BFT 239 Discussion Thread

[Dan Gould]

LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!

Welcome to the first of two special, 20th anniversary (more or less) BFTs, which started many moons ago when member @DrJ came up with the idea of an online version of the original DownBeat Blindfold Tests, and its come a long way since, from signups, mailaway discs, and the original "tap on the shoulder" to Thom Keith donating server space, and a standardized monthly schedule and annual signups.  Thanks again to Tony Jerant and everybody who has kept the BFT going.  Thinking also of Bill DeBauche (Hot Ptah) who ran things with great attention to detail before his untimely and unfortunate passing.  Here's to Bill too.

https://thomkeith.net/index.php/blindfold-tests/

 

I believe we should use @(username) when commenting on a particular tune. That will generate a notification to the contributor that someone has said something about his track. 

One thing is for sure, with ten people replying to comments on one track each, this thread will set records for participation.  

[T.D.]

@randyhersom: of course I'm very fond of this one, Youtube link

By about 45 seconds in it's kind of a gimme, but I always enjoy hearing this soloist (not the leader here).

Edited February 1 by T.D.

[randyhersom]

Big Al - Smooth wind arrangement behind piano 
Dan Gould - The slickness of the arrangement had me thinking Dule Pearson for moment, but I think the bluesy tenor is probably the leader.
danasgoodstuff - solo piano, perhaps more than one.  Is this The Wind Cries Mary from Three Pianos for Jimi
Dub Modal - Bop.  When I hear Bird-like facility in a later recording I think Sonny Stitt or Charles McPherson
Eric - First thought was Dolphy, but I'm thinking Jackie McLean
mjazzg - hypnotic, probably the bassman's date.  Buster Williams?
randyhersom - TD is right.
Rooster-Ties - I felt sure the tenor was Wayne, but the band was more Crossings era Herbie
sidewinder - Billy Harper?
webbcity - composition reminds me a little of Ted Curson's Quicksand

[T.D.]

@sidewinder: nice tune, seems familiar but I can't place it. Could be expectation bias,  I'm thinking "British jazz" from '70s or '80s considering electric piano. The tenor (who is perhaps not the leader) seems to have some Trane influence, suggesting Alan Skidmore (since I listened to his box set last night), but I'm likely off on all counts.

[JSngry]

We should not forget Jeff Crompton's years of service as we!l!

@Big Al Is this Joe Harnell? Or not? The "String Of Pearls" bit was a nice off-balance opening, deceptive! I think the tune is "A Beautiful Friendship"? Not at all fond of the piano playing, but just as much AS fond of the woodwind writing, gorgeously written and executed. Expert. I will buy and play records like this, just to hear the writing, and this would be one of them! And the pocket is in there, too.

@Dan Gould Oh geez, I should know this chart, pretty sure we got hold of it in my lab/rehearsal band days...not sure if this is the original version or not, but it comes closer to it than those bands did! Alto is for real, for real. Electric bass gives it a more real blues "sound". The band itself is ok, but maybe could have used more air in the recorded sound, I dislike that claustrophobic sound on any record, but especially a big band. I wish I could remember the name of the chart, something to do with a bag or a sack or grease or something "of blues". I'll take it for the alto playing, whoever it is.

@danasgoodstuff Geri meets Jimi (with two more pianists. This is a beautiful record. Took me a while to shake out the cobwebs to remember it, though. At first I was thinking it to be a psychedelic Earl Hines, there was so much independence between hands!

@Dub Modal Sounds like Art Pepper playing "After You've Gone"? Recording sounds like a very Early Prestige job. Bob Cooper? West Coast playing, East Coast recording sound? What the heck is this? I like it!

@Eric Derivative but not imitative. Playing with a deep knowledge and an equally deep conviction. This is somebody who knows their shit inside and out (literally and figuratively).

@mjazzg I liked this a lot more when the cello took over, that's a pocket right there!  And I like how they stay in that pocket instead of trying to blow it up and out. Very thoughtful and purposeful. Like it a lot!

@randyhersom Prepare thyself to deal with a miracle.

@Rooster_Ties Maybe one of those Terumasa Hino records? It sounds too much like the Lost Quartet without being them (and more Tony than Jack)...but maybe I'm wrong?

@sidewinder Early-ish 70s, I don't know if you could get that recorded sound in any other time. Is it on Cobblestone? I like the slippery fell of the tenorist's phrasings, not just straight eighths, it slides around. We're in a bit of early Chick territory here in terms of composition and pianistics, but that drummer is doing a Tony thing and doing it really well. I'm curious who this is.

@webbcity No surprises, but very pleasant in a non-superficial way. Tenor brings a little sumpinsumpin extra to the game, hello!!! Pianist as well. Sounds like a good date for all!

Thanks to Dan for doing the logistics on this one - and on the next as well.

 

 

[danasgoodstuff]

Thought it might take longer for folks to get my selection, but I'm glad you liked it.  I've been listening to Geri playing Jimi and her trib to her hometown, Grand River Crossing a bunch recently.  Such a loss.

[Spontooneous]

Hello all, I'm back for a minute.

I'm SO happy to see the shoutout to my KC ally Hot Ptah. Bill put a LOT of effort into this forum for a long, long time. He worried that the game wasn't sustainable -- yet here we are. His ashes rest a few hundred feet from my grandparents' graves, and I drop by sometimes, hoping to bask in his wisdom again. Next time, I'll bring him the news of good vibes from the BFT forum.

And a partial attempt:

@Big Al I'm thinking it's some mostly-forgotten Billy Taylor project. I confess to not liking the sound of clarinets traveling in packs, but doggone it, this is strangely tasty.

@Eric At first I thought Han Bennink was in there, but don't think so now. But the alto might be Michael Moore or Sean Bergin. I'll take a dozen.

@mjazzg How many cellos here? One plucking, one bowing? Love the sound of the drum set. And the general groove, which never loses its way or lets up. Yeah!

@Dub Modal "After You've Gone" changes, then an alto that really sounds like early '50s Art Pepper, and then a trumpet who begins by quoting Art Pepper's contrafact on "After You've Gone." Nifty out chorus. Maybe a Marty Paich project? Someone who knows the writing styles of the time better than I do (that isn't hard) may find the suggestion laughable.

Must recuse myself on Rooster's. Y'all are good guessers, though.

Edited February 1 by Spontooneous
small omission

[Big Al]

I'm pretty sure no one wants to hear me gas about my own track.

@Dan Gould oh I dig this groove! And this arrangement! I have no idea who this is but I can't wait to find out!

@danasgoodstuff Again, no clue but I'm really digging it!

@Dub Modal early Bird? I could listen to this sound for hours!

@Eric this has a "jazz workshop" kind of feel to me, a kind of composed organized chaos. Take that for whatever it's worth: I rarely know what I'm talking about.

@mjazzg Really digging the groove here and can't wait to find out who this is!

@randyhersom To the moon, Alice!!! Good stuff!

@Rooster_Ties I'm digging the electric piano. A little too long for me but it has enough magic moments to keep me interested.

@sidewinder Good stuff. I like how the bass swirls at the end!

@webbcity I was gonna suggest Freddie Hubbard on Atlantic but the recording sounds too recent. I dig the groove and I also like it that, since the track order defaulted to the alphabetical arrangement of each Board member's name, this track ends up being the closing track because it sounds like a closing track!

Well, that was thoroughly uneducated and misinformed on my part. 😄 I really enjoyed how all-over-the-place this was!

[medjuck]

3 hours ago, T.D. said:

@randyhersom: of course I'm very fond of this one, Youtube link

By about 45 seconds in it's kind of a gimme, but I always enjoy hearing this soloist (not the leader here).

This record, which I got when it was first released, was the first time I ever heard this tune.    Shortly after it seemed to be being sung everywhere.  Maybe it was already a standard and I just didn't know about it. 

Edited February 1 by medjuck

[danasgoodstuff]

1 hour ago, Big Al said:

Again, no clue but I'm really digging it!

Glad you liked it, I hoped it would be a pleasant surprise for some.

[mjazzg]

8 hours ago, randyhersom said:

mjazzg - hypnotic, probably the bassman's date.  Buster Williams?
 

Not Buster and not the bass player's date 

[sidewinder]

12 hours ago, randyhersom said:

sidewinder - Billy Harper?

Not Billy Harper !

11 hours ago, T.D. said:

@sidewinder: nice tune, seems familiar but I can't place it. Could be expectation bias,  I'm thinking "British jazz" from '70s or '80s considering electric piano. The tenor (who is perhaps not the leader) seems to have some Trane influence, suggesting Alan Skidmore (since I listened to his box set last night), but I'm likely off on all counts.

Not Alan Skidmore !

11 hours ago, JSngry said:

 

@Big Al 

@Dan Gould 

@danasgoodstuff 

@Dub Modal 

@Eric 

@mjazzg 

@randyhersom 

@Rooster_Ties 

@sidewinder Early-ish 70s, I don't know if you could get that recorded sound in any other time. Is it on Cobblestone? I like the slippery fell of the tenorist's phrasings, not just straight eighths, it slides around. We're in a bit of early Chick territory here in terms of composition and pianistics, but that drummer is doing a Tony thing and doing it really well. I'm curious who this is.

 

Not early 70s, not Cobblestone, not Tony W.

9 hours ago, Big Al said:

 

@Dan Gould 

@danasgoodstuff 

@Dub Modal 

@Eric 

@mjazzg 

@randyhersom 

@Rooster_Ties 

@sidewinder Good stuff. I like how the bass swirls at the end!

@webbcity  😄 

The bassist is most definitely an underrated master.

[Dan Gould]

I meant to state in the opening post that perhaps we could go back to the original style of commenters, which included the infamous DB "star" ratings. So I am going to use that. At least it gives me something to say.

@Big Al On first listen last month I had Wynton Kelly in mind, and wondered if there was a Verve-era recording matching this. Fortunately I did go back and listen a couple of times more and the former Gene Harris Fanatic did not beclown himself by missing his (former) namesake. It's the title track from THIS.  The Limelights are not a highlight for me of the Three Sounds output.  3 1/2 stars, for Gene and I wonder if Jim will re-think his comment.  And I wonder if Big Al chose it for the title, as in, tribute, in this celebratory BFT, to the many beautiful friendships the Big O (and the BNBB before it) helped foster?

@danasgoodstuff Pleasant but not really getting anywhere for me.  3 stars.

@Dub Modal Enjoyed this a lot - metadata had to be stripped but I would have never guessed anyway.  3 1/2 stars.

@Eric Another winner but no guesses. Also 3.5 stars

@mjazzg Hypnotic!  A Felser I don't hate on. 3 stars.

@randyhersom Not my cuppa. 1 star, for the pianist and drummer, whose presence motivated my sampling of this at a used CD shop many years ago.  Not sure how long it took me then to say silently "next!" (yes  I did check the youtube link above).  

@Rooster_Ties  Another with metadata to be stripped but ... just a big ugh for me.  1/2 a star and apologies to Rooster Tom.

@sidewinder Liking this loads but maybe it's the improvement over the last track?  No, I am digging but no clues for names. 3 1/2 stars.

@webbcity  as Al said, by happenstance it ended up the finale, and a great one.  Fave track overall so it gets 4 stars.

 

Thanks gents for your contributions!

[sidewinder]

@Eric - Is that Oliver Lake on alto?

[Dub Modal]

Love this idea and happy to be a part of it! Cheers guys…

@Big Al lovely tune and arrangement. Would this be bossa or bossa adjacent? Sounds like it might be the pianist’s date, but no guesses at the moment. 

@Dan Gould
Bluesy of course! You’re the king of the jazz blues BFT tracks IMO. This is the kind of song I’d expect to hear at a music festival anywhere in the South. Creeping up on that 2:30 mark is when the groove really sets in and the sax player takes over. I’ll guess Lockjaw or maybe Cleanhead but certain I’m wrong. 

@danasgoodstuff

Fantastic intro. Love the playing. Allen Toussaint maybe? 
 

@Eric that sharp attack on the horn here is familiar…hmmm…bassist is all over it too. Love how the song moves from a sax/bass duo to piano/drums duo in such a tight time span. Then they all come together toward the end for that post-bop groove. Nice one. 

@mjazzg oh yeah, this sounds like a Nubiya song or someone from the current London scene. That rhythmic blend sounds like an Afro-beat inspired shuffle and it is such a groove. Love this track. 
 

@randyhersom very soulful playing from that sax. Kind of Mobley-esque but it’s not him. 
 

I’ll come back later to finish up. Great collection so far! 

 

 

[Dan Gould]

1 minute ago, Dub Modal said:

Love this idea and happy to be a part of it! Cheers guys…

@Dan Gould
Bluesy of course! You’re the king of the jazz blues BFT tracks IMO. This is the kind of song I’d expect to hear at a music festival anywhere in the South. Creeping up on that 2:30 mark is when the groove really sets in and the sax player takes over. I’ll guess Lockjaw or maybe Cleanhead but certain I’m wrong. 

 

I’ll come back later to finish up. Great collection so far! 

 

 

No, not Lockjaw or Cleanhead and as always, yes to the jazz blues! In fact my very first BFT had a theme which I have rarely deviated that far from: G - R - E - A - S - E.   

And welcome back @Spontooneous!

[mjazzg]

25 minutes ago, Dub Modal said:

 

@Big Al 

@Dan Gould

@danasgoodstuff

@Eric 

@mjazzg oh yeah, this sounds like a Nubiya song or someone from the current London scene. That rhythmic blend sounds like an Afro-beat inspired shuffle and it is such a groove. Love this track. 

@randyhersom

 

 

Good ears @Dub Modal! Getting close, Nubiya is involved.

You are one of three folk I thought might ID this. So which album? 

51 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

 

@Big Al

@danasgoodstuff 

@Dub Modal 

@Eric 

@mjazzg Hypnotic!  A Felser I don't hate on. 3 stars.

@randyhersom

@Rooster_Ties 

@sidewinder

Paging @felser 😀

 

51 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

@webbcity

 

[felser]

@Big Al - Out for a romantic dinner with Mrs. Big Al?   **

@Dan Gould – Definitely no WWFL consideration. **1/2

@danasgoodstuff – Interesting enough to not fade into the background on me (though it would make good background music for reading, but not for dinner).  I like it OK, pianist has a rich harmonic sense. ***

@Dub Modal – Works for me.  Tenor reminds me of early Stan Getz, though the context doesn’t fit.  Good cut. ***1/2

@Eric – Alto listened to those early Ornette albums, and is my favorite part of the cut.  Piano is lost on me, though it’s probably a name I would consider favorably.   Not getting with the drumming at all.  Reminds me of some of the early Cecil Taylor with Jimmy Lyons and Sunny Murray, except too short and not intense enough.  I like the bass player. ***

@mjazzg – Digging the groove and the cello player(s – overdubbed?)!  First cut on the BFT I can wholeheartedly embrace. ****

@randyhersom – Cut A2 from This .  I fully approve, what’s not to love?! ****

@Rooster_Ties –Trumpet sounds like Woody Shaw (which would be half expected)?  Outstanding, whoever he is.  But doesn’t sound like the trumpet player’s album, him coming in so late  I like this a lot, would hope I own it already.  George Cables on EP?  Checked the Woody Shaw and Joe Henderson albums ca. 1970-1972, and this doesn’t seem to be from those. ****

@sidewinder – Very Very good cut.  Strong tenor player. ****

@webbcity – I love this cut!  Cheated and Shazam’d it (couldn’t wait for the reveal), and thankfully I own this CD, which is very overlooked/underrated. *****

This was a fun exercise!  Thanks all, for contributing and especially Dan, for coordinating and Thom for hosting.  Despite the randomness of the sequencing (by name), I found my favorite cuts were the last five, my least favorite the first three.  Interesting coincidence.

 

Edited February 1 by felser

[Dan Gould]

19 minutes ago, felser said:

 

@Dan Gould – Definitely no WWFL consideration. **1/2

 

 

Not with one bullet in the chamber, no.  

Didn't you dig that newest Shelly Carrol?

[felser]

5 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

Not with one bullet in the chamber, no.  

Didn't you dig that newest Shelly Carrol?

Yes!

[mjazzg]

Just to add to thanks to @Dan Gould for all the logistics and herding of cats

Now to listen,

@Big Al nice one to start with, drips a soulful vibe that I can get right behind, liking the pianist's attack and the arrangement. ***

@Dan Gould this is way outside my usual listening and I have always struggled with big bands (unless they're screeching free improv ones) but that sax solo has real bite to it, salty and fresh. I'll be interested to know who the player is. Overstays its welcome a bit **1/2 

@danasgoodstuff intriguing from the start, I like the build up and then there's more than one piano so taht's confusing but it's definitely holding my attention. Part of me says I'd like to hear this tune played just by the initail pianist who's the one doing the interesting stuff here, shed the others. Intriguing, that final few notes sound very familiar ** but *** for that one pianist

@Dub Modal I hear West Coast, somewhere I've been travelling to musically increasingly recently but don't know enough about. I hear music like this as rigorous and almost experimental on its own terms - bizarrely, and only in my ears I'm sure, I can hear Braxton being influenced by this. I like the space that's created within the arrangement and that ending is great ***1/2

@Eric now this is where I'm comfortable.  I feel I should be able to ID the sax player but I can't at the moment. I'm guessing a late 80s into 90s possibly Black Saint but it could be a more contemporary recording influenced by then. Sax player is driving me mad.  I really like this and will hope I own it...***1/2

@mjazzg someone needs a new pair of ears...🙄

@randyhersom this is great, at first I thought it was going to be just too smooth but oh no it's not. Is it Roland Kirk? Drummer's got something to say too ***1/2

@Rooster_Ties makes me think of Zawinul, Maupin and someone like Terumasa Hino but they never played together that I know of so maybe Kikuchi and Hino. There's a lot of music out there like this and for the me the initial impact is often more than it's staying power, it all gets a bit overcooked. I admire it more than be moved by it. If it's not Japanese, which I'm less sure of now, then it was surely released on Milestones **1/2

@sidewinder nice, of couse I'm thinking British but no-one's coming instantly to mind. I like the pianist, and the bassist is right in there too. I'm going for a UK band whose members are mostly still around and on the circuit, like Sulzman for instance ***

@webbcity I want to say that this sounds a bit generic but that's possibly too dismissive it just seems that the trumpet apart there's not much to make it stand out for me **1/2

 

Thanks everyone, that was fun

 

 

[Dub Modal]

2 hours ago, mjazzg said:

Good ears @Dub Modal! Getting close, Nubiya is involved.

You are one of three folk I thought might ID this. So which album? 

I had to sleuth but it’s track 3 from this album.

Now this is on my radar 

[mjazzg]

3 minutes ago, Dub Modal said:

I had to sleuth but it’s track 3 from this album.

Now this is on my radar 

It is! Great album, one of the best from the recent scene I think. And an interesting inspiration that will resonate with some on the board

[Dub Modal]

15 hours ago, JSngry said:

Sounds like Art Pepper playing "After You've Gone"? Recording sounds like a very Early Prestige job. Bob Cooper? West Coast playing, East Coast recording sound? What the heck is this? I like it!

 

12 hours ago, Big Al said:

early Bird? I could listen to this sound for hours!

 

13 hours ago, Spontooneous said:

"After You've Gone" changes, then an alto that really sounds like early '50s Art Pepper, and then a trumpet who begins by quoting Art Pepper's contrafact on "After You've Gone." Nifty out chorus. Maybe a Marty Paich project? Someone who knows the writing styles of the time better than I do (that isn't hard) may find the suggestion laughable.

 

11 minutes ago, mjazzg said:

dal I hear West Coast, somewhere I've been travelling to musically increasingly recently but don't know enough about. I hear music like this as rigorous and almost experimental on its own terms - bizarrely, and only in my ears I'm sure, I can hear Braxton being influenced by this. I like the space that's created within the arrangement and that ending is great ***1/2

Glad this track is being enjoyed by most. I’ll happily take the 3.5 stars!

Ya’ll nailed Art Pepper which I thought would happen, and Jim got Bob Cooper too! It’s neither of their date however and it’s not a Paich record either. I’m betting this will be guessed sooner rather than later. 

Can I ask y’all what makes this sound west coast btw? I’m always trying to train my ears on this stuff and just want to know what y’all picked up on in that regard. 

3 minutes ago, mjazzg said:

It is! Great album, one of the best from the recent scene I think. And an interesting inspiration that will resonate with some on the board

I really love how they blend afrobeat into these rhythms and it seems like that’s a calling card of the London scene. I totally missed this one so thanks for including it here 🍻

Edited February 1 by Dub Modal

[mjazzg]

15 hours ago, JSngry said:

@mjazzg I liked this a lot more when the cello took over, that's a pocket right there!  And I like how they stay in that pocket instead of trying to blow it up and out. Very thoughtful and purposeful. Like it a lot

 

3 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

@mjazzg Hypnotic!  A Felser I don't hate on. 3 stars

 

1 hour ago, felser said:

mjazzg – Digging the groove and the cello player(s – overdubbed?)!  First cut on the BFT I can wholeheartedly embrace. ****

Only one cello but lots of post production

So it's been successfully ID'd by @Dub Modal for any of you who enjoyed it to check out