European Impulse! 2-on-1 CD reissues

[ep1str0phy]

This reissue series is a sleeper miracle. I had more or less resigned myself to never getting a decent CD copy of Sweet Earth Flying, but here it is--in 2011, after the tip over toward the obliteration of the CD industry. I was actually inspired to write an extended blog post on Sweet Earth, so I won't reiterate those thoughts here--but damn it feels good to come back from the local brick and mortar cradling a new copy of World Galaxy, etc.

Some technical comments, but with as much value as these twofers pack, I (as a collector/musician/obsessive) would prefer paying double the price for two late 90's Impulse digipacks (complete with the virtually unnecessary third panel--"The New Wave of Jazz is On Impulse!"--legible liner notes, and bonus tracks). I've spent a lot of time dissecting the concept and formal construction behind stuff like Sweet Earth lately, and yes, bonus tracks would cheapen the profundity and eloquence of the original album construction somewhat, but I've finally grown accustomed enough to listening to music in this mixed, digested digital form that if the music hits hard enough, it doesn't really matter if it wasn't on the original LP (especially if it was a space considerations thing). The Marion Brown discography mentions that "Sweet Earth Flying Pt. 2" remains unreleased, which could be (or could not be) a royal bummer, since the original album is probably my favorite non-Coltrane Coltrane-idiomatic music ever.

[sidewinder]

Make sure you go to Fopp, 1 Earlham Street WC2H 9LL, they are run by HMV and carry very cheap stock (e.g. Blue Notes £3) which reflect offers on HMV website, so they may have the Impulses... Not far from Rays Jazz so kill two birds etc.

Popped into one of the Fopps in London yesterday - they didn't have the Impulses. HMV Oxford St has them at £7 each or 2 for £10. Didn't pounce (bought the new Tubby Hayes Savage Solweig instead).

£8 in Ray's.

Edited November 1, 2011 by sidewinder

[David Ayers]

Make sure you go to Fopp, 1 Earlham Street WC2H 9LL, they are run by HMV and carry very cheap stock (e.g. Blue Notes £3) which reflect offers on HMV website, so they may have the Impulses... Not far from Rays Jazz so kill two birds etc.

Popped into one of the Fopps in London yesterday - they didn't have the Impulses. HMV Oxford St has them at £7 each or 2 for £10. Didn't pounce (bought the new Tubby Hayes Savage Solweig instead).

£8 in Ray's.

Thanks. Saved me a trip!

[David Ayers]

All 30 titles:

1. Albert Ayler - Love Cry / The Last Album

2. Art Blakey - Jazz Messengers!!!!! / A Jazz Message

3. Marion Brown - Geechee Recollections / Sweet Earth Flying

4. Mel Brown - The Wizard / Blues For We

5. Alice Coltrane - Hungtington Ashram Monastery / World Galaxy

6. Alice Coltrane - Universal Consciousness / Lord of Lords

7. Sonny Criss - The Joy Of Sax / Warm And Sonny

8. Duke Ellington - Meets Coleman Hawkins / And John Coltrane

9. Curtis Fuller - Soul Trombone / Cabin in the Sky

10. Chico Hamilton - El Chico / Further Adventures Of El Chico

11. John Handy - Hard Work / Carnival

12. Coleman Hawkins - Today and Now / Desafinado

13. Freddie Hubbard - The Artistry Of / The Body And The Soul

14. Milt Jackson - Statements / Jazz 'n' Samba

15. Ahmad Jamal - Poinciana Revisited / Freeflight

16. Keith Jarrett - Mysteries / Shades

17. Elvin Jones - Illumination! / Dear John C.

18. Charles Mingus - The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady/Mingus Mingus Mingus

19. Blue Mitchell - African Violet / Summer Soft

20. Oliver Nelson - Happenings / Soulful Brass

21. Howard Roberts - Antelope Freeway / Equinox Express Elevator

22. Sonny Rollins - On Impulse! / There Will Never Be Another You

23. Pharoah Sanders - Village of the Pharoahs / Wisdom Through Music

24. Archie Shepp - For Losers / Kwanza

25. Shirley Scott - For Members Only / Great Scott!!

26. Sonny Stitt - Now! / Salt & Pepper

27. Gabor Szabo - The Sorcerer / More Sorcery

28. Clark Terry - The Happy Horns Of / It's What's Happenin'

29. McCoy Tyner - Inception / Reaching Fourth

30. Michael White - Spirit Dance / Pneuma

Edited November 1, 2011 by David Ayers

[cliffpeterson]

you are missing the Howard Roberts

[David Ayers]

you are missing the Howard Roberts

corrected - thanks

[JETman]

Buyer beware: Listening to the Blue Mitchell 2 cd set now. It is total crap.

[David Ayers]

Buyer beware: Listening to the Blue Mitchell 2 cd set now. It is total crap.

Hey I like that one! But yeah you have to have a soft spot for commercial funk.

[JETman]

Buyer beware: Listening to the Blue Mitchell 2 cd set now. It is total crap.

Hey I like that one! But yeah you have to have a soft spot for commercial funk.

The second album is actually better than the first. A lot of it sounds like theme music from "The Love Boat", an American TV series from the 70s.

[jazzbo]

Upcoming

Whatever it is

http://www.amazon.com/Impulse-Box-Set-Various-Artists/dp/B005ORVN1O/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt

Edited November 3, 2011 by jazzbo

[felser]

This shows the cuts if anyone has the patience to figure out the albums involved. The John Klemmer Waterfalls jumped out at me.

Impulse 50 with tracks

[sidewinder]

Buyer beware: Listening to the Blue Mitchell 2 cd set now. It is total crap.

Hey I like that one! But yeah you have to have a soft spot for commercial funk.

The second album is actually better than the first. A lot of it sounds like theme music from "The Love Boat", an American TV series from the 70s.

Thanks - I'll avoid that one then.

[David Ayers]

Buyer beware: Listening to the Blue Mitchell 2 cd set now. It is total crap.

Hey I like that one! But yeah you have to have a soft spot for commercial funk.

The second album is actually better than the first. A lot of it sounds like theme music from "The Love Boat", an American TV series from the 70s.

Thanks - I'll avoid that one then.

Or: listen to it on Spotify.

[David Ayers]

Instore at UK HMV these are going at 2 for £10.

When was the last time such refreshing reissues appeared as an instore item from a major?

Oh and Miles 65-68 box for £12 instore. They are practically giving it away...

[DMP]

Listening to the Sonny Criss right now. It makes those Grover Washington and Hank Crawford "Kudu" extravaganzas seem like "A Love Supreme." The Blue Mitchell is slightly better - Mitchell plays very well, there are actually a couple strong tenor spots - but the the whole thing sounds like the best "Rise"-period album Herb Alpert never made.

[Big Al]

Listening to Howard Roberts Antelope Freeway/Equinox Express Elevator on Rhapsody right now. Stumbled upon it while looking for Good Pickins. I may not listen to GP now.... this stuff is incredibly, freakishly, surprisingly, mesmerisingly, hypnotically, wonderfully FAR OUT!!! Wave that freak flag high! HIGH! WOW!!!

MUST find this CD! PRONTO!

Edited January 31, 2012 by Big Al

[AlexisSchick_16594]

Sonny Criss is total crap too jazz sax mixed with 70s pop.

[yul]

Where did they forget all the excellent Yusef Lateef albums??

[jazzbo]

I hear you. Would have been a great opportunity to put out two or three Lateef two-fers! I guess we could hope that there will be more releases and Gentle Joseph may have one or two in a future batch.

[JETman]

I hear you. Would have been a great opportunity to put out two or three Lateef two-fers! I guess we could hope that there will be more releases and Gentle Joseph may have one or two in a future batch.

Gentle Joseph? I thought his real name was Bill Evans.

[jazzbo]

His real name is I think what he chooses to be called. Gentle Joseph is just a translation of Lateef Yusef. I call him that to myself a lot. A friend of mine calls him "Teefski."

[king ubu]

Teefski! Sure! I've heard three of his not-yet-on-CD Impulse albums ("1984", "Around the World" and "A Flat, G Flat and C") - would love to see any of those in the new series! The Pep's material is among his very best and has been taken care of on two fine CDs, the okay "The Golden Flute" and the mighty fine "Psychicemotus" (who can remember and correctly spell that title? I sure can, any day, early morning or late night!) have been part of the LPR/Originals series. Somehow I have a hunch these new series would take three (at least) discs to release the three "missing" albums though, they seem to be experts in re-re-re-re-reissuing one album and pair it with (more or less) a rarity.

[Face of the Bass]

Sonny Criss is total crap too jazz sax mixed with 70s pop.

The second half of the Curtis Fuller is pretty bad too.

To be honest I'm glad they are reissuing this music but I hate the way they are doing it.

[jazzbo]

You're right about that, I expect they would do three of them. By the way 1984 has been out on cd in Japan. Recently Japan put out a cd of the lp that released more from Pep's (an SHMCD I think). I think all of this has been on cd here in the States though.

[king ubu]

You're right about that, I expect they would do three of them. By the way 1984 has been out on cd in Japan. Recently Japan put out a cd of the lp that released more from Pep's (an SHMCD I think). I think all of this has been on cd here in the States though.

Have missed the Japanese reissue of "1984"!

The "Pep's"... wasn't it originally just one LP and then later on a 2LP set with more? A few cuts of that were added to the GRP disc of "Live at Pep's" and the remainder then reissued as a digipack in the Master Series as Vol. 2? Never quite had a closer look - but the music is among Lateef's finest, and it's always a pleasure to hear Richard Williams play!