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Alon Marcus
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Posts posted by Alon Marcus
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This is the album I've chosen. Will be glad to hear your opinions on the playing, orchestration and compositions.
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I think she's a pleasant surprise, coming out of the blue - popular music.
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For the person that asked about the Horace stuff the Silver 'n' series all featured Tom---some with Berg, some with Larry Schneider. I really liked Silver 'n' Wood. Barbara from Silver 'n' Brass has a beautiful solo and is one of my favorite Silver pieces from that period. Silver 'n' voices also has burning Tom. That tune Out of the Night is a standout. Great tune, great solo by Tom. I think Silver 'n' Strings was the best, though. Great Tom (in a front line and very nice blend with Schneider), really strong writing and nice playing by Horace and it even offers the very worthwhile singing talents of the late Gregory Hines.
Thanks for the info,
I wish Mosaic would get out all the Silver 'n' X series in one box.
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Can someone add info about the time he was with Horace Silver?
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Some good ones were not included like "Moon Alley" and "Stories",
and I like these albums very much, but you still can talk about them in the "other" category
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I think that Metheny and Corea are already classics.
What makes them important
is their writing.
Although both of them had influenced a bunch of piano and guitar players.
For me they are important and influential
as any of the big Jazz names from the 50's.
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I have a question about Metheny. Is Trio 99-00 the album that has 'Go Get It?'
Yes
(an easy way to increase my posts count)
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I haven't put on much Larry Young in while. However, was listening today. Aside from the obvious remarks about originality, I really enjoy certain rhythmic things and pet finger patterns he leans on as a basis to his style. Can't point out a single passage right now, but wondered if anybody had any particular passages of Larry Young. Not neccessarily a whole tune, but that's cool too....
Unity was on my playlist this month,
I noticed that Young tends to use a lot the pentatonic scale,
but not the bluesy usual stuff.
He superimposes on the same chord various pentatonics
derived from roots which are related to the chord he plays.
The same creative way as Woody Shaw later did.
He also likes using forths
and his playing reminds me of all people Mccoy Tyner
in his choice of substitute chords and melodic lines.
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Sidewinder is not the best neither the worst Morgan.
It's the usual Morgan.
The problem with the title track is that it has been played too many times.
I like all Morgan albums I've heard
They give me the same kind of expected satisfaction
Everything he did after "Sidewinder" could fit in one pattern.
His early albums are a bit different as his last albums
I don't like it when he goes into a long and boring modal exploration
That's why I might even prefer the exhausted Sidewinder to
"Search for the New Land"
Anyhow, this week
I was listening to "The Rajah" and had a lot of fun.
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I can't think of any flaws on this one.
It's the best album Abercrombie ever made, in my opinion. Wish there were more like it.
A piece like Lungs (and to a lesser degree, Red And Orange) has the Mahavishnu energy but leans more towards jazz, not so much of the involved composition and Indian stuff. I consider this one to be an extension of the Tony Williams Lifetime in terms of the evolution of the organ trio. Compared to MO, there's more listening, more interplay, less crash and bash and battling. I'm sure the trio compared to quintet has something to do with this, but it's also about DeJohnette as opposed to Cobham. I also love to hear Jan Hammer on organ instead of Rhodes.
The acoustic duets also have that kinship with the Mahavishnu pieces like Lotus on Irish Streams, for example.
It's kind of amazing that this is on ECM but it was a New York session and fairly early on. I guess there was some overdubbing of synthesizer parts, but it's still got a very live feel.
For those who haven't checked out the other renditions of the tunes on this album, I encourage doing this:
Jan Hammer: Red And Orange (Oh Yeah?, Nemperor)
Elvin Jones: Lungs (Merry-Go-Round, Blue Note)
Oregon: Timeless (Friends, Vanguard)
Ralph Towner: Timeless (Solo Concert, ECM)
Gerry Niewood: Timeless (Timepiece, Horizon)
Ralph Towner: Ralph's Piano Waltz (Solo Concert, ECM)
Gerry Niewood: Ralph's Piano Waltz (Timepiece, Horizon)
Abercrombie has also revisited RPW on some of his things.
Can't think of other recordings of the duet pieces. Perhaps there aren't any.
BTW, for flaws, you'd have to go to the reunion album (Night).
Mike
I Couldn't say it better about the Mahavishnu comparison. Thanks for sharing the knowledge about the tangent albums.
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John Abercrombie - guitar
Jan Hammer - piano, organ, synth
Jack DeJohnette - drums
I'll write more about this later when I have time, but it's one of my favorite ECMs. Not without flaws, of course, but most of the music here is incredible. The title track is a favorite.
Guy
Great choice. I started listening to the album today and I like it already. Abercrombie always was a kind of bloodless player and I didn't expect he could play with such power, speed and articulation like here. He is almost like McLaughlin, just a bit more diverse and smart. The album is very surprising especially when you come to listen to it after hearing the traditional organ trio.
What are the flaws, Guy?
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Few more comments about his playing and compositions.
1. Moon Alley - The album contains one of his best compositions "Rapture". The improvisations are built on patterns derived from the original theme. The patterns serve as vamps for soloing. This is a fresh idea, avoiding standart chorus blowing and reminds somehow the development part of the classical sonata form.
It's also interesting to compare this version of "Rapture" with Garrett to a later one with Bob Berg.
2. Harrell's tunes are very singable. You can easily remember the melodies he writes. Some of his themes could serve as elevator music weren't they so good. Tunes like "I don't know" or the optimistic "April Mist" from his album "Visions".
3. Harrell's tunes and improvisations also remind me good short stories like those of Chekhov, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, O. Henry or Raymond Carver. Lester Young said once that you have to tell a story in your playing and that is correct. People look for the same pleasure in listening to music as in books, movies or just a friendly chat while having a cup of cofee. In that sense Tom Harrell is a good storyteller.
4. Harrell's smart writing brings out the best in players who work with him. The name of his sidemen is a long list of jazz celebreties including Dave Liebman, Joe Lovano, Kenny Garrett, Bob Berg and Phil Woods.
5. He reminds Chet Baker in the way he tends to play behind the beat. But he follows the harmonic discoveries made by Woody Shaw and like Shaw uses pentatonic scales a lot and creatively.
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A brief story regarding Tom Harrell.....
In 1996 they were organizing a concert at Carnegie Hall to honor what would have been Woody's 6oth anniversary (having taken over the band in 1936). When bari saxist and band manager Mike Brignola told me that Tom Harrell would be one of the guest soloists I asked him what Tom was going to play on. Mike said "Not sure- we'll probably plug him into one of our tunes". I saw a golden opportunity and volunteered to arrange one of Tom' tunes for the band- I picked "Sail Away" because besides being a great MF tune it seemed right for the sound of Woody's band. I transribed Harrell's solo off of his recording and turned it into a sax soli (with Flugel lead, one of the trademark sounds of the band). I put that in another trumpet part- all Tom had to do was play the head and blow a chorus. Tom was very gracious about the chart and recognized his transcribed solo. It was a great experience meeting him (although he was pretty quiet
) and I'm glad I was able to tell him how much I loved his music. ....and of course playing in Carnegie Hall was pretty cool too.....
Nice story and very interesting
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I'm listening right now to Strange Liberation
Quite good on first impression. It has a great team with Uri Caine, Bill Frisel and Chris Potter. The compositions sound very fine to me. Need more time to evaluate the solos.
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but than again, you seem to enjoy reading Scott Yanow - the least knowledgable jazz critic in the universe -
Now I'm furious.
How can you say it?
How can you say Scott Yanow is the least knowledgeable jazz critic in the universe?
You simply have no respect for Tom Jurek.
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Ok, don't listen to me, how about Scott Yanow the main bop/hard bop reviewer of AMG, read his reviews of "Strings and Things" and "More Than You Know" I own 80 of his sessions.
I really hope you mean LTD's sessions and not Scott Yanow's.
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Joe Lovano is celebrating his Birthday today. Lovano is 53 years old today and I wish him all the best. Tones, Shapes and Colors will find the way to my CD player this evening. Kenny Werner sounds great here and of course Lovano also. The great Mel Lewis is another reason to listen to this recording.
Happy Birthday to Joe Lovano!
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One of his most interesting collaborations is the one with Jackie Mclean. They have different styles, Mclean plays much more outside and has quite an angular way of phrasing while Dexter rounds and sweetens his phrases. NHOP is simply great here.
My favorite tunes are Sunset and Rue de la Harpe.
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no one has mentioned "ca'purange" and i am sorry if i mispelled it.
haven't heard this one in a while but i recall appreciating that it sounded a bit different than i expected.
the first tune was pretty vigorous and even the slow stuff had an edge, which i actually think came from stanley clarke's bass playing, which though staying well within the boundaries of the jazz music at hand, still had some of the sort of rubbery bounce i hear in his acoustic bass playing.
Ca'purange is a fine album, but with all my love for Dexter Thad Jones and Hank Jones are stealing the spotlight from him on this one.
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Thanks a lot for the various opinions expressed in the thread. Personally, I like LTD very much and have been listening to his stuff lately.
1. His contribution as the man who put bebop on tenor was not mentioned. Maybe Allen could bring names of lesser known tenorists, who contributed not less than him, but still, his role in the bebop revolution can't be underestimated.
2. What about his influence on Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane and the backward influence they had on him?
3. His early recordings, from the 40s. I think that he played quite differently. You can almost mistake him with Lester Young. What about his collaborations with Wardell Grey, and his many other tenor battles. The early years with Lionel Hampton and Earl Hines?
4. I can't understand the thing about "hearing the drugs in his playing". How can you tell he was using drugs before each and every session? Why it doesn't bother you with Charlie Parker, Chet Baker or Miles?
5. I like his Blue Note records most of all. Also have warm feelings to "Homecoming" with Woody Shaw.
6. He is playing a lot behind the beat. This is one of the most amazing things in his playing and I believe that's what creates his swing and gives people pleasure in listening to him. As Barak (White Lightening) told me once, his tendency to play behind the beat grew and became more sophisticated as the years passed.
7. For some reason I prefer hearing him in a quintet with a trumpet player.
8. I like his sound and think he was great with sound dynamics while singing his phrases. His sound thickened with the years.
9. He quotes often, bit I like it. Maybe he could quote less "Mona Lisa" in his 70s and 80s recordings.
10. Maybe I could agree with Allen about his "behind the beat playing" as coming from technical limitations or even drug use. But I don't think it's bad. Usually if one can make his weakness a source of power he is a good jazz player, or a woman.
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There were few small talks about the guy but no general discussion. Please write your opinions about him, personal favorites out of his huge discography, and if someone has links to interviews with him on the web, that will be great.
Previous discussions about LTD
Mosaic Select box - http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php...topic=18331&hl=
Prestige Box - http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php...topic=11699&hl=
Steeplechase Box - http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=420&hl=
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I wonder what people think about his Landmarks album. What do you think about the free pieces (and I hope my ears didn't betray me and and those are free pieces, without choruses) like the Owl and the Fox and Dig This?
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He is certainly a great songwriter. It's one thing that most of the jazz fans agree with. I also like his playing and arranging. In the last few days I was listening to his collaboration with Bobby Shew on the Album Playing with Fire. John Patitucci is also doing a very good job playing acoustic bass. I would like to know what people think about that album.
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Pure Genious!!!
I think it's the best Wonder since "Songs in the Key of Life". He is still in good shape and his craft of writing songs is at its best.
Saul Steinberg
in Miscellaneous - Non-Political
Posted
More can be found here
http://www.saulsteinbergfoundation.org