More Favorites: Reflections on Jazz in the 1980s

[HutchFan]

1 hour ago, Rabshakeh said:

I'm always interested in Michel Petrucciani. He passed away in the late nineties and his star seems to have faded fast after that, so that it wasn't really visible by the point when I started listening to more recent jazz. I've never really clicked with any recording he is on, including e.g. the duets with Konitz, but he clearly made a big impact on those who were there at the time.

I admire Petrucciani's music very much.  But I also realize that each of us is approaching music from different points of view. 

Often, the thing that one listener values is precisely what turns another listener off.   I love that.

 

55 minutes ago, JSngry said:

...with some, that is...

By the 1980s, that's a given.  The balkanization of jazz had happened long before.  It's hard -- perhaps impossible -- to name any musician in the 1980s who was "universally" admired.

Duke died in 1974.  After that, who?  Probably no one.

 

[JSngry]

I just found him too florid. Some people went for that then, and some people still do.

By the same token, some did not, and still don't.

[HutchFan]

O.K.  Fair enough. 

 

[mjazzg]

I tend to agree about the floridness (is that a word?). I tried many times to get into his music but it never clicked. I do listen to him with Charles Lloyd but that's about it

[JSngry]

Floridation!

[mjazzg]

That's it!

[Steve Reynolds]

He is great on Joe Lovano’s “From the Soul”

with Dave Holland & Edward Blackwell

I would say that Holland & Blackwell were/are admired by all

 

 

[HutchFan]

My entries for last week on More Favorites:

- James Newton - Luella (Gramavision, 1984)
- José Roberto Bertrami - Blue Wave/Dreams Are Real (Milestone, 1999)
- Martial Solal - Bluesine (Soul Note, 1983)

No commentary for these posts yet.  Been too busy lately.

 

I will say this... If I were to make a short list of "80s Essentials," Luella would definitely be on it.

 

[Rabshakeh]

Luella is a brilliant record.

[Gheorghe]

On 12.4.2022 at 4:57 PM, JSngry said:

I just found him too florid. Some people went for that then, and some people still do.

By the same token, some did not, and still don't.

I had to take my old english dictionary to find out what "florid" means , and now I can say YES, that´s a good description. 
I saw him in 1983 with Charles Lloyd on festival schedule and have the LP with them from Electra Musician from exactly that period. And I can tell you what my impression was (about both Lloyd and Petrucciani); First listening "wow", but it remained my only album of that genre. Not really my music. And Petrucciani well he had a helluva technique but it seems to be a very very classical approach, it doesn´t really have that natural rhythm feeling I want to hear from a pianist. 

[Rabshakeh]

I see that there's been some additions, including another Petrucciani. 

[HutchFan]

1 minute ago, Rabshakeh said:

I see that there's been some additions, including another Petrucciani. 

Yep.

Here are my posts from the last two weeks:

- Warne Marsh Quartet featuring Lou Levy - A Ballad Album (Criss Cross, 1984)
- Timeless All Stars - Timeless Heart (Timeless, 1983)
- Enrico Rava Quintet - Andanada (Soul Note, 1983)

- Abdullah Ibrahim - Zimbabwe (Enja, 1983)
- Michel Petrucciani - 100 Hearts (George Wein Collection/Blue Note, 1984)
- Bill Barron - Variations in Blue (Muse, 1983)

Plus, there's more from Dan.

[Rabshakeh]

Some interesting stuff.

A Ballad Album is one of the all time greats. I'm less into 1980s Abdullah Ibrahim (oversaturation from South African-born parents partly to blame, but I prefer the 1970s stuff) or the Michel Petrucciani. I'm interested in the Bill Barron and Steve Grossman records - like your 70s blog, a lot of what I find I enjoy most are the late period or more obscure records by artists whom I otherwise know fairly well - so looking forward to trying those out.

Thanks for your ongoing work on the blog.

[Gheorghe]

At Wiesen Jazz Festival 1983 (Austria) Timeless All-Stars was scheduled, but actually the musicians who played were others than scheduled. I think it was scheduled with Bobby Hutcherson and Curtis Fuller or so, and actually the band that played was:

Jackie McLean  - Bobby Hutcherson - Herbie Lewis - Billy Higgins . 

What a great group and some of the best sets I ever heard, each of them a very favourite of mine, and they played "Blue´n Boogie, "What´s New", "Star Eyes" and "Salt Peanuts". 

I´ll never forget this. But it seemed to be more a "Blue Note All Stars" than a "Timeless All Stars". 

But when a critic wrote a review of the festival at Jazz Podium, he still mentioned "Timeless All Stars" with the schedules personnel, not even mentioning Jackie McLean it was very annoying. 

Enrico Rava was a favourite of the DC at a now defunkt very small jazz clubs in the 70´s (Jazz Spelunke). I think he was en vogue by a certain group of listeners who also listend to lets say Jan Garbarek, those more european sounding players then....

Warne Marsh with Lou Levy might be interesting, I had heard Marsh only in context with Lennie Tristano. Lou Levy was a great bop pianist, I saw him with Art Pepper 1981. 

Abdullah Ibrahim then was "Dollar Brand". I only saw him for few minutes in 1979 with some kind of african orchestra, but somehow it was not my music...., he was conducting then or at least stood in front of the orchestra with his back turned to the audience like conductors do....

Michel Petrucciani I already commented. First hearing "wow", but even then I detected  a more classical approach in his playing. 

[HutchFan]

16 hours ago, Gheorghe said:

At Wiesen Jazz Festival 1983 (Austria) Timeless All-Stars was scheduled, but actually the musicians who played were others than scheduled. I think it was scheduled with Bobby Hutcherson and Curtis Fuller or so, and actually the band that played was:

Jackie McLean  - Bobby Hutcherson - Herbie Lewis - Billy Higgins . 

What a great group and some of the best sets I ever heard, each of them a very favourite of mine, and they played "Blue´n Boogie, "What´s New", "Star Eyes" and "Salt Peanuts". 

I imagine that must have been great to see.   

 

[EKE BBB]

On 3/5/2022 at 9:12 AM, Gheorghe said:

At Wiesen Jazz Festival 1983 (Austria) Timeless All-Stars was scheduled, but actually the musicians who played were others than scheduled. I think it was scheduled with Bobby Hutcherson and Curtis Fuller or so, and actually the band that played was:

Jackie McLean  - Bobby Hutcherson - Herbie Lewis - Billy Higgins . 

What a great group and some of the best sets I ever heard, each of them a very favourite of mine, and they played "Blue´n Boogie, "What´s New", "Star Eyes" and "Salt Peanuts". 

I´ll never forget this. But it seemed to be more a "Blue Note All Stars" than a "Timeless All Stars". 

Tete Montoliu at the piano, right? Montoliu-Hutcherson-Lewis-Higgins group toured all over Europe on July 1983, with Jackie McLean sitting in for several concerts.

First gig I have spotted so far is July 2, Bracknell Jazz Festival, UK; last one is July 21, Antibes Jazz Festival, FR, but this time with Montoliu sharing the stage with McCoy Tyner. Next day, July 22, it was Dizzy Gillespie with Hutcherson, Escudé on guitar, Paul Bley and Tete on piano, Herbie Lewis, plus Shelly Manne on drums. Both concerts were recorded and broadcast by Radio France.

Edited May 4, 2022 by EKE BBB

[Gheorghe]

3 hours ago, EKE BBB said:

Tete Montoliu at the piano, right? Montoliu-Hutcherson-Lewis-Higgins group toured all over Europe on July 1983, with Jackie McLean sitting in for several concerts.

First gig I have spotted so far is July 2, Bracknell Jazz Festival, UK; last one is July 21, Antibes Jazz Festival, FR, but this time with Montoliu sharing the stage with McCoy Tyner. Next day, July 22, it was Dizzy Gillespie with Hutcherson, Escudé on guitar, Paul Bley and Tete on piano, Herbie Lewis, plus Shelly Manne on drums. Both concerts were recorded and broadcast by Radio France.

No, Tete was not on it, it was pianoless , just the four mentioned musicians. And I found it also on youtube from Italy for RAI television. Same tunes, but only the first three, Salt Peanuts misses. 

About Tete: Sorry to say I saw him only once, and that could have been in 1980 with Joe Henderson. I remember this because we all very not pleased at all with the bass and the drums, they just didn´t lit the fire and at one moment Tete "rescued" the evening by waving torward the bass and drum to lay out and played the walking line himself with the left hand and finally it grooved. I don´t remember who the drummer and the bassist were, I heard Joe on many occasions, allways fantastic, But without Tete at that certain date he would have been lost....

[HutchFan]

Last week's entries on More Favorites:

- Abbey Lincoln - Talking to the Sun (Enja, 1984)
- Amina Claudine Myers Trio - The Circle of Time (Black Saint, 1984)
- Ray Anderson - Right Down Your Alley (Soul Note, 1984)

Three really strong records.

Thoughts?

 

[mjazzg]

Agree about the Myers and possibly the Anderson which made a big impression at the time and needs to be revisited. I don't know the Lincoln. 

Is that Myers' best? Maybe the organ date on Leo shades that but the Black Saint is very impressive from every perspective

[HutchFan]

11 hours ago, mjazzg said:

Is that Myers' best? Maybe the organ date on Leo shades that but the Black Saint is very impressive from every perspective

Even though I like them very much, the two Leos have never hit me as hard as The Circle of Time.  I should probably re-visit them.  Myers was on quite a run during the 80s.  Jumping in the Sugar Bowl (Minor Music, 1984) and Amina (Novus, 1987) are also very, very good.

Regarding The Circle of Time: The out-in-the-country vibe --  you can practically hear the insects buzzing 'round the screened porch -- is what gets me.  I've only heard two other jazz musicians who consistently capture that feeling so well: Marion Brown and John Carter.  

 

Edited May 10, 2022 by HutchFan

[JSngry]

Song For Mother E is one of the all-time great jazz organ records, imo, definitely in the post-Larry Young era.

What I would love to hear - if it exists - is audio documentation of her doing the gig with Gene Ammons. Imagine that....

[mjazzg]

1 hour ago, HutchFan said:

Even though I like them very much, the two Leos have never hit me as hard as The Circle of Time.  I should probably re-visit them.  Myers was on quite a run during the 80s.  Jumping in the Sugar Bowl (Minor Music, 1984) and Amina (Novus, 1987) are also very, very good.

Regarding The Circle of Time: The out-in-the-country vibe --  you can practically hear the insects buzzing 'round the screened porch -- is what gets me.  I've only heard two other jazz musicians who consistently capture that feeling so well: Marion Brown and John Carter.  

 

I agree about that run of Myers albums, love them all.

It's also really interesting for me to read your thoughts on the porch sound as I had wondered whether my similar reaction was down to some romanticised version of the American South fed by a variety of film, books, music, plays and filtered by a cultural and geographical distance. Maybe not as you're definitely a lot closer 

 

1 hour ago, JSngry said:

Song For Mother E is one of the all-time great jazz organ records, imo, definitely in the post-Larry Young era.

Can't think of a better post-Larry organ trio date at the moment. Absolute stormer

[Pim]

I never look into the Jazz In Print section of the board. That was one stupid thing to do. What a great project @HutchFan. You got yourself a new loyal follower! 
 

I love Michel Petrucciani by the way. Not everything but still. His solo concert Au Theatre Champs-Elysees is one of my favorite solo piano discs. 

[HutchFan]

21 minutes ago, Pim said:

What a great project @HutchFan. You got yourself a new loyal follower! 

Thanks.  I'm glad!   

 

21 minutes ago, Pim said:

I love Michel Petrucciani by the way. Not everything but still. His solo concert Au Theatre Champs-Elysees is one of my favorite solo piano discs. 

I agree, that's a fantastic performance.  

 

[Ken Dryden]

I did a phone interview with Michel Petrucciani around 1996, he was funny and expressive.

I'm sorry that I never had the opportunity to see him in person.