*** Clifford Jordan ***

[Pim]

35 minutes ago, JSngry said:

Have you heard Max Roach's Speak Brother, Speak?

Oh yes he’s on fire on that one. Killer band.

[felser]

3 hours ago, JSngry said:

Have you heard Max Roach's Speak Brother, Speak?

Got that one at a Sam Goody sale back in the 70's, amazing record, quite overlooked in the big picture.

[JSngry]

Overlooked...but never forgotten once heard!

[Gheorghe]

On 8/22/2024 at 6:11 PM, JSngry said:

Have you heard Max Roach's Speak Brother, Speak?

of course, I have it. How could I forget that, so: Right Now and Speak Brother Speak are around my very favourit records anyway.....

[Mark13]

On 8/20/2024 at 1:36 PM, Rooster_Ties said:

I got a copy from The Bastards several weeks ago, and it’s a real winner.

The CD has a whole separate session, which is also wonderful (even “…Ipanema“, easily the best version of the tune I’ve ever heard).

https://www.discogs.com/release/30623134-Clifford-Jordan-Beyond-Paradiso-1969-1970

The first session (which is all that’s on the LP version) contains 3/4ths of the tunes found on In The World — in versions stripped down for a simple quartet.

As fine a document of Clifford Jordan around that time as you could ever hope for.

Bought this when it came out and was a bit suprised that it didn't cause the buzz that the 'Hank Mobley in Holland' did a couple of years ago. It's indispensable Clifford Jordan.

Not too sure about the version of 'Ipanema' though. Nothing wrong with Jordan's playing but I'm not too impressed by Martin van Duynhoven's drumming on that one.

Edited August 25 by Mark13

[Dan Gould]

1 hour ago, Mark13 said:

Bought this when it came out and was a bit suprised that it didn't cause the buzz that the 'Hank Mobley in Holland' did a couple of years ago. It's indispensable Clifford Jordan.

 

Jordan was recorded regularly thru out his career which lasted many, many years beyond.

Mobley went to Europe and existed in the jazz public eye just barely beyond that period of time.

I think that explains the different reactions. Regardless we're very fortunate for all of the Dutch archival releases.

[mikeweil]

Any comments on this release: 

It caught my attention at the time it was issued, but I never got around to listen to or buy it. 

[mhatta]

10 minutes ago, mikeweil said:

Any comments on this release: 

It caught my attention at the time it was issued, but I never got around to listen to or buy it. 

Both Spotify and Apple Music have this album.

For my taste, it's not bad, but Cliff Jordan's playing is OK but not that exciting. Also, I think Klauss Weiss is doing his best, but his sense of rhythm is not quite right for me (I also felt it with his MPS recording with Hampton Hawes. The ticking of the beat seems somewhat uneven? I'm not a drummer, I don't know)

Speaking of Clifford Jordan, I'm curious about the two versions of his late work Live At Ethell's: one (old?) version that starts with a tune named Cal Massey and another version that drops it and starts with the second tune, Summer Serenade. It is common practice to add bonus tracks, but it is rare to remove songs from already published CDs.  I wonder if Jordan didn't like it and removed it later.

With "Cal Massey": https://www.discogs.com/ja/master/903733-Clifford-Jordan-Quartet-Live-At-Ethells

Not: https://www.discogs.com/ja/release/7405769-Clifford-Jordan-Quartet-Live-At-Ethells

[Peter Friedman]

On 8/26/2024 at 3:39 AM, mikeweil said:

Any comments on this release: 

It caught my attention at the time it was issued, but I never got around to listen to or buy it. 

I have had this album for a long time and always enjoyed it.

[Gheorghe]

On 8/22/2024 at 6:07 PM, Peter Friedman said:

One of my very favorite Clifford Jordan albums. What a fabulous quintet -

Clifford Jordan, Art Farmer, Sonny Clark, George Tucker, Louis Hayes

The tunes are all winners too.

Oh yeah, I have not listened it for a long time, since I had focussed on other things than all the BN records of so called Hard Bop of the fifties, but this one really stands out. If I am right, it has a wonderful "Sophisticated Lady" and some first hand bop on "Anthropology". Clifford Jordan was a supa be-bopper and makes a lot of quotes of bop standards in his solos, like "Cheryl" in "St. Thomas" from "On Stage Vol. III" or "Hot House" in the bridge of the rhythm changes opus "Parkeriana" by Mingus some 10 years earlier......
I like also very much the tenor tandem Jordan-Gilmore on "Blowing Sessions". 
There is also a rare BN with a larger ensemble, I think it has also an alto player, a trombone maybe Fuller, and sure Lee Morgan, but I think I have it somewhere in a box of those cardboard size mini LPs or CDs from Japonia, but don´t know where right now, they are sealed and got one listening each I think....... an exception may be "One Step Beyond" by McLean..... which reaches a bit more my listening habits......
I don´t know much about Cliff´s BN years, but he was on the second to first jazz LP I had (the 3 LP set "The Great Concert of Charles Mingus", and on "Speak Brother Speak".

I think, one of the tunes of that supa obscure BN album with large ensemble is titled "Not Guilty" and "St. John". I don´t remember them, but strange enough I remember the names of those two otherwise unknown tunes....it´s strange how memory has holes and some fix points you remember....

[mhatta]

I had not paid much attention to the Clifford Jordan Big Band that Jordan led in his final years, but when I heard it recently, it was quite good. Jordan's ability to compose/arrange music is well represented.

In the year of this recording, he led his big band to Japan, but Jordan was already very ill and could not conduct or play tenor saxophone (Dizzy Reece conducted in his place).