Symbiosis - Bill Evans

[kulu se mama]

i know that this title is out of print, but i am curious as to why it is not included in the complete verve box.

it was recorded in 1974 whereas the verve box seems to stop in 1970.

i am assuming that while this cd was reissued by verve, maybe it was originally recorded for another label, and that is why it's not inlcuded.

if anyone could shed some light - it would be much appreciated.

Edited April 5, 2005 by kulu se mama

[jazzbo]

That's a good question. . . I see that it was an MPS originally, I guess that has to be at least a largely contributing factor?

[brownie]

'Symbiosis' was produced by Helen Keane, recorded at Columbia Recording Studios in New York in February 1974. The album was released by MPS, the German label.

Verve probably had a one-shot arrangement to release the album in the USA.

Trust the session still belongs to MPS.

[kulu se mama]

brownie and lon - thanks for the info.

that explains it.

[ghost of miles]

Wanted to hear this for a long time--hope it eventually gets re-issued at some point.

[JSngry]

Used to be readily available throughout most of the 70s in the US as a MPS LP. The Verve connection came much later,

[tjluke68]

I just picked up the PAUSA/MPS LP recently and now I'm even more anxious to listen to it tomorrow or over the wkend.

[Nate Dorward]

I'll be interested to hear reports on this--my understanding is that it's pretty lousy actually, though perhaps this judgment is based in part on the icky cover.

How's the late album with George Russell's Living Time Orchestra, for that matter?

[Daniel A]

How's the late album with George Russell's Living Time Orchestra, for that matter?

I've heard it once, and I thought it was pretty bad actually. And I do usually like Bill Evans. On that album he's buried in busy arrangements, through which his Fender Rhodes (of course) can sometimes barely be heard.

[kulu se mama]

i have the george russell / bill evans lp on cd, and i think it's quite bad.

if i remeber correctly it very dense and muddled.

[brownie]

The George Russell/Bill Evans collaboration worked perfectly on the Russell's Jazz Workshop album for RCA.

It did not work out so well on the Columbia reunion!

[JSngry]

I'll differ on both albums.

LIVING TIME's main problem is poor recording, not bad music. It's really more a Russell album than an Evans one, and is probably best appreciated/evaluated in that way. As such, once/if you're able to hear through the mud, there's actually some very raw and exciting writing and playing going on.

SYMBIOSIS starts very strongly, and then loses steam as it goes along, but it's hardly "bad" by any stretch of the imagination.

Myself, I'd rather hear Evans do something like these albums than yet another trio session.

[Claude]

Somebody asked the same question 18 months ago

http://www.organissimo.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=3599

[ghost of miles]

Joe Milazzo is an advocate for the Living Time CD, I'm pretty sure, and provoked my interest in it... if anybody has a copy they'd like to dump at a reasonable rate, consider me in the market!

[Eloe Omoe]

Myself, I'd rather hear Evans do something like these albums than yet another trio session.

Couldn't agree more.

Luca

[Nate Dorward]

Myself, I'd rather hear Evans do something like these albums than yet another trio session.

Hm......yeeessssss, but that doesn't necessarily mean the results are worth hearing. (Not that I'm terribly interested in 1970s Bill Evans trios either, mind you.) & I dunno about later Russell for that matter: I can't get too excited about things like The London Concert & The African Game.

[JSngry]

Fair enough, but I stand behind my enthusiasm for LIVING TIME, as well as the caveats about the crappy recording. From Russell's end, it's more in line with his late 60s/very early 70s work than it is those later things to which you refer. As for Evans' own contributions, while it would be exaggerating to say that any pianist could've taken his place, it's not one to say that the piano playing is not the major focus of the piece.

In other words, worth the effort to hear through the mud, if the listenere is so inclined to put it forth; has a liking for the basci concept(s) in the first place; and is not expecting a reprise of earlier Evans/Russell triumphs.

[Nate Dorward]

OK, true. Still, it does still sound like you're saying "interesting, not essential" so I think I'll just keep an eye on the 2ndhand vinyl bins for a cheapo copy.....

[Brighton Beach]

Timely topic - Dusty Groove are promising a CD reissue in April:

"Bill Evans -- Symbiosis (On Demand pressing) . . . CD . . . Around April 20, 2005

Fantastic stuff -- and one of our favorite lost sessions from the 70s! A completely unique Bill Evans album, and one that features him playing both electric and acoustic piano over stunning arrangements by Claus Ogerman. The sound is indescribably beautiful, with a range of moments that span a number of styles -- all of them dark and moody. Evans' playing is at that complex late stage, and Ogerman's orchestrations are completely sympathetic, never intrusive, and offer a brilliant showcase for haunting lines of dark, introspective genius from Evans. In a way, we'd compare this one to some of the more baroque CTI sessions -- or to later work in recent generations by artists like Chris Bowden!"

http://www.dustygroove.com/upcoming.htm

[JSngry]

What's this "On Demand pressing" bizness?

[kulu se mama]

Somebody asked the same question 18 months ago

duh.

i don't even remember my own topics.

i didn't pick it up 18 months ago, but i did pick it up now.