Smalls

I am breaking my trend of posting descriptive reviews of my jazz library (I have added a few titles to my collection that I should write about in the future...) in order to bring Smalls live webcast to the attention of masses.

Smalls is a jazz club in Greenwich Village. They bring in New York jazz artists on a nightly basis. One of the unique things the club does is a webcast of live performances. Check it out sometime!

Bobby Hutcherson - Solo/Quartet

Bobby Hutcherson Solo/Quartet

Bobby Hutcherson - vibraphone, marimba, bass marimba, chimes, xylophone, bells, boo-bam
McCoy Tyner - piano
Herbie Lewis - bass
Billy Higgins - Drums

1. Gotcha
2. For You, Mom and Dad
3. The Ice Cream Man
4. La Alhambra
5. Old Devil Moon
6. My Foolish Heart
7. Messina

I first came across this recording when I had a music downloading program known as Ruckus. It was a free way for college students to temporarily download music files. The files were deleted after a few months, and you could not transfer the files onto an mp3 player or cd-r. I was glad when I went into a record store in Madison yesterday (strictly discs), and I found Solo/Quartet for sale. I just got home from visiting my sister, and I am listening to the record as I type.

The album contains one side of solo recordings, and one side of quartet recordings (hence Solo/Quartet). Solo, in this case, is not a vibraphone solo album ala Gary Burton's Alone at Last. It presents Bobby Hutcherson in a one man percussion ensemble recorded via over-dubbing. Hutcherson wrote the three unique solo compositions himself. It is not often that an accomplished jazz percussionist attempts to write percussion ensemble music (Max Roach's M'boom comes to mind as another example). All three are enjoyable. "Gotcha" includes an opening vamp that will be stuck in your head for days. I like how the compositions include space for Hutcherson to improvise on either marimba or vibraphone. The pieces teeter on the commercial, smooth-jazz sound of the time, but the interesting choice of the percussion ensemble canvas makes this side great music to have going on in the background. It reminds me of Erik Satie's idea of "furniture music."

The next side includes an amazing quartet playing a variety of jazz pieces. "Al Hambra" has a Latin tinge to it, "Old Devil Moon" is a medium tempo jazz standard, "My Foolish Heart" is a standard ballad, and "Messina" is a multi-sectional Hutcherson composition.
The four players interact really nicely together. The liner notes suggest that the four players were reunited for this recording. The interplay does indeed sound as if four friends got together to play some wonderful pieces of music. When vibraphone and piano appear together, the first thought is if they get in each others way. On the quartet recording, the answer is no. Hutcherson and Tyner to a great job with subtle comping during each others fantastic solos. In fact, Hutcherson always did a great job of knowing how much he needed to play. On Out to Lunch, which was one of my first reviews, Hutcherson was able to fill the void of piano.

This is a great recording that I am sure will get worn out on my turntable. I think it would make my "desert island" list. That being said, I'm not sure if I would recommend this as the ultimate album that everyone must own. It's got some great variety, and I think my only complaint is that I wish this were a double album so it could contain more solo pieces and more quartet pieces! I wish I could find some audio samples on the web to include in this blog, but I could not find any on youtube or google. If you are interested, I would suggest checking out the 30 second sound clips from amazon, and if you find them intriguing, then go buy the album!

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.

Larry Young - Unity

Larry Young Unity

Larry Young - Organ
Woody Shaw - Trumpet
Joe Henderson - Tenor Saxophone
Elvin Jones - Drums

1. Zoltan
2. Monk's Dream
3. If
4. The Moontrane
5. Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
6. Beyond All Limits




This is one of the all-time great blue note jazz albums. Larry Young was an extremely gifted organist. As is noted, there is no bassist on this recording. Larry Young handles the role of bassist by playing wonderful walking bass patterns on the foot pedals of his b3 organ. Young is certainly not the only organ player to do this; many organ trios, for example, consist of drums, organ, and guitar (Larry Young was part of an intriguing jazz-rock trio consisting of Young, drummer Tony Williams and guitarist John McLaughlin). Listening to Young keep the bass lines going during his solos tends to boggle my mind.

The incredible independence that Young has amongst his limbs is showcased in the duet of "Monk's Dream" with Elvin Jones. Jones is well known for ruling the throne in John Coltrane's classic quartet. Jones would prod Coltrane into hypnotic excursions by use of his incredible poly rhythms. On "Monk's Dream", he uses his sticks to provoke some carnal organ playing from Young.

On a side note, I believe I read somewhere that the saxophonist to organist analogy is thus: Bird is to Jimmy Smith as Coltrane is to Larry Young.

I like all of the tracks, but "Zoltan" stands out to me. This piece was written by Woody Shaw, and it is named after the famous Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly (surely, most music education students should recognize this name). The composition is introduced by a march pattern between Elvin Jones and Larry Young. After the first melody is stated, Young and Jones bring down the house with a nasty latin groove. The dynamic comping from the rhythm section provokes fiery solos from Woody Shaw and Joe Henderson. At 3:20, Henderson unleashes a glorious "outside" lick. Listen for yourself; is it not ballin'?

This album is great. My only complaint is that it only lasts for around forty minutes. I guess, in today's modern compact disc age, I am used to fifty to eighty minutes of music per album. The playing is definitely top-notch, and I recommend it to anybody that is attempting to boost their jazz record collection. 10 out of 5 stars!

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.

Wether Report - Weather Report

Weather Report - Weather Report

Joe Zawinul - Keyboards
Wayne Shorter - Soprano Saxophone
Miroslav Vitous - Bass
Alphonse Mouzon - Drums
Airto Moriera - Percussion

1. Milky Way
2. Umbrellas
3. Seventh Arrow
4. Orange Lady
5. Morning Lake
6. Waterfall
7. Tears
8. Eurydice


I can not explain how happy I was to find this c.d. at Borders bookstore for under $7! Weather Report is not a c.d. that you would expect a retail store to carry, let alone place in their discount bin. I was able to pick up this c.d. and Hank Mobley's Workout for less than $7 each. 'Twas a good day for purchasing c.d.s (this was also the day I picked up Christian Scott's album, which I recently reviewed).

Experimental. Temperamental. Ever-changing, much like the daily weather report. These are the terms I choose to describe Weather Report's debut album. This is a great collection of sonic poetry that will be enjoyed by many fans of jazz and jazz fusion (especially the fusion that Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock started to experiment with in the late 1960s). The group started, more or less, after Zawinul and Shorter worked for Miles Davis on In a Silent Way. The two teamed with Czech bassist Miroslav Vitous (who had recently recorded one of the all time greatest jazz albums with Chick Corea entitled Now He Sings, Now He Sobs). These three were the core of Weather Report for the first few years of the group's inception, as the percussion chair became somewhat of a rotating cast (kind of like Spinal Tap, but minus the bizarre deaths). The three shared a common goal of creating high quality experimental jazz music using electronic keyboards and effect pedals. I am not certain, but Miroslav often sounds like he plays his arco bass with a wah-wah effect pedal. This makes his bass sound like a french horn (listen to the track "Orange Lady" to possibly hear what I am referring to).

Hopefully I have given enough of a backdrop for this debut album, as I would like to start to review the album's tracks. The album starts off with the brilliant "Milky Way." The lay listener may listen to this opening track and be unimpressed by the seemingly random angelic sounding chords that make up this composition. What has made this track legendary is that the group did not use a synthesizer to create the mysterious sound effects. The instrument(s) used are actually a piano and a saxophone. The band claims that they used a prepared piano, but it is not a prepared piano in the sense that it has nuts/screws placed between the strings ala John Cage. What they did was have Zawinul gently press down the notes of each chord on his piano. Then, Wayne Shorter blew the arpeggiated notes into the piano, creating a resonant, majestic sound. The recording engineer pressed record only after Shorter was done playing, so the record only picked up the sustain of the piano. I guess this recording had many people confused for years, but I think it was a great, creative idea from great, creative musicians.

Some of the tracks I would describe as Lush+Groove. "Waterfall" would fall under this category. A vary smooth backdrop of keyboards and bass playing sets up Wayne Shorter for some great experimental soprano saxophone improvisations.

Tracks such as "Seventh Arrow", "Umbrellas", and "Eurydice" are a little more aggressive with their grooves and their in-your-face melodies. The album is nicely laid out, with a gentle track often followed by an aggressive tune.

This album is a really cool debut album from a really cool group. I forgot to mention Airto in this review, but he is kinda the wild card. His guiro playing and his other Brazilian percussion instruments add a nice exotic flavor to this music. This music may be considered the first example of world fusion music due to Airto's contribution. Anyways, this album must be checked out by people that love Miles Davis Bitches Brew. While I find Brew to be a little bit aimless at times, I think that Weather Report keeps its focus throughout. I have to give this album five out of five stars.