A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 There's an excellent new biography of Joe Harriott - 'Fire in his Soul' by Alan Robertson - that came out in the UK last year that some of you might find interesting. Take a look here: http://www.jazzscript.co.uk/books/harriottrobertson.htm A very moving story of a Caribbean musician in the UK from the 50s onwards taking him to the triumphs his great early 60s quintet and then the Indo-Jazz Fusion group; and then on to a very sad end. It had me playing "Free Form" and "Abstract" throughout January - quite magical discs. "Abstract" seems to be still in the shops but I havn't seen "Free Form" for a while. Pounce on both if you see them. I also bought Ken Vandermark's recording of Harriott tunes, "Straight Lines". Very enjoyable if very different in feel. There's also a short account of some of the major West Indian jazz musicians in the UK in the Sixties on the same site: http://www.jazzscript.co.uk/extra/art.yelbird.htm West Indian musicians and the South African exiles (the Blue Notes) had a huge impact on UK jazz in the 60s and helped shape the varied scene that exists today. There's also a nice book about Coleridge Goode, the bass player in the Harriott quintet called 'Bass Lines'. Basically a transcription of a series of interviews it gives an insight into the life of a jobbing jazz musician in the period from the 30s through to the present - not just the high profile moments but the weekly hotel gigs too! http://www.jazzscript.co.uk/books/goodecotterrell.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Thanks for your interesting post, Bev. "Free Forms" is definitively desert island stuff for me! A fantastic album. Got to get "Abstract" soon. How do you rate Harriott's indo-jazz fusions? I got that Redial CD combining two albums (with Kenny Wheeler aboard on half of it) - does not really work, in my opinion, yet I somehow have a soft spot for it. I think he made another indo-jazz album (reissued on Koch, if I remember right, and probably OOP now) - how does that compare? ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 (edited) I don't care greatly for the Indo-Jazz Fusions myself. They seem to have an almost metronomic beat which gives the overall sound an inflexible feel. But in the context of their time they were certainly innovative. Groups like Shakti have done this with much greater subtlety subsequently. But I'd imagine McLaughlin was well aware of the Harriott-Mayer group. Possibly a source, though with all things eastern being in the air in the 60s it's hard to be sure. The Koch still exists. Very similar to the Redial. I would urge you to chase down "Abstract". There is a legendary piece on there called 'Modal' that was one of those accidents in the studio. The musicians started playing, someone said 'This sounds interesting, turn a tape on' and it just happened. Apart from the two very strong and distinctive horns (Harriott and Shake Keane) I think one of the things that makes these two discs so magical is the piano of Pat Smythe. Like Bill Evans on Kind of Blue he brings a semi-classical sensibility to the recording. There's a point during 'Modal' where he seems to move into Satie territory. I just think these two discs have a unique chemistry that makes them real treasures. And I'm not talking as a long time fan. I only bought them in the last few years and at first was little affected. But gradually they've sunk in to become two of my favourite discs. Edited February 17, 2004 by Bev Stapleton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Bev, I know "Free Form" for several years, and it really does grow! Interesting point about the semi-classical sensivities of Smythe! I noted this, too. And coupled with the two great and very individual horns, as well as the rhythm section including touches of the West Indies, too, and then the great drummer... this all makes up for an invigorating music! Will look for "Abstract" as soon as funds allow, thanks! ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 And just for those who have no idea about who Harriott is: he has often been compared to Ornette, and he indeed found to somewhat similar sounds (though far from Ornette's texan blues roots, I think), at the same time, and virtually untouched by Ornette and the US jazz developping freer stylings at the same time. Very interesting, actually, and a point in favor of the "in the air" thing. Must have really been "in the air" back in those days! ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 (edited) I was very suprised to read in my local evening paper recently that Joe Harriott is buried a few miles from where i was born & raised . I like the few snippets i've heard of his work, any recommendations? Edited February 17, 2004 by Gary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Nice to see this thread. . . I need to dig out the Harriott I DO have and look in to some more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 I was very suprised to read in my local evening paper recently that Joe Harriott is buried a few miles from where i was born & raised . I like the few snippets i've heard of his work, any recommendations? Gary, as I said, "Free Form" is desert island stuff. "Abstract" seems to be just as good. Ask Bev for more, as I don't have it yet. ubu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 (edited) 'Free Form' and 'Abstract' are the two discs that get most attention. They generated only limited interest in the UK (though 'Abstract' apparently became the first UK disc to get a 5 star Downbeat review) and he gradually returned to a more straight ahead approach. His recordings after Abstract are OOP but the consensus seems to be that they lack the fire of those two. He also appeared on several UK jazz recordings in the 60s - Michael Garrick's OOP records and the record by Amancio D'Silva. There's a great track from the latter on the 'Impressed' compilation. He was even on the 'Five Bridges Suite' by The Nice!!!! Anyone remember that one? He was involved in the jazz and poetry movement that was popular in the UK in the 60s - Garrick and Shake Keane were big enthusiasts of this. In the 50s he played a Parkerish bop style. There's a few recordings available of this - the recent Tony Kinsey 2CD from Vocalion has him in the latter's Quintet on the second disc 'Jazz at the Flamingo.' There's also a few 1954 tracks on the second Bop in Britain compilation. Michael Garrick has done a great deal to keep his memory alive. I think a relatively recent Harriott disc called 'Genius' is from Garrick's private tapes. I've not heard it. I'd advise starting with either 'Abstract' or 'Free Form'. On balance 'Abstract' first purely for the astonishing 'Modal.' Edited February 17, 2004 by Bev Stapleton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 (edited) I've got Free Form and some earlier things on two old Jazzland LPs that I culled out the cutout bins about 30-odd years ago (apparenty Riverside/Jazzland leased them for issue in the U.S.). Even now they sound fresh. I'm also taken how Harriot sounded on the earliest material, which is mainstream hard bop in nature. He doesn't really sound like anybody else, and has an "expressionistic" quality that reminds me, in spirit (but not style), of Ernie Henry. Can't say that I'm familiar with his work beyond that, but that's my bad. Definitely a player worthy of further exploration, I think. Edited February 17, 2004 by JSngry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 ThanksBev - I have just ordered Abstract from Amazon for £8.99 ( & 'Shades of Blue for a very reasonable £10.99). If memory serves me correctly Soweto Kinch & Gary Crosby showcased Joe Harriott's work for Radio 3 as part of the recent London Jazz festival (I think I have it on a mini disc ). I'm looking forward to the 2nd volume of Impressed , the first one was one of my favourite cds of last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJ Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Ah, another one to explore. Thanks for the recommendations, Bev, I've been wondering where to start and you've given me the place! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 You're quite right, Gary, though I missed that one. The Jazzscript site has noted for 2003: Friday 21st November Abstract - A Tribute to Joe Harriott, Purcell Room with Soweto Kinch, Byron Wallen, Andrew McCormack, Gary Crosby, Tom Skinner + special guests. The first half will feature a discussion with the author Alan Robertson of his new biography of Harriott, the second half, a star British quintet revisits Harriott's original music. Promoter: LJF with BBC Radio 3. 7.30 pm. Friday 21st November Soweto Kinch and Gary Crosby play in celebration of Joe Harriott Foyles, Charing Cross Road, London, 1.00-2.30 pm. Harriott is understandably a big hero to the marvellous generation of Afro-Caribbean musicians that have flowered in the UK in the last couple of decades. I've got the Kinsey recording (from 1957) playing at this moment. Beautiful stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmitry Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 I am also a big fan. However, as opposed to those who don't like his Indo-Jazz Fusions and Indo-Jazz Suite, I am very fond of those LPs. It's a nice minority to be in. Have the two Redial cds as well. The original LPs constantly fetch big bucks on Ebay. Re:the Southern Horizons LP. Haven't played that one in a while. I remember liking one side of it much better than the other. Was it ever released on cd? Coincidentally, I recently bought Vandermark's Harriott Project promo poster. I think I'll cut off the bottom part and frame the picture. I didn't care much for that tribute anyway, but the photo is nice and big. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Nice photo! I like the Indo-Jazz fusions too. Pulled the Redial out recently when I started getting into the Bill Laswell Indo-techno-jazz whatever fusions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mule Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Anybody know this album? I've never seen it before or even heard of it. There seems to be a limited edition cd for sale on EBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...5&category=1056 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mule Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 I also picked up this compilation three years ago when I was in London: Joe Harriott Genius -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joe Harriott / Michael Garrick Jazz Academy, 2000 CD £11.99 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joe Harriott Quintet with Joe Harriott (sax); Les Condon (tr); Pat Smythe (piano); Coleridge Goode (bass); Phil Seamen (drums). [1] Moanin' [2] Round About Midnight [3] Joe Explains Freeform : Coda [4] Tempo Joe Harriott with William Haig-Joyce (piano). ADDED to tracks 6 & 9: Coleridge Goode (bass) [5] Confirmation [6] Love For Sale [7] The Song Is You [8] How Deep Is The Ocean? [9] Body And Soul Michael Garrick Septet with Michael Garrick (piano); Joe Harriott (alto sax); Ian Carr (tr); Tony Coe, Don Rendell (tenor sax); Dave Green (bass); Trevor Tomkins (drums). [10] Shiva Michael Garrick Quintet with Michael Garrick (piano); Joe Harriott (alto sax); Shake Keane (tr); Johnny Taylor (bass); Alan (Buzz) Green (drums). [11] Calypso Sketches PLAYING TIME : 73:04 The sessions are dated 1961 and 1963. I'd not seen this cd before I ran across it at Mole's and I haven't seen it since. Does anyone else have this or know anything about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 'Genius' is the CD made from Garrick's private collection. It came out a while back, disappeared but is back available once more. Movement is the follow-up to Abstract. Both Goode and Robertson describe it as a mixture of the free form and more conventional - a step back in their eyes (or ears!). ********* The point is made in both books that Harriott was ten years ahead of his time. I could just imagine him playing in the heart of the early 70s young Turk scene with Osborne, Moholo, Skidmore, Feza, Tippett, Charig and all the rest. I could imagine him in the Brotherhood of Breath. Sadly by the late 60s, according to both books, a mixture of illness, disillusion, lack of appreciation and loss of direction seemed to have set in. He is portrayed as a very private man who did not connect easily, perhaps preventing him from getting involved in the flourishing scene that was brewing in London at the time. Although he lived a bit longer he makes me think of people like Dolphy and Booker Little - great talents who never got to reach their potential. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 I'm a Harriott fan and have the Vandermark tribute as well. Will have to read that bio--what was the sad end that he met? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medjuck Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 I saw Harriot with Shake Keene (sp?) and Phil Seeman at the Marquis Club in the summer of '64. the next week I went and there was a group I presumed were going to play jazz: The Yardbirds. Harriot impressed me more. But I was so much older then.... I'm with the consensus here: Liked Abstract, but not impressed with fusion record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Cancer. The bio tells of Harriott drifting around the coutry, occasionally playing with local bands, sleeping on the sofas of friends and sympathetic acquaintances. He was eventually admitted to hospital where he died. It just sounds a very lonely end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 The Yardbirds. Harriot impressed me more. But I was so much older then.... Come tomorrow/will I be older/come tomorrow/maybe a soldier I love what I've heard of Harriott, but I do envy your having seen the Yardbirds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted March 26, 2004 Report Share Posted March 26, 2004 I finally got my copy of Abstract , that version of Oleo -WOW! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Late Posted November 11, 2004 Report Share Posted November 11, 2004 This one, from 1967, has now made it Stateside: Looks to be more in the hardbop fold, but I'd bet it's interesting nonetheless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Hawkins Posted February 3, 2005 Report Share Posted February 3, 2005 Oh my. Oh my. Oh my. I have just heard Joe Harriott for the first time. I am VERY ashamed to say this, as a musician from the UK. I'm also ashamed to admit that the only way I got round to hearing him was after Braxton mentioned him in an interview he did for the BBC after his London gig, and, being in the grips of Braxton-philia, I thought I'd better check this guy out. But my goodness. In the space of the one track on Gilles Peterson 'Impressed: Vol. 1', I was sold. And on all the other musicians. Damn it if I'm now not going to go back to the start to try to understand the musical heritage of my own country! Garrick, Harriott, Tracey, Rendell/Carr... There's work to be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.