.

Ralph Towner and Gary Burton - Matchbook

Ralph Towner and Gary Burton Matchbook

Ralph Towner - 12 string and classical guitars
Gary Burton - Vibraphone

1. Drifting Petals
2. Some Other Time
3. Brotherhood
4. Icarus
5. Song for a Friend
6. Matchbook
7. 1 x 6
8. Aurora
9. Goodbye Pork Pie Hat



I just got back home from shopping at a nearby used record store, and I just purchased nine records for $19! I am currently listening to one of these purchases, Ralph Towner and Gary Burton's Matchbook. I have already reviewed one Gary Burton album on this blog, Dreams So Real. This duet recording with guitarist Ralph Towner is another spectacular ECM recording. Two highly skilled improvisers create majestic landscapes of sound (listen to "Icarus", for example). Some of the improvisations sound more calm and reflective (take "Song for a Friend" and "Drifting Petals").

Since I am currently listening to this album for the first time, I am just going to write down my thoughts about each track as I listen to them.

"Drifting Petals" - Similar in style to what Towner and Abercrombie do with their duets from Sargasso Sea.
"Some Other Time"- Vibraphone vamp is very pretty - reminiscent of Peace Piece or Flamenco Sketches.
"Brotherhood" - Very short, dissonant, seems like 20th century "modern" music (I'm not well versed in contemporary music, but it maybe sounds like something Karlheinz Stockhausen or Milton Babbit would have composed).
"Icarus" - Wonderful Ralph Towner song originally from the Oregon repertoire. Burton plays a very nice flashy, yet musical solo.

(side two)

"Song for a Friend" - very calm. Introspective. I think this piece would benefit with a larger ensemble. It has a minor feeling throughout that almost reminded me of John McLaughlin's "Lotus Feet". I wonder what friend for whom the song was written.
"Matchbook"- Ralph Towner stuck a matchbook over some of his guitar strings. This makes the guitar sound more like a kalimba or a marimba. The song has a cool phrygian/Spanish feeling to it. Great descending melody.
"1 x 6"- Modern sounding classical guitar solo. This ain't no Mauro Guiliani piece! Very short, too.
"Aurora" - Two chord vamp to start things off. Not the Coltrane/ Pharaoh Sanders style two chord vamp. First chord is pretty dissonant, and it resolves nicely to a consonant sounding chord. Very adventurous comping from both musicians during solos.
"Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" - I bought two albums that have this song today (I also bought Joni Mitchell's Mingus) Burton and Towner take on the Weather Report approach on this tune - they always solo and they never solo. Working in the duet setting allow Towner and Burton to take many liberties with tempo and harmony. A nice reading of this often recorded Mingus tribute to Lester Young.

This is a pretty good album. Not a must own for the casual jazz fan. But fans of the ECM label, or fans of Oregon may want to give this album a listen or two. Especially if you liked Sargasso Sea, which was a duet record of Ralph Towner and John Abercrombie. I like how Matchbook has a contrast of timbre, whereas I felt Sargasso Sea gets a little stale hearing acoustic guitar the whole album. Solid album all the way through.

Collin Walcott - Cloud Dance

Collin Walcott Cloud Dance

Collin Walcott - Sitar and Tabla
John Abercrombie - Guitar
Dave Holland - Bass
Jack Dejohnette - Drumset

1. Margueritte
2. Prancing
3. Night Glider
4. Scimitar
5. Vadana
6. Eastern Song
7. Padma
8. Cloud Dance


Collin Walcott was a gifted musician most known for performing with the group Oregon. Other groups that Walcott has performed with include the Paul Winter Consort and Codona. Walcott was one of the first American musicians to master both the sitar as well as the tabla, both traditional instruments used in Indian music. Walcott learned the sitar by studying with the most famous sitarist, Ravi Shankar. Cloud Dance is a brilliant album that perfectly melds eastern and western (ECM-type jazz) music.

Margueritte opens this album with a long solo sitar cadenza. The ensemble eventually joins in, and the sound is lush. The track (in fact much of the album) is reminiscent of John Abercrombie's Timeless. This is likely due to the fact that Abercrombie and DeJohnette (both on Cloud Dance) had recorded Timeless two years prior.

The album presents many great duets with Walcott and some of the other musicians. "Prancing" and "Eastern Song" are duets with Dave Holland. "Scimitar" pairs Walcott (this time on tabla instead of sitar) with Abercrombie while "Padma" is a reflective guitar-sitar duet. Abercrombie's guitar tone is heavier on "Scimitar" than on most of Cloud Dance. The teasing of eastern scales with the distorted guitar almost predates Steve Vai's style.

I really enjoy the tracks that include DeJohnette, "Margueritte" and "Cloud Dance". "Cloud Dance" in particular reminds me of Frank Zappa from Waka/Jawaka or The Grand Wazoo, which are two of my favorite Zappa albums. Phaser heavy guitar provides a lush ambiance on this tune. My only negative comment would be that DeJohnette's snare drum sounds a bit off. I'm strictly talking about the tone of his drum. His comping is all rhythmically fine, but the sound does not ring out at all; there is no sustain from the drum. Maybe it is just me, though.

My parents bought this c.d. for my birthday. I like it a lot, and I would recommend people give it a try. It is definitely underrated. If you like Abercrombie's Timeless, Zappa's Waka Jawaka, The "ECM" sound, and Indian music, you should really check out Collin Walcott's Cloud Dance.

Gary Burton Quintet - Dreams So Real

Gary Burton - Vibes
Mick Goodrick - Guitar
Pat Metheny - 12 String Electric Guitar
Steve Swallow - Bass
Bob Moses - Drums

Gary Burton is arguably the greatest vibraphonist. He is known for his mastery of using four mallets to play the vibraphone more like a piano. The grip that he developed to hold the four mallets was even named after him. His technique is unbelievable. He can run through scales faster than the speed of light.

I have been searching for this album ever since ECM released it under their Touchstone Series, which offers some of their more well known recordings in modest packaging, and an affordable price. This has become a quick favorite of mine. The vibraphone and the two guitars mix to create a very lush orchestration of Carla Bley's magnificent compositions.

The album starts with the title track, "Dreams So Real." The ensemble plays this ballad with great attention to detail. The energy does pick up at moments, but it never gets too wild.
The next piece is "Ictus/Syndrome." This opens with a complex unison melody. About halfway through the piece, it switches to a hard swing feeling. Pat Metheny plays a takes a nice guitar solo. Pat's solos are very melodic and Metheney-esque, but Burton's solos are so full of energy. They are often wild explorations of the possibilities that one person can do on a vibraphone.
"Jesus Maria" is a ballad that Burton plays as a solo feature. The song sounds very well suited for the vibes.
"Vox Humana" apparently is named after an organ stop. This piece is my favorite from the album. I think it exemplifies what some have called, "The ECM sound." The rhythm section plays it straight, with the drums incorporating broken eighth notes. The piece generally has a lush ambiance to it. The various sections have their way of either putting me in a state of complete relaxation, or they make me long to hear the resolution into the next section. The resolutions are majestic; I often imagine a beautiful sun setting on the mountain ranges in the west. Great vibe solos and guitar solos. It's a little harder for me to tell who solos on this one, but I would guess that it is Mick Goodrick. The piece is very well written because of the sections where the intensity builds up very quickly.
"Doctor" is another Carla Bley song that opens with a complex unison melody with the guitar and vibes, but the other guitar and the bass have a written out rhythmic response to the melody. The chords in this piece are far more bizarre than in the previous pieces. The group plays well enough through this, and it is refreshing to hear another Metheny guitar solo. He really has no difficulty soloing over the rather interesting chords.
"Intermission Music" closes this album. It is a lilting waltz ballad, and everyone continues to perform well. I should mention here that Steve Swallow and Bob Moses do a fine job handling the bass and drums respectively.

This is a good album, and I recommend it to anyone that likes ECM type albums. The music seems to defy categories. It surely isn't bop/hard bop/ post bop. It is almost fusion, but not in the typical jazz fusion sense. I think the best label for this kind of music is Carla Bley. This music rewards close listening, and yet it can serve as background music quite well. For Burton fans, and I would say even for Metheny fans, this album is a must own.

5/5 Stars