Your 10 (or 5, or 3) favorite ECM albums

[Sundog]

This one makes my list...

Abercrombie/Wall/Nussbaum- While We're Young

[.:.impossible]

I had an album by that trio once. I couldn't connect. People really seem to like Abercrombie. What would be your one recommendation for his music?

I was just listening to Dona Nostra this evening. Great shit.

[Sundog]

I had an album by that trio once. I couldn't connect. People really seem to like Abercrombie. What would be your one recommendation for his music?

I was just listening to Dona Nostra this evening. Great shit.

I know there are number of Abercrombie fans a lot more qualified than me on this board. That said, these three cover a fair amount of ground stylistically and are all worth checking out. If I have to pick just one, I go with Timeless.

Timeless

Sargasso Sea

Gateway

Timeless- AOTW Discussion

Edited to include link

Edited December 23, 2006 by Sundog

[Chuck Nessa]

I just never warmed to Abercrombie's sound. Since he just dialed it up on his instrument, I blame him.

Can anyone name a great solo by him? Not a record date but a single performance.

[Guy Berger]

I just never warmed to Abercrombie's sound. Since he just dialed it up on his instrument, I blame him.

Can anyone name a great solo by him? Not a record date but a single performance.

"Backwoods Song", "Sorcery I", "May Dance" on Gateway

"Timeless" on Timeless

"Dorotea's Studio" on Charles Lloyd's Voice in the Night

Guy

Edited January 1, 2007 by Guy

[robinjessome]

Kenny Wheeler - Deer Wan

Kenny Wheeler - Music For Large and Small Ensembles

Carla Bley - Very Big Band

Carla Bley - Big Band Theory

Lester Bowie - Avant Pop

Ralph Towner - Old and New Friends

Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra

...

to mention a few

[mikeweil]

Bennie Maupin - The Jewel In The Lotus

Stanley Cowell - Illusion Suite

Julian Priester - Polarization

Keith Jarrett & Jack deJohnette - Ruta & Daitya

Marion Brown - Afternoon of a Georgia Faun

most of them from the early years - I dislike the sound Eicher prefers.

[mjzee]

On 12/19/2006 at 4:43 PM, Brownian Motion said:

I like "Dawn Dance" by Steve Eliovson. Anyone have any information on this South African guitarist, who seems to have cut this one record, and then disappeared off the face of the Earth?

[danasgoodstuff]

My take on ECM is not quite as negative as Chewy's, so here goes:

 

AEOC - Nice Guys, and the others too

Lester Bowie - the 1st Brass Fantasy, at least

Dave Holland - Conf. of da Birds, Triplicate, Extensions, then he got boring

Chic Corea - Crystal Silence, typical ECM sonics actually fit this music

Scofield/Goldings/DeJohnette - Tony Wm. Lifetime trib whose name I can't spell or pronounce

Enrico Rava - On the Dance Floor, MJ tribute, big band live

Marion Brown - Afternoon of a Georgia Fawn

Pat Metheney - 80/81

Abercrombie - Timeless, Gateway

Jarrett - Deer Wan Inn

Motian - trio stuff with Lovano & Frisell, can't remember which I like best

[JSngry]

Hyperion With Higgins is a really good record.

[felser]

Quickly done, may have missed a few, but gives a sampling of my tastes:

Mal Waldron - Free at Last

Chick Corea - Crystal Silence, Piano Improvisations Vols. 1 and 2 

Jan Garbarek - Witchai Tai To

Stanley Cowell - Illusion Suite

Julain Priester - Love, Love

Ralph Towner - Solstice

Enrico Rava - The Pilgrim and the Stars

Keith Jarrett - Belonging

 

[mjazzg]

With over 300 ECM titles I'm hard pressed to whittle them down but I'd take these three to a desert island definitely

Paul Bley - Ballads

Charles Lloyd - Canto

Edward Vesala - Lumi

[danasgoodstuff]

On 12/22/2006 at 4:26 PM, Chuck Nessa said:

I just never warmed to Abercrombie's sound. Since he just dialed it up on his instrument, I blame him.

 

Can anyone name a great solo by him? Not a record date but a single performance.

Voodoo Child from the Lonnie Smith Hendrix tribute Abercrombie plays on

[HutchFan]

Ten that I treasure:

Abercrombie, Holland, DeJohnette - Gateway
John Abercrombie Quartet - M
Richie Beirach - Elm
Gary Burton, Chick Corea - Crystal Silence
Chick Corea - Return to Forever
Jack DeJohnette - Special Edition
Dave Holland - Conference of the Birds
Steve Kuhn - Remembering Tomorrow 
David Liebman - Lookout Farm
Bennie Maupin - The Jewel in the Lotus

[CJ Shearn]

I also think Chewy's view is a bit closed minded. My list

Pat Metheny: everything he recorded for ECM

Keith Jarrett: Sun Bear Concerts

Keith Jarrett: Arbour Zena

Bill Frisell/Thomas Morgan: Small Town

Jan Garbarek: Afric Pepperbird

Art Ensemble of Chicago: Urban Bushmen

John Abercrombie: Arcade

John Abercrombie/Marc Johnson/Peter Erskine

Keith Jarrett: Still Live

Keith Jarrett: At the Blue Note: The Complete Recordings

Jack DeJohnette: Special Edition

Jack DeJohnette: Oneness

Marcin Wasilewski Trio: Live

Anders Jormin/Lena Willemark/Karin Nakagawa: Trees of Light

John Scofield/Bill Stewart/Steve Swallow: Swallow Tales

Arild Andersen/Paolo Vinaccia/Tommy Smith: In House Science

Masabumi Kikuchi: Black Orpheus

Nana Vasconcelos: Saudades

Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music

Trio Beyond: Saudades

Terje Rypdal and the Chasers: Blue

Kit Downes: Obsidian

Eberhard Weber: The Following Morning

Rainer Bruninghaus: Freigeweht

Kenny Wheeler: Double, Double You

David Torn: Cloud About Mercury

David Torn: only sky

Wolfgang Muthspiel: Angular Blues

Steve Reich: Music For 18 Musicians

Nils Petter Molvaer: Khmer

Avishai  Cohen Big Vicious

 

 

Edited August 3, 2020 by CJ Shearn

[felser]

18 hours ago, felser said:

Quickly done, may have missed a few, but gives a sampling of my tastes:

Mal Waldron - Free at Last

Chick Corea - Crystal Silence, Piano Improvisations Vols. 1 and 2 

Jan Garbarek - Witchai Tai To

Stanley Cowell - Illusion Suite

Julain Priester - Love, Love

Ralph Towner - Solstice

Enrico Rava - The Pilgrim and the Stars

Keith Jarrett - Belonging

 

Also need to add the Liebman - Lookout Farm; Abercrombie - Timeless, and the two DeJohnette - New Directions albums.

32 minutes ago, CJ Shearn said:

I also think Chewy's view is a bit closed minded. My list

Pat Metheny: everything he recorded for ECM

Keith Jarrett: Sun Bear Concerts

Keith Jarrett: Arbour Zena

Bill Frisell/Thomas Morgan: Small Town

Jan Garbarek: Afric Pepperbird

Art Ensemble of Chicago: Urban Bushmen

John Abercrombie: Arcade

John Abercrombie/Marc Johnson/Peter Erskine

Keith Jarrett: Still Live

Keith Jarrett: At the Blue Note: The Complete Recordings

Jack DeJohnette: Special Edition

Jack DeJohnette: Oneness

Marcin Wasilewski Trio: Live

Anders Jormin/Lena Willemark/Karin Nakagawa: Trees of Light

John Scofield/Bill Stewart/Steve Swallow: Swallow Tales

Arild Andersen/Paolo Vinaccia/Tommy Smith: In House Science

Masabumi Kikuchi: Black Orpheus

Nana Vasconcelos: Saudades

Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music

Trio Beyond: Saudades

Terje Rypdal and the Chasers: Blue

Kit Downes: Obsidian

Eberhard Weber: The Following Morning

Rainer Bruninghaus: Freigeweht

Kenny Wheeler: Double, Double You

David Torn: Cloud About Mercury

David Torn: only sky

Wolfgang Muthspiel: Angular Blues

Steve Reich: Music For 18 Musicians

Nils Petter Molvaer: Khmer

Avishai  Cohen Big Vicious

 

 

That's a big 3, 5, or 10! 

[sidewinder]

Both of the Julian Priesters, Kenny Wheeler’s ‘Music For Large and Small Ensembles’, ‘Deer Wan’, Widow in the Window’, the Azimuths, Jarrett’s ‘At the Deer Head Inn’ and Dave Holland’s ‘Extensions’.

Edited August 3, 2020 by sidewinder

[Guy Berger]

A new list, 13.5 years later

 

Still on the list:

Charles Lloyd, Canto

Paul Motian, I Have the Room Above Her

Jack DeJohnette, Special Edition

Abercrombie/Holland/DeJohnette, Gateway

Dave Holland, Conference of the Birds

 

New to the list:

Bennie Maupin, The Jewel in the Lotus

Billy Hart, One is the Other

Art Ensemble of Chicago, Nice Guys (the entire late 70s AEoC trilogy is great)

Eberhard Weber, Silent Feet

Edward Vesala, Lumi (love this guy's work)

 

I've lost a lot of interest in the Jarrett trio stuff over time, it's kinda bland, despite great respect for the musicians involved.

 

On 12/21/2006 at 11:08 AM, Guy Berger said:

I don't have a comprehensive ECM collection but these are my favorites:

 

Charles Lloyd, Canto

Charles Lloyd, Voice in the Night

Paul Motian, Tribute

Paul Motian, I Have the Room Above Her

Jack DeJohnette, Special Edition

Keith Jarrett, The Cure (but the best Keith is on Impulse!)

Keith Jarrett, Blue Note box disc 3

Abercrombie/Holland/DeJohnette, Gateway

Dave Holland, Conference of the Birds

Chick Corea, Return to Forever

[Д.Д.]

Well, I don't like ECM. The few ECMs I enjoy are the earlier ones and / or are NOT produced by Eicher. Some of my favorite ECMs were actually not even on ECM originally, but on JAPO. But here is one ECM release that I really like:

Hal Russell - "Hal's Bells" (1992, produced by Steve Lake)

[Mark13]

julian Priester - Love, Love

John Abercrombie - Animato

Pat Metheny - Bright Size Life

Bobo Stenson Trio - Serenity

Kenny Wheeler - The Widow in the Window

Kenny Wheeler - Gnu High

Haden/Garbarek/Gismonti - Magico

Bennie Maupin - The Jewel in the Lotus

Ralph Towner - Solstice

Abercrombie/Johnson/Erskine

 

Edited August 3, 2020 by Mark13

[David Ayers]

What would happen if we rephrased the question: How many of your ten favorite albums are on ECM?

 

 

I say that because even ones I gave playtime to back in the back in the day are too boring (to me) for me to play through any more (except for EP and RM, obvs). 

Edited August 4, 2020 by David Ayers

[Pim]

I do like some of the ECM stuff, also some of the crossovers with European folk music, Arab or other eastern Folk music and neo classical stuff. That kind of music has never been popular on this board. Jazz does not always have to bop for me and being more slow or detailed does not have to make it boring. There’s a lot of creative stuff on this label. Funny to see most posters still go for the American artists that are more in the American (free)jazz tradition. 

If I had to take nine;

Mal Waldron - Free at Last

Keith Jarrett - Survivors Suite (one of the few Jarrrett albums I actually like)

Eleni Karaindrou - The Weeping Meadow (beautiful melancholic Greek score music)

Anour Brahem - Conte De L incroyable Amour

Anouar Brahem - Voyage de Sahar

Tomasz Stanko - Litania (I like most of his work on ECM but this one is the best)

Tord Gustavsen - What Was Said ( with the beautiful voice of Simin Tander) 

Elina Duni - Matane Malit (singer of Albanian descent)

Charlie Haden - Ballad of the Fallen 

 

[David Ayers]

Also, I’ve often felt that for a long time digital did not treat ECM kindly. 

[Д.Д.]

41 minutes ago, David Ayers said:

Also, I’ve often felt that for a long time digital did not treat ECM kindly. 

How do you mean, sound-wise?  

[David Ayers]

9 minutes ago, Д.Д. said:

How do you mean, sound-wise?  

Yes I find some surprisingly muddy - not muddy muddy but not really clear. Examples are John Surman, Adventure Playground and Charles Lloyd, All My Relations. This isn’t a systematic observation as I’m barely a dabbler in ECM.