Paul Motian

[Hardbopjazz]

This weekend I caught Paul Motian at the Village Vanguard. I must say I have listened to him, but never saw Motian live. I enjoyed him live more than on record. Any fans of Paul Motian? I'm looking for a suggestion on what would be a good CD to pick up by him.

Edited March 15, 2011 by Hardbopjazz

[Uncle Skid]

I really like this one (Charlie Haden/Paul Motian/Geri Allen - Etudes):

Their version of Ornette's "Lonely Woman" is, (to use an over-used but quite appropriate description), "hauntingly beautiful".

Edited March 15, 2011 by Uncle Skid

[jlhoots]

Hard to pick just one.

I guess you could try one of the "Broadway" CDs on Winter & Winter.

[David Ayers]

I don't know where you'd begin with his sessions as leader since those as 'sideman' are really more important, but his recent ECM, Lost in a Dream, has been very well received, though perhaps for Chris Potter's contribution rather than for the drumming as such. Still, it's a nice album.

Who did he appear with at the gig?

(oh no, I'm doing a 'Jim')

Edited March 15, 2011 by David Ayers

[Guy Berger]

I recently saw him play at the Vanguard with Bill McHenry, another saxophone player with a Hispanic name, a bassist with a Scandinavian name, and pianist Russ Lossing. It was a good gig if not as good as his "regular" groups.

I'd recommend the Winter & Winter album "Sound of Love" (recorded at the mid 90s) as a starter - it's a good cross-section of his work. Out of what I've heard, I think the trio with Lovano and Frisell was his best group.

Guy

[JETman]

Above all else, I wholeheartedly recommend his first 5 albums (all on ECM):

Conception Vessel

Tribute

Dance

Le Voyage

Psalm

[Guy Berger]

Conception Vessel is very good, Tribute is great; I thought Dance was a disappointment. I'm not crazy about Psalm - this group had an overly "mushy" sound initially though it tightened up quite a bit by the time they recorded Misterioso on Soul Note.

[JETman]

Conception Vessel is very good, Tribute is great; I thought Dance was a disappointment. I'm not crazy about Psalm - this group had an overly "mushy" sound initially though it tightened up quite a bit by the time they recorded Misterioso on Soul Note.

Agree about the quintet tightening up on the Soul Notes, but Motian's early ECM's are well worth owning IMHO. I like them far better than his excursions with Lovano and Frisell. Those are just a little too "ambient" for my tastes. But I've never seen them live, where my impressions could very well change.

[JSngry]

Another rec for the early ECMs here.

[mjazzg]

I'm also very fond of those early ECM, especially the trios.

For more recent releases, I've been enjoying the Trio 2000 +, Village Vanguard series on Winter and Winter (with Greg Osby, Matt Maneri) a fair bit more than the most recent ECMs. As for the Lovano/Frissell band, then it's 'Sound of Love' for me.

[Dmitry]

I recently saw him play at the Vanguard with Bill McHenry, another saxophone player with a Hispanic name, a bassist with a Scandinavian name, and pianist Russ Lossing. It was a good gig if not as good as his "regular" groups.

I saw him w/McHenry at the same venue some years ago, and don't remember anything about the music. In other words, it just slipped by. Saw him w/Lovano & Frisell there as well. Good gig.

Motian's tribute to Bill Evans is beautiful, and I recommend it.

Also, the Gordon Grdina-Gary Peacock-Paul Motian album 'Think like the Waves' has become one of my recent minor favorites.

[.:.impossible]

I have, and can strongly recommend Conception Vessel and Tribute.

[NIS]

Tribute

[David Ayers]

Just my $0.02, but I never liked any of the early ECMs. I also don't care to listen to Bill Frisell, but that's my preference. So I'd be cautious on any of those.

[JETman]

Bottom line: If you want a guarantee of great music with Motian, buy any of the Keith Jarrett American Quartet albums on ECM and Impulse. Added bonus: Dewey Redman!

[zuma]

I highly recommends his electric bebop band's album on Winter and Winter. Especially good ones are "Monk and Powell" and "Flight of Blue Jay". On both album, there are two guitars (Kurt Rosenwinkel, Brad Shepik/Steve Cardenas) and two sax (Chris Potter, Chris Speed) and one electronic bass (Steve swallow).

[JETman]

I highly recommends his electric bebop band's album on Winter and Winter. Especially good ones are "Monk and Powell" and "Flight of Blue Jay". On both album, there are two guitars (Kurt Rosenwinkel, Brad Shepik/Steve Cardenas) and two sax (Chris Potter, Chris Speed) and one electronic bass (Steve swallow).

These are interesting albums to my ears as well. Unfortunately, prevailing tastes here can sometimes come down to No Mobley = No Way!

Edited March 19, 2011 by JETman

[.:.impossible]

Did Motian play with Mobley? Perhaps this is a 6 degrees of Hank thing.

[JETman]

Did Motian play with Mobley? Perhaps this is a 6 degrees of Hank thing.

Let me know if you didn't get the gist of what I was saying.

[zuma]

Did Motian play with Mobley? Perhaps this is a 6 degrees of Hank thing.

Let me know if you didn't get the gist of what I was saying.

I did not get it. Any relationship between Motian and Mobley?

[Hardbopjazz]

There's a lot of to listen to from I gather from this thread.

Thanks.

[mjzee]

Paul Motian operated at the heart of NYC jazz for more than 50 years. After working in a series of celebrated groups—including Bill Evans’s late-’50s and early-’60s trio and Keith Jarrett’s American Quartet of the early to mid-’70s—the drummer launched a lengthy series of bandleading ventures. These disparate ensembles showcased Motian’s subtly enchanting compositions and nurtured a remarkable assortment of future stars. In advance of a March 22 concert honoring Motian, who passed away at age 80 in 2011, TONY spoke with many of the musicians scheduled to appear.

More here:

Time Out New York

[Guy Berger]

Thanks for posting that, mjzee. I wish I had caught that concert. Interesting to read Hart and Cyrille's commentary in particular

[fasstrack]

Beautiful tributes in Time Out NY. Thanks MJZee for posting the link.

[colinmce]

The new ECM box set is up for pre-order at Amazon. The outer box is essentially the Conception Vessel cover, but the individual CDs are still in plain slipcases.