Sundog Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 I've been listening to a lot of Jim Hall recently. All of it quite by accident, since none of the dates have been under his name. I'm constantly amazed by the beauty of his solo lines, and the uniqueness of his accompaniment. The guy has that "Midas Touch". Sure would like to hear your opinions of his work as a leader and as a sideman, or anything else "JH-related". P.S. Just finished listening to Without A Song from Sonny Rollin's The Bridge. That song sums up everything about Jim Hall that I like, better than any words could ever say. Give it a spin if it's been awhile. Quote
Joe G Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 P.S. Just finished listening to Without A Song from Sonny Rollin's The Bridge. That song sums up everything about Jim Hall that I like, better than any words could ever say. Give it a spin if it's been awhile. Listening as I type this ... Loved that little unison line at the end of the bass solo ... Very good solo, in the pocket all the way. Some of my favorite Hall is on Power of Three, with Michel Petrucianni. Great lines, rock solid comping, and evidently, very focused listening! He's right there with everything his trio mates play. He's so good here, to me, that sometimes I get frustrated by his playing elsewhere. Grand Slam is a good example of that. I don't mind him using effects, but I'm looking for those sweet, sweet lines, and getting something else entirely. I think my own preconceptions are getting in the way in this case. Quote
Sundog Posted March 11, 2004 Author Report Posted March 11, 2004 It's always the little things that blow me away about a "Jim Hall" performance. A deceptive passing chord, one slightly dissonant note placed perfectly among the most beautiful phrase, the fact that each chorus he plays is more revealing than the last, or something like that unison lick you refer to. It all seems so effortless. Quote
stevebop Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 Jim Hall, a living Master indeed. From April 14-17 Harvard University will honor Jim Hall in a residency exploring his contributions to the music. There will be a discussion with Hall, free and open to the public. "The Muisic of Jim Hall" will be presented in a concert at Sanders Theatre on Saturday night at 8pm, April 17th. Bravo Harvard! Bravo Jim Hall! Steve Schwartz Jazz from Studio four Fridays, 7p-12a WGBH, 89.7, Boston www.wgbh.org Quote
BruceH Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 Wish I could be there. I'd begun to get the impression he was somewhat underappreciated these days...good to see someone else digs his work! Quote
Aggie87 Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 If you don't have this one, it needs to be on your short list! It's a fantastic live trio recording from 1976, and was released on CD for the first time last year (Verve mini-LP). I don't have all that many of his recordings as a leader, but this one is my favorite. And don't forget his fantastic CTI recording, Concierto, with Chet Baker & Paul Desmond! Quote
Gary Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 (edited) If you don't have this one, it needs to be on your short list! It's a fantastic live trio recording from 1976, and was released on CD for the first time last year (Verve mini-LP). I don't have all that many of his recordings as a leader, but this one is my favorite. And don't forget his fantastic CTI recording, Concierto, with Chet Baker & Paul Desmond! I agree 100% with Aggie that Live CD is FANTASTIC ! I haven't got a lot of Jim Hall's work but I really enjoy what I have. I thought the recent Bob Brookmeyer select came to life (for me) when the tracks with Jim Hall appeared.I have the Chico Hamilton mosaic which includes some lovely work by Jim also. Edited March 11, 2004 by Gary Quote
Guest ariceffron Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 what a crock. we had the crappiest ""jazz"" band, this band trio globo come play at our school. and harvard gets to have jim hall week. i guess thats what you get if you are harvard. harvard is the best college and jim hall is the best guitarist so it makes sense i guess. i got that lp you show above, LIVE, for 3 bucks 2 days ago and am playing it over and over. i am also listening to the Haden/Hall duo show from januaury at the blue note. its really nice. Quote
MartyJazz Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 P.S. Just finished listening to Without A Song from Sonny Rollin's The Bridge. That song sums up everything about Jim Hall that I like, better than any words could ever say. Give it a spin if it's been awhile. As is obvious by my avatar, Rollins is among my very favorites, especially his work from the '50s through the '60s. Love THE BRIDGE, especially the title tune and "John S." in which both Newk and Hall swing and interact terrifically. Got to see them at a reunion, can't remember whether it was Carnegie Hall or Lincoln Center back in '91 in which they reprised some of those tunes, including "Without a Song". I can highly recommend from the same period Hall's work with Paul Desmond in a quartet setting on one session made for Warner Brothers and quite a few for RCA Victor. I believe all of it was issued on a Mosaic box, while the Victor material only was issued by RCA. One cut that has always knocked me out is their version of "Alone Together" which was originally on the RCA TAKE TEN lp. Really cooks. Quote
Sundog Posted March 11, 2004 Author Report Posted March 11, 2004 Yeah the stuff with Desmond floors me! I just listened to Glad To Be Unhappy the other day. Quote
Joe G Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 Pulled this one off the shelf: Ordered if from BMG when it came out in '97, but didn't get into it then. Sounds damn good to me now. Some very unusual (and cool) compositions. Ensemble sounds great, recording is superb. Quote
JohnS Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 There's no argument from me, Hall is great. Let's not forget his stunning work with Paul Desmond. Beautifully understated and absolutely brilliant. He still sounds just as good today. Quote
stevebop Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 I forgot to mention that some of my most favorite Jim Hall is on The ArtFarmer/Jim Hall Quartet recordings on Atlantic with the recently departed drummer, Walter Perkins Quote
JSngry Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 Jim Hall is one of the listeningest jazzmusicians who has ever played, and that includes listening to himself. If the man's ever played a cheap note, I've yet to hear it. Quote
robviti Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 (edited) i've enjoyed hall's warm, acoustic tone and lyrical approach to soloing for many years now. that's why i'm rather disappointed that he's using special effects like a flanger during his live performances these days. anyway, i spoke to someone who knows don thompson, the bassist on the live! recording. he said don recorded a week's worth of the trio's engagement at toronto's bourbon street (this is confirmed in the reissue's liner notes). i hope that more of this music will become available some day. in the mean time, if you ever see a copy of this oop cd, pick it up, it's really nice: Edited March 11, 2004 by jazzshrink Quote
garthsj Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 (edited) ...... and let's not forget Jim Hall's contribution to the some of the greatest 34.41 minutes of jazz available on CD... GRAND ENCOUNTER - 2 Degrees East / 3 Degrees West , with John Lewis, Bill Perkins, Chico Hamlton, and Percy Heath. One of my all-time favorite desert island discs.. Garth. Edited March 11, 2004 by garthsj Quote
marcoliv Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 my favorite Hall album is Concierto released by CTI. recently, i got from a friend here in organissimo an A&M release "Commitment" and it´s really good. a nice surprise. the duos with Ron Carter are very good specially "Telephone" MCO Quote
Tom Storer Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 Another superb Jim Hall recording is "Live At Village West," a duo with Ron Carter. Carter is also superb, and the sound is beautiful. If you listen carefully you can hear Hall's occasional intakes of breath - he often takes a big breath at the start of phrases as if he were singing or playing a horn. The first time I saw Hall live was at a club called Boomer's on the Bowery in New York sometime in the mid-70's, playing with Cedar Walton's trio. Sam Jones was on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. The band was in the middle, the patrons seated around at little tables. I was behind Higgins, and for a teenage jazz fan just getting to know this kind of stuff, that evening was a revelation. That was around the time Jim Hall Live! came out, and I wore my vinyl copy to dust. Quote
catesta Posted March 11, 2004 Report Posted March 11, 2004 my favorite Hall album is Concierto released by CTI. This is a great one. Quote
king ubu Posted March 12, 2004 Report Posted March 12, 2004 ...... and let's not forget Jim Hall's contribution to the some of the greatest 34.41 minutes of jazz available on CD... GRAND ENCOUNTER - 2 Degrees East / 3 Degrees West , with John Lewis, Bill Perkins, Chico Hamlton, and Percy Heath. One of my all-time favorite desert island discs.. Garth. Hell I WISH this was available still! That track on the BFT disc is great! Another for "Concierto", love it! But also have to admit it's my single Hall leader disc so far. What I find pretty astonishing is all the bands he was with in the fifties and early sixties: Chico Hamilton Quintet, Jimmy Giuffre 3, later with Sonny Rollins, then he was part of maybe the coolest band Art Farmer ever had, and also played along Paul Desmond on his lovely RCA albums (that box is highly recommended!). And then there's his duo albums with Bill Evans... An outstanding musician! Here's a site listing Hall on CD: http://www.gould68.freeserve.co.uk/JimHall.html and before I forget: WE GOTTA HAVE THE "CHICO HAMILTON TRIO" ON A DECENT CD RELEASE SOON!!! (Is Hall only on an additional session? Or was this half of the date? The site above mentions Howard Roberts on the other titles (not-listed on the Hall-site, of course), and gives Vogue as the label? Or am I completely wrong and Hall has actually nothing to do with the Pacific Hamilton Trio LP? If so, forgive me, and let me change the above screaming to: WE GOTTA HAVE THE JIM HALL VOGUE DATES ON CD SOON!!! ubu Quote
brownie Posted March 12, 2004 Report Posted March 12, 2004 Two Jim Hall albums, both recorded in Japan in 1976 a few months after the Horizon Live album, and just as good are 'Jim Hall Live In Tokyo' and 'Jim Hall: Jazz Impressions of Japan'. They were made for the Paddle Wheel label with the same trio that shone on the Horizon disc: Don Thompson on bass and Terry Clarke on drums. That Jim Hall trio was really exceptionnal! Quote
Sundog Posted March 12, 2004 Author Report Posted March 12, 2004 What do people think about the Jim Hall & Pat Metheny disc? It's been awhile since I've listened to this, however, I seem remember liking it more than I thought I would. I'm going to have to take this one to work and give it a spin today. Quote
robviti Posted March 12, 2004 Report Posted March 12, 2004 In case you didn't know, you can get the Japanese import of 2 Degrees East -- 3 Degrees West (aka Grand Encounter) from Dusty Groove. Quote
JSngry Posted March 12, 2004 Report Posted March 12, 2004 Hall's on some of the Hamilton Trio album. I think the 10" was originally w/Roberts only, but the 12" added some (later) cuts w/Hall. It's been on CD in Japan (what HASN'T? ), and is indeed an outstanding album, one which would likely raise more than a few eyebrows were it more widely available. Quote
king ubu Posted March 12, 2004 Report Posted March 12, 2004 Hall's on some of the Hamilton Trio album. I think the 10" was originally w/Roberts only, but the 12" added some (later) cuts w/Hall. It's been on CD in Japan (what HASN'T? ), and is indeed an outstanding album, one which would likely raise more than a few eyebrows were it more widely available. Uh, we should all write Michael C emails about continuing the West Coast Classic series! The Hamilton Trio, the Great Encounters... there would be enough good stuff for three or four batches at least, I guess! Thanks for clearing, Jim! And jazzshrink - there's always the japanese way, but I do not go for it - it's beyond my league, financially... ubu Quote
_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.