Some thoughts about Paul Bley

When I read that Paul Bley had passed, I realized I had some holes in my collection in regards to his output. In particular, I hadn't really kept up with him from the 90's on, apart from his infrequent collaborations with Evan Parker on ECM.

One of the recordings I acquired to correct this deficiency was Play Blue, his solo Oslo concert from 2008, also on ECM.

From the beginning of this CD you know you’re going on a journey. That’s what I love about jazz, the fact that the music takes you – “let the music take you” – from where you are to somewhere. Sometimes you come all the way back, and sometimes a part of you is left out there, at some point where your consciousness meets that of the artist, at some intersection of your experiences. 

And wherever the journey takes you, you’re left with the memory of that journey, as real as any physical trip you’ve taken. You remember those special moments when you first listen to that album that changes your life. You can recall the experience of taking the shrink wrap off the album, smelling the vinyl and the printed sleeve, and placing it on the turntable. At Beethoven Hall, New York Fall 1974, Tribute, One for One , Involution, the list is forever in your memory.

Thank you to Paul Bley, and to all the artists who are willing to take us along on their journeys.

Charlie Haden 1937 - 2014

Jazz lost one of its greatest bassists this past Friday. Mr. Haden was 76, and evidently had been ill for some time. There have already numerous articles, blog posts and forum entries paying tribute to the man, so rather than retell the facts about his career, I wanted to mention a couple of performances that particularly resonated with me when I had just discovered jazz as a teenager.

I think my first exposure to Mr. Haden’s music was his contribution to Ornette Coleman’s Crisis, which was also my introduction to Ornette. For some reason that Impulse LP was still lying around in the bins of my local record store in 1974 when I picked it up. Here’s Haden’s Song for Che from that album:

As great as that record is, Haden really caught my attention with his work of Paul Motian’s Tribute, released in ’74 and still one of my favorite records from ECM’s “classic” period, when the label released gem after gem. Tribute is a great example of Haden’s monster, fat sound and his ability to simultaneously support and drive the music being made. There are parts of this record where he gets as funky as I’ve ever heard him.

Truly one of the very greatest bassists of any period of jazz, his death is a profound loss. Thank you, Mr. Haden, for helping a teenaged kid discover the magic that’s inherent in this music.

Catching Up With Keith

Keith Jarrett/Gary Peacock/ Jack DeJohnette
Somewhere
ECM

Keith Jarrett - Piano
Gary Peacock - Double Bass
Jack DeJohnette - Drums

I had avoided this group for most of its incredible 30 year existence because I was put off by the emphasis on standards. I mean, they've been done to death, haven't they? How many more versions of "All The Things You Are" do we need? Also, I had heard maybe one song a few years back and thought it was snoresville at the time, for some reason.

Well I stand corrected! I finally took the plunge and I am loving this CD. Jarrett finds a way to say something new with his approach to each composition. And perhaps because he has a reputation for being difficult, I'm surprised at how much wit and humanity he puts into his performance. Sometimes he'll play very close to the melody or resolve a phrase in a straight-forward way, if the situation calls for it. I think that actually takes some courage, when a lot of jazz musicians would try to go in a more abstract direction. The interplay between the three musicians is as good as advertised. I love the fire-breathing days of Jack DeJohnette, so it's interesting to hear how he adjusts his approach in this context. Somewhere has me thinking about a second Standards Trio purchase. (Sigh)

(Originally posted in the Organissimo Forum)

Dark Poetry

Craig Taborn Trio 

Chants 

ECM

Craig Taborn – Piano
Thomas Morgan – Double Bass
Gerald Cleaver - Drums

Satoko Fujii New Trio
Spring Storm
Libra

Satoko Fujii – Piano
Todd Nicholson – Double Bass
Takashi Itani - Drums

I’ve been listening to these two CDs side-by-side in my car changer, and on more than one occasion I’ve confused them in my head. Listening to them sequentially has proven to be instructive, because the two pianists do share some similarities in approach. Both blend classical and jazz influences in unique ways. Both have a brooding, sometimes foreboding style, darker hues with splashes of light. And both build tension through repetition.

Of course, they have their own voices. Taborn’s music takes on an elegiac quality, working phrases over and over, gaining ground slowly. Fujii jump cuts from motif to motif, resulting at times in a jarring transition, yet somehow making sense at the end. And in each case their cohorts are excellent partners, providing just the right colors and accents.

It’s been fascinating to see the progression in the careers of both artists. Taborn in particular has come so far since he was a member of James Carter’s band back in the day. Fujii’s style is more of a known quantity, but still exciting to listen to. These are both among the best new releases I’ve heard in 2013.

Light Made Darker

Craig Taborn, Avenging Angel
ECM Records
 
Craig Taborn - piano
 
I’ve come to appreciate Craig Taborn due to an earlier CD, Light Made Lighter, his appearances on a couple of Drew Gress albums and his pivotal role on Michael Formanek’s The Rub and Spare Change. But Avenging Angel is a different beast. It sounds as if it might be fully improvised, yet each piece contains logic and structure. There’s a quiet intensity to it, even a sense of foreboding. It’s a nighttime CD, although more frenetic sections are contained within.
 
There’s a hint of vintage Jarrett in Taborn’s overt classical influences, the use of repetition in the development of certain pieces, the occasional sly allusions to gospel and the blues. But this is not to say we’re dealing with the rolling ostinatos of The Sun Bear Concerts, and Taborn definitely has his own approach. 

There are parts that gave me chills. If you even thought you might be a Taborn fan, get this. If you’re a solo piano fan, get this.

A Tribute to Tribute

There's an interesting thread over at the ECM Forum on JazzCorner.com about overlooked gems on that label, records that received little fanfare when they were first released. One of my nominations is drummer Paul Motian's Tribute (ECM 1048), issued in 1975 and featuring Carlos Ward on alto sax, Sam Brown and Paul Metzke on guitars, and Charlie Haden on bass. I bought the album new for $5.79 (!) and I love the combination of Ornette's influence and the deep but free groove that Motian and Haden set up. It's some of my favorite Haden, helped in part by the great bass sound achieved by engineer Tony May.

Fortunately, it has been reissued on CD and is available on ECM's site.

The Curious Case of Steve Kuhn

ECM Records has announced that they will be releasing a new recording from Steve Kuhn with Joe Lovano on 7/07/09 called Mostly Coltrane. I'm somewhat looking forward to hearing this, but Mr. Kuhn has been a frustrating figure to me for many years.

In the 70's, he released Trance, a wonderful album from a time when, as a friend once stated, "Every album ECM released was a classic." It was a unique fusion of jazz and classical music, with a dash of Kuhn's wry sense of humor. If memory serves, he went on to record a couple of more albums for ECM and then his output seemed to drop off.

I saw him with a trio at the Village Vanguard in New York in the mid-eighties and he put me to sleep. Every once in a while I've come across a CD of his, but they seemed to be standards-based, which struck me as curious because I liked his original compositions so much. I have his ECM CD Remembering Tomorrow, which again seemed a little lifeless to me, but I'm glad he's back with a new one on the label that's released his best work.

If anyone has opinions on the ECM albums he released in the late-seventies, Motility and Non-Fiction, please post a comment.