Geir Lysne and Christian Wallumrød...

Time to dredge up another of those old reviews to clutter the web. 'Solid' and 'sub-ECM' are two bits of fairly faint praise, though all things are relative and there's still lots to enjoy here. I've sampled other bits of Lysne's work over the last year or two, and I know that he'll come good at some point with a really definitive statement.

I realise that Afric Pepperbird didn't make any reference to the slightly disappointing gig by Christian Wallumrød at The Sage last Autumn. This was same Ensemble responsible for the similarly dull Fabula Suite Lugano, their music stuck in a hinterland somewhere between contemporary composition and 'improv'. I prefer the more playful and declamatory Wallumrød, and if I'd never heard great discs such as The Zoo Is Far and A Year From Easter then the Ensemble's rather flat performance with few obvious highs would have left me completely non-plussed. 

Wallumrød is the kind of guy who'll keep exploring though, and although not everything will strike a chord with me I'm confident that, just like Lysne, there's a lot more to come from him in the future.

Right, that's it for now...

GEIR LYSNE LISTENING ENSEMBLE

The Grieg Code

ACT (9479-2)

Transad Nias; Memorits N’Gneng; Blog Her; Vebburedong; Wonde Hinsisi; Døse Dås; Glossi Vangse; L’omai

Geir Lysne (ts); Morten Halle (as/ss/fl); Tore Bruneborg (ts/fl); Steffen Schorn (bs/bfl); Eckhard Bauer (t/flh); Jesper Riis (t/flh); Arkady Shilkloper (frhn/flh); Helge Sunde (tb); Lars A Haug (tba); Jørn Øien (ky/elec); Bjørn Kjellemyr (b); Andreas Bye (d); Terje Isungset (voc/perc). Recorded 6/08.

Composer and saxophonist Geir Lysne has been bubbling under for a few years now, picking up awards in his native Norway and notching a string of releases on the Eurojazz-friendly ACT label. Although principally working within jazz, Lysne has a background in teaching and can sometimes be found playing in classical ensembles. Bringing together his many stylistic interests for this project, what we get is a nod to fellow countryman and musical predecessor Edvard Grieg. Commissioned for a conference in the great composer’s honour, the music of The Grieg Code places fragments of his themes, heavily disguised and anagrammatically re-titled by Lysne, into contemporary clothing.

Lysne’s subtle use of electronics and voices is very Norwegian, and you’ve probably guessed that he’s not simply doing jazz versions of Grieg. Lysne prismatically diffuses the source material, using a band bristling with familiar voices. Jon Balke’s brass-heavy Oslo 13 an important touchstone, but although the Jan Erik Kongshaug/Rainbow Studios production sounds reassuringly familiar, the project couldn’t really be described as sub-ECM. A handful of scholars may attempt to crack the code and identify the fragments Lysne has lifted, but to enjoy the music you need never know his points of reference. It may not be the record to set 2009 ablaze, but if you like the contemporary Scandinavian sound, this is a solid disc that you’ll want to return to many times.

Fred Grand

Set the alarm for Bobby Previte...

Time to start the New Year (well, nearly new) with another old review of mine from the Jazz Review days. Previte is simply one of my enduring favourites, and I know each of his albums in much the same intimate kind of way that many claim to know the oeuvre of The Beatles. What is it that I so like about this easy to overlook artist? 

It's not the fact that he's a great drummer, or that he surrounds himself with some of the most creative players of his generation. It's not that he's a genuinely gifted composer of high quality and complex music, or that he takes outrageous liberties with a razor wit, making bold choices that invariably pay off. No, it's the way in which he combines all of these things to draw you into his rather unique and colourful world, and why he's pretty much omni-present in any listening I do that is purely for sake of pleasure. 

My first ever trip to New York (there've only been two) was to see a retrospective of his work presented over three nights at the Knitting Factory. Each of his albums were recreated, from Claude's Late Morning and Empty Suits to Hue & Cry and Euclid's Nightmare, the fiery duet with John Zorn that was at that time his most recent release. If you're not yet a fan of Previte, do yourself a favour and try him out. This disc probably makes as good a starting point as any, and should be available cheaply as either artefact or download.

I'm well aware that there hasn't been much content on Afric Pepperbird of late, but I'll once again make a vow to change that. Even if I don't get my own act together I've included a couple of widgets at the side of the page which from the redoubtable All About Jazz, which are guaranteed to generate something new each day.

London International Jazz Festival was as stimulating as I'd hoped, and apart from being a nice holiday with Louise I managed to burn the midnight and get my reviews filed within hours of the each performance for instant publication on the Jazz Journal website. If you haven't read them yet, you'll find them here.

Gearing up for a strong line-up at this year's Gateshead Festival, and at this stage I'm hoping to catch Jasper Hoiby, Andy Sheppard and/or Ambrose Akinmusire for interviews.  

We'll see...

BOBBY PREVITE & THE NEW BUMP

Set The Alarm For Monday

PALMETTO (PM 2133)

Set The Alarm For Monday; I’d Advise You Not To Miss Your Train; She Has Information; Were You Followed?; I’m On To Her; There Was Something In My Drink; You’re In Over Your Head; Drive South, Along The Canyon; Wake Up Andrea, We’re Pulling In.

Ellery Eskelin (ts); Bill Ware (vib); Brad Jones (b); Bobby Previte (d) with guests Steven Bernstein (t) and Jim Pugliese (perc).

Recorded during 2007

Bobby Previte has always been more than just a drummer. A composer who plays the drums perhaps, his influences range from Mingus to Stravinsky via electric Miles and Terry Reilly. With a keen wit and ruthlessly individual musical signature, he now represents New York’s somewhat dissipated ‘Downtown’ scene as a distinguished elder statesman. Bump The Renaissance (Sound Aspects, 1985) showed an originality that was obvious even then, and I’ve followed his career assiduously ever since. Key ‘Downtown’ players such as Bill Frisell, and to an extent John Zorn, may have gained wider mainstream exposure, but Previte has continued to lead a spidery web of exciting projects, each exploring the many facets of his unashamedly individual musical persona. Even when dabbling in the ‘jam band’ scene as he did with Latin For Travellers and Ponga , he regularly planted epic chord progressions that would make composer John Adams sit up and payattention.

The history of ‘Bump’ in Previte’s oeuvre is an interesting but intermittent one. A pocket-sized orchestra mixing brass and reeds, re-appraising and subtly meddling with the tradition with wit that permeates his writing like a benign viral disease is what Bump are all about. I saw a re-formed BumpThe Renaissance group featuring Ray Anderson, Marty Ehrlich and Wayne Horvitz at a Previte retrospective held at New York’s Knitting Factory around adecade ago. A highlight then, the same group later made two fine albums for Palmetto (Just Add Water and Counterclockwise), and now five years on he’s at it again, this time with an entirely new cast of players.

Everything from the artwork to the credits, the track titles and naturally enough the music its self, is a nod to film noir. Many of Previte’s previous albums - Empty Suits in particular - have adopted a suite-like (if not cinematic) approach. Set The Alarm For Monday takes things a step further and often reminds me of the best moments of Miles’ Ascenseur Pour L’Echafaud, thoroughly re-vamped and infused with infectious contemporary grooves. Using the programmatic music savvy of Jazz Passengers Ware and Jones was a smart move, whilst Ellery Eskelin is so good that no justification for getting him into the studios is ever needed. His deep affinity for the purring tones of Hawkins (via Rollins), and some supremely accomplished method acting, intrigue and delight by turns. Bernstein and long-term collaborator Pugliese appear sparingly as colourists, but are nevertheless crucial elements in the montage. The trumpeter’s gritty rubato opening to ‘Miss Your Train’ at first seems too rude a gesture, though all good film noirs need tension. On the delicious “She Has Information”, his retro muting meows to the fictional vixen with perfection. Jones’ deep bass pulse anchors the vast majority of these pieces and he’s increasingly becoming today’s Cecil McBee (‘Canyon’ is a great case in point), whilst Ware’s vibes have probably never been put to a more atmospheric use. Their beguiling sonorities lure the listener into the musicfrom the very opening bars and never let up.

Whilst soundtracks to imaginary movies are nothing new, this is the kind of fully realised concept album that only comes along once in a blue moon. Its smooth flow and catchy hooks reveal a master at the height of his powers. Anybody approaching Previte’s music for the first time will kick them selves for missing two decades of his individual music. In the middle of a purple patch just now, Set The Alarm ForMonday is an essential release, perhaps the most convincing ‘Downtown’ release since Tim Berne’s Science Friction. It really is that good.

Fred Grand  

London International Jazz Festival...

Tomorrow marks the start of the now annual trip to the London International Jazz Festival. So many tantalising gigs that we've already missed, and many more that we'll miss because I'm yet to discover a reliable way of being in more than one place at a time.

A really good cross-section of modern artists lined up though - Marcin Wasilewski; Stefano Bollani; Martial Solal; Empirical (with Robert Mitchell); Roy Haynes; Peter King; Henry Threadgill; John Escreet; Bill Frisell, and best of all Archie Shepp with my all time favourite pianist Joachim Kühn, who stunned me back in the '90s with one of the most intense solo performances I've ever witnessed. That wild unkempt hair says it all, this man takes no prisoners... 

We may find a few more gigs to see, perhaps Arild Andersen and Tommy Smith's ECM 'tribute', but come what may I'll be armed with the trusty iPad and Pages App and sending my missives to Jazz Journal editor Mark Gilbert for instant publication on the website.

Hopefully they'll appear online the following day, though I doubt I'll have time to do much for Afric Pepperbird. If however you're in any way curious about just which shade of scintillating Joachim conjures, you may well find the answer here...

Fred Grand

Gateshead Namaste...

Quite a lazy summer for live music - since Glasgow we've only been to see three gigs. It's not that there hasn't been plenty happening on the vibrant Tyneside scene, but more to do with the fact that so little of it is music that I can genuinely get excited about. That said, I read Paul Bream's frank commentaries on the current arts funding crisis with a great deal of concern. I sincerely hope that the resurgence of interest in contemporary styles that I played a small part in kickstarting - remember Derek Bailey, Peter Brötzmann, Jemeel Moondoc and the Vandermark 5? - won't be allowed to wither in the face of the lethal combo of savage cuts to the arts and the sometimes blasé apathy of people like myself. Newcastle is now an established international hub, although this present crisis is a reminder of just how reliant on the endeavours of a few activists (and an annual pot of grant subsidy) it still remains.

In the current financial climate the message from the top seems to be one of 'sink or swim' - if you can't self-finance, why should the taxpayer bail you out? That's a whole essay in its self, but needless to say there are very few places in the world where the complicated set of factors peculiar to the promotion of a minority music can be truly left to market forces. Upfront costs to the promoter of instrument and venue hire, cautious ticket pricing, the capacity of local venues themselves - breaking even is virtually impossible in the provinces, underlning the need to subsidise minority arts so that culturally valuable traditions can both survive and grow.

Of course this is all highly subjective, and some would argue that subsidising 'improv', a music for which audiences still barely scrape into double figures despite lots of local exposure, is the duty of any responsible and culturally 'switched on' Government The enduring value of jazz in its broadest sense is surely inarguable by now, making its subsidy as essential as that of ballet or opera, but perhaps it is part of the overall master plan for 'improv' that it will be enthusiastically picked up by an evangelical army of Big Society volunteers? All joking aside, I do fear that talented guys like Mark Sanders, John Edwards and Steve Noble will find it increasingly difficult to perform the music they love in front of audiences outside of London.

It all seems somehow different in our capitol city, but if gigs in the provinces start to dry up then the impact will surely be felt by London based artists too Two of the three gigs we've seen since the Glasgow trip were at the South Bank Centre, prototype for The Sage. The first gig formed part of the summer of Festival of Britain commemorations, one of a series of four gigs celebrating different aspects of British jazz. Soweto Kinch led a brilliant quintet (which included Byron Wallen and Jim Hart) through a programme of Joe Harriott's music, largely drawn from the 'Abstract' LP. Really getting under the skin of the man and his music (and from a contemporary perspective), this was as successful a tribute as you could ever hope to hear, and I have to say that it was also much more stimulating than Vandermark's relatively conservative 'Straight Lines' project of a few years back. Proof also that in the right place (i.e. London), otherwise neglected corners of British jazz can still be celebrated in front of packed houses.

The main event which had first drawn us to London took place the following evening. Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Jack De Johnette wowed a packed Royal Festival Hall, where punters had paid around £75/head for the privilege. But a privilege it certainly was, with the trio in relaxed but expansive mood. Any hangovers of Jarrett's debilitating viral illness seem long gone, the trio storming through two sets and four encores. Artistry of the very highest level, it was one of those rare experiences (just like Stanko's Glasgow show) which seem almost perfect.

Last night we were back to the rather less glamorous provincial scene, travelling through the cold and the rain to Gateshead Old Town Hall to hear Arun Ghosh's quintet. A very different line-up to the one billed - no Idris Rahman or Shabaka Hutchings, but Corey Mwamba popped up on vibes to temper the slight disappointment. Ghosh's energy was infectious, but only a disappointingly small crowd turned out to see one of the most refreshing voices on the UK scene (making this a highly subsidised event, to return to this by now rather obvious thread). Playing material from his soon to be released second album, it was evident just how naturally Ghosh fuses collective improvisation with the Eastern influences of Alice Coltrane and Pharaoh Sanders, the energy of rock, and the formal disciplines of European music.

I couldn't help but notice that an upcoming performance by Julian Siegel for Jazz North East clashes with Christian Wallumrød's show at The Sage. With such a small local audience for promoters to scrapple over, this dilution of impact and lack of local co-ordination doesn't really make a lot of sense. I'm sure that many would potentially go to both gigs, but I know from my time at Jazz North East that these things do happen from time to time, and that once the bookings are made there's very little that can be done but to hope that your event is the more attractive of the two. Faced with this choice it'll be the Norwegian visitor who'll be getting our dollar, but how about a joining of forces to present the two groups as a double bill?

London Jazz Festival is not far away, and for the second year running we'll be combining some Christmas shopping with my birthday. I'm already excited about seeing Joachim Kühn (with Archie Shepp), Marcin Wasilewski with Stefano Bollani and Martial Solal, Bill Frisell, and Roy Haynes. We may even check out Henry Threadgill, although the inclination to wade in his rather strange but fascinating musical treacle isn't really there at the moment. So good to have the option, though...

Fred Grand

Glaswegian Kisses...

Over the years I've been to Glasgow International Jazz Festival many times, though I haven't paid it a visit now for at least a decade. A few fallow years with little of interest, coupled with the constant stream of quality music presented locally at The Sage, has made the festival somewhat superfluous in the overall scheme of things. Happily that has now changed, as memories of all those previous trips north came flooding back during our visit to the 25th anniversary edition of the festival.

Looking through the festival brochure, I must have driven Louise crazy as I recalled evenings spent listening to the likes of Max Roach, Bill Frisell, Tony Williams, Paul Motian, Bobby Hutcherson, McCoy Tyner, Nils Petter Molvaer, Chico Freeman, the Art Ensemble of Chicago, and the Mingus Big Band. Did you know that I once saw Idrees Muhammad playing with John Hicks and Steve Grossman in Glasgow? Back in the 90's it was almost an annual pilgrimage, and I was often accompanied by the late Chris Yates and son Stephen. We 'discovered' rising stars like Joshua Redman, Robert Mazurek and Jacky Terasson before they were famous, and the unique ambience of the Old Fruitmarket always seemed to offer up something to savour. Significant and formative experiences in my jazz education, to others I guess my memories will be little more than a gratuitous list of names, but Louise certainly approved of our favourite watering hole, the Babbity Bowster, which was just as I remember it.

The last time I was up there was to hear a scintillating Pharoah Sanders in the Old Fruitmarket, which I don't think was even part of the festival. Since then, this most unusual and character-full venue has had a massive overhaul, and if I'm not mistaken the main stage has moved to the opposite end of the hall. There's now a whole complex of music stages in the City Halls, and the Merchant City is really thriving. Tinderbox, home of some of the best fresh coffee either of us have ever tasted and fresh continental cakes including divine friandes, was just around the corner. Even before hearing a single note of music had been heard, it was great to be back!

The lure of Tomasz Stanko was the irresistible force that had initially drawn me back to Clydeside, and with several other events taking place over the same weekend a plan quickly came together. It was a shame that we'd missed Mulatu Aststake, Tommy Smith's Karma and Kit Downes's trio earlier in the week, but taking in the entire event would have been too much of a stretch. Stanko was originally billed in an intriguing double header with Lee Konitz, though serious ill health prevented the venerable saxophonist from appearing. Left fronting Florian Weber's trio 'Minsarah' alone, out of Konitz's adversity Stanko produced an almighty triumph! This was undoubtedly one of the greatest gigs I've ever seen, the great trumpeter in complete command of his unique voice as he floated through through many of his best known pieces. Minsarah were new to me, though I've been aware of Weber for a couple of years. This free-wheeling trio enveloped the music as if it were their own, and in many respects Stanko's great legacy does indeed belong to every contemporary European artist. Stanko's status as one of the greatest living jazz improvisers was emphatically underlined in this near perfect performance.

Following hot on the heels of Stanko, in the rather more intimate surroundings of the Tron Theatre, was another top drawer European dish. Edition Records certainly have a class act on their hands with 'Meadow'. John Taylor, Tore Brunborg and Thomas Strønen collectively and individually held the audience rapt with their delicate improvisations. Playing entirely acoustically, their close listening and sensitivities to nuance were impeccable. Brunborg, surely the most considered and calculating improviser I've seen for a long time, stuck entirely to tenor. It was good to hear his more extrovert side emerge from time to time, and although very much under the spell of Garbarek I can think of musical touchstones that are far, far worse. 

Speaking of Garbarek, he was in fine voice with the Hilliard Ensemble at Durham Cathedral last week. With licence to improvise, he literally walked-the-talk up and down the central knave. His well-established connection to Eastern musical influences made him very much at home with the Armenian liturgical roots of much of the material. Like Stanko or Frisell his biggest asset is that unique musical voice, and no matter what musical company he may keep that voice always stays true. Cynical doubters of this project, perhaps unimpressed by its crossover appeal, need to re-examine their position quickly!

The other Glasgow gigs were in many respects there to pad out the main events of the weekend, though there was something good to take from each. Leon Russell's deep south boogie was fine in small doses, whilst Ramsey Lewis's run through the bulk of his Earth Wind & Fire produced gem 'Sun Goddess' (1974) was an unqualified success. Courtney Pine's 'Europa' was a great show, combining crowd pleasing entertainment with a strong cast of gifted artists including Zoe Rahman and Omar Puente. Ridiculously young guitarist Andreas Varady showed that he'll have a great future ahead of him if he survives puberty, and during his relaxed afternoon set his regular quartet was joined by Ryan Quigley on a slowed down 'Giant Steps'. 

I've got a neat pile of CDs to review at the moment, including the latest Gary Burton ('Common Ground') which marks a stunning return to form,. The new Tonbruket disc consolidates Dan Berglund's post E.S.T. direction of travel away from the jazz mainstream, whilst Laszlo Gardony's latest shows what an under-rated player he continues to be. I can't quite make my mind up about John Escreet's densely formed fusion, though with Wayne Krantz in the group it can't be too bad. As far as live music goes, we'll pass on tonight's Newcastle gig by Paul Dunmall, so next up for us will be a London break taking in Soweto Kinch's Joe Harriott tribute and Keith Jarrett's 'Standards' trio...

Fred Grand

Stern Words...

The latest Jazz Journal is out now, and my interview with Mike Stern has made it as a cover feature. Looks superb, and top marks to editor Mark Gilbert for taking a chance with a feature on a musician who most would agree doesn't really fit with the tastes of the normal JJ constituency!!

Needless to say I'm delighted, and the fact that Stern waxes lyrical about bop should surprise and wrong foot a few people. 

Off to Glasgow soon to catch a few gigs at the International Jazz Festival - Tomasz Stanko followed by Meadow (Tore Brunborg, John Taylor and Thomas Strønen) look like the stand outs - and hope to blog again after the festival...

Fast taste, slow read...

One of the features I used to love in Jazz Review was the Fast Taste column. I don't think I did it more than three times, but receiving a box full of 30-40 CDs and choosing about 15 to encapsulate in just a few words was a very different type of challenge. How often do you see Cecil Taylor and Paul Whiteman reviewed in the same column? Sadly the column is no more now that the magazine has morphed identities, although we do still do brief reviews of single discs in Jazz Journal.

Back to the present, and my new release of the moment, even displacing Matthias Eick from his lofty pedestal, is the Nils Økland's latest disc on ECM. Just over an hour of concentrated beauty, and the perfect marriage of Scandinavian folk music and contemporary classical composition. The label is in fact having a great 2011, and I'd also highly recommend recent releases by Julia Hülsmann, Marcin Wasilewski, Iro Haarla and Colin Vallon.

On that positive note, here's my last ever Fast Taste from August 2008. The Michael Adkins disc wasn't actually in the box, but Michael contacted me diredtly after stumbling across this page and after hearing the disc and loving it I was happy to slip it in anyway.

Apologies to those who have contacted me recently offering CDs to review - I've just been so busy that I couldn't possibly have taken on any more work. Things are starting to quieten down again now, and perhaps I'll get round to exploring some new sounds soon.

JULIAN “CANNONBALL” ADDERLEY Live In Italy 1969 (Gambit Records 69289)

Numerous releases culled from radio footage and concert archives of the Adderley brothers’ quintet with Joe Zawinul are available, and often there’s little to choose between them. Most offer at least one version of ‘Mercy, Mercy, Mercy’ and ‘Walk Tall’, capture the leader’s loquacious banter between tracks, and balance acoustic and electric instrumentation. This disc actually presents two concerts just days apart, but despite the title only one was actually recorded in Italy. Standout track is ‘The Scavenger’, which flirts with modal chaos, and whilst the remainder is firmly in line with expectations, it’s a nice document of the group in a period of musical transition.

MICHAEL ADKINS QUARTET Rotator (hatOLOGY 660)

Prior to having my interest piqued by Rotator, I knew nothing of Canadian tenor saxophonist Michael Adkins. With a full-bodied sound, thoughtful oblique phrasing and an intelligent use of micro-tonalities, Adkins’ voice lies somewhere beyond Joe Lovano. The thrill of hearing Paul Motian at his most expansive is to a large extent Adkins’ achievement, the drummer seemingly spurred on by the inherent drama of the music. Motian adopts its confident swagger through many points of disintegration, and no storm is too turbulent, yet the patterns are never predictable and an underlying calm enigmatically remains. Pianist Russ Lossing and bassist John Hébert complete a highly responsive quartet, and if you like melodies with your freedom, you’ll need to hear this.

CHET BAKER with DICK TWARDZIK The Complete 1955 Holland Concerts (Lonehill Jazz LHJ10334)

A very young Chet Baker obligingly corrects the program notes to announce that Dick Twardzik will be playing the piano this evening, not Russ Freeman. Given the short career of the almost mythical pianist, the discovery of these tapes comes as welcome news even 53 years on. Drawn from performances in The Netherlands on consecutive days, it hardly matters that some of the material overlaps. Baker’s sound is as fragile and bell-like on the ballads as the pianist’s is heavy-handed and blocky, but together they made a great pairing. Twardzik died in Paris of a drugs overdose barely a month later, and Baker’s announcement that “…we hope to be back in a year or two...” was, with hindsight, wildly optimistic. Variable sound quality, but an invaluable document.

CLIFFORD BROWN Four Classic Albums (Avid Jazz 2CD AMSC950)

The stream of un-copyrighted material currently being re-issued is something of a mini-thread in this column. Challenging times undoubtedly lie ahead for the major record labels, which stand to see former Crown Jewels disappearing unless they can compete on quality and price. Here is a case in point – four great Clifford Brown albums from the mid ‘50s, collected, crisply re-mastered and sold perfectly legally. For the record we get Brown & Roach Inc., Study In Brown, Jam Session and odd man out New Star on The Horizon (a 1953 date with Art Blakey on drums). Original artwork is a little small, but the liner notes survive intact. Such historic music should need little comment or introduction to such a discriminating readership, and suffice to say that if you don’t yet own all of the material, this release deserves serious consideration.

XAVIER CHARLES/IVAR GRYDELAND/CHRISTIAN WALLUMRØD/INGAR ZACH Dans Les Arbres (ECM 2058)

A laminal and very organic post-AMM soundworld, this is not the kind of release you immediately associate with latter day ECM. Extended techniques include piano preparations, scraping percussion, flutter-tongued clarinet and even some ‘just’ intonation banjo. There is a hypnotic, almost ritualistic quality to the way in which tension builds and releases. My over riding impression is of an unsettling journey through one of Caspar David Friedrich’s dense, dark forests. Dans les Arbres is both an album and a group title, so I suspect the effect is wholly intentional. Intriguing and unsettling in equal measure, this should satisfy fans of ‘new’ music and ‘improv’ alike.

KENNY CLARKE Telefunken Blues (Jazz Track Records 940)

A mix & match package offering two complete albums with original covers and liner notes. Telefunken Blues comprises two sessions. The first prominently features the vibes of Milt Jackson, and with Percy Heath’s bass we almost have the MJQ. Frank Morgan’s searing alto and Walter Benton’s fruity tenor alter the dynamics however, with outstanding results. Basie-ites Frank Wess, Henry Coker and Charlie Fowlkes bring a lighter swing to the album’s B Side, whilst the remaining music was originally released as The Kenny Clarke-Ernie Wilkins Septet (1955). More of an arranger’s date really, but Klook’s unaccompanied ‘Now’s The Time’ still sounds right out there.

GRAHAM COLLIER Down Another Road/Songs For My Father/Mosaics (BGO Records CD767)

Independent label BGO has virtually cornered the market for quality re-issues of material from what I regard as the ‘golden era’ of British modern jazz. Here we have three complete albums spanning the years 1968-70, and a subtle shift can be traced in Collier’s music over the course of the two CDs. Post-bop explorations of freedom and structure are the starting point, dallying occasionally with rock before finally acquiring a greater open-endedness of form on Mosaics. Harry Beckett, Stan Sulzmann, Alan Wakeman and John Taylor are all generously featured, yet even with their considerable talents it is the music’s Euro-centric re-examination of sounds from across the Atlantic that leaves the deepest impression. So many options exist for the musicians, and Collier’s urgent musical structures make the perfect frame. Delicious.

WAYNE HORVITZ GRAVITAS QUARTET One Dance Alone (Songlines 1571-2)

Along with Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell, Wayne Horvitz is one of the great exponents of ‘Americana’ in contemporary jazz. In this, the second Songlines album from his Gravitas Quartet, his fascination with melding improvisation and through composition is further explored. Peggy Lee’s cello and Sara Schoenbeck’s bassoon add both texture and counterpoint, whilst Ron Miles’ plaintive trumpet states folksy themes and splutters into abstraction with equal alacrity. More spiky than its predecessor and with fewer typically Horvitz-ian pieces, this is nevertheless a quietly impressive addition to an uncommonly individual body of work.

CAROLYN HUME Gravity and Grace (LEO RECORDS LR515)

This is British pianist/composer Carolyn Hume’s fifth outing for Leo, and to my ears her most satisfying yet. A haunting series of meditations, the pairing of Hume’s rich, brooding piano with the classically trained voice of Sonja Galsworthy and the cello of Oliver Coates creates what could easily be a suitably elegiac soundtrack for a classy Claude Chabrol mystery. Minor key and spacious, there’s an economy and grace recalling the best ECM New Series crossovers. This is contemporary chamber-jazz with a magnetically irresistible luxuriance.

JOE McPHEE with Paul Plimley & Lisle Ellis Sweet Freedom – Now What? (hatOLOGY 602)

Discerning readers will probably own this1994 landmark already, but its re-issue is nevertheless worth bringing to wider attention. A beautifully crafted and highly personal take on Max Roach’s Freedom Suite (1960), three under-sung talents operating on the cusp of free-jazz and improvised music create something truly heartfelt and poignant. There’s a far greater connection to the tradition here than in much of McPhee’s work, and the questions he poses, both musical and metaphorical, are clearly as relevant as they were for Roach. ‘Triptych’ makes the hairs stand up on the back of the neck, and the faster of the two takes of ‘Mendacity’ should meet anybody’s definition of swing. If you only ever buy McPhee disc, make this the one.

ZOE & IDRIS RAHMAN Where Rivers Meet (Manushi Records CD004)

An exploration of colliding cultures, Where Rivers Meet may come as something of a surprise to listeners only familiar hitherto with Rahman’s trio. In essence it’s simply a more explicit statement of her dual heritage, expanding the instrumental palette and making viable jazz vehicles from Bengali source material. Idris Rahman, her brother, gets equal billing, and his pithy clarinets are at various times augmented by the voices of other Rahman siblings. The modal stasis and the influence of traditional Raga forms bring echoes of the more transcendental moments from Alice Coltrane’s Impulse! works of the early ‘70s. Where Rivers Meet is an impressive statement from one of Europe’s rising stars.

FRANK ROSOLINO Let’s Make It (Lonehill Jazz LHJ10331)

Trombonist Frank Rosolino is legendary for all of the wrong reasons, his tragic personal life overshadowing considerable prowess as a musician. A leading light of the late ‘50s West Coast jazz scene, these two albums from 1957 and 1958 capture him at his peak. The Frank Rosolino Quintet sees him fronting a group with Richie Kamuca and Vince Guaraldi. The pianist adds a marvellous piquancy to the date, and Kamuca’s soloing and counterpoint is the essence of ‘cool’. Harold Land and Victor Feldman come in for the 1958 session, and the more varied selections and arrangements make it slightly the more interesting date. An original in every way, full justice is done to Rosolino’s much feted ability to get around the horn using wild intervallic leaps and astonishing agility. Impressive.

CECIL TAYLOR Jazz Advance (Fresh Sounds FSR-CD 485)

One consequence of the march of time is the advancing frontier of non-copyrighted material ripe for re-issue. Here we have a seminal classic that should need no introduction, lavishly re-issued under the nose of Blue Note with reproductions of the original artwork and liner notes. Such audacity can’t ever be as shocking as the impact this music still holds, straddling traditional jazz and the as yet uncharted territories ahead. Fresh Sounds add three live tracks from Newport 1957 (originally issued on Verve), making it pretty much a definitive edition. Even if you never travel any further down this progressively difficult road, no serious collection should be without such a bona fide milestone as Jazz Advance.

HIROMI UEHARA Hiromi’s Sonicbloom – Beyond Standard (TELARC CD83666)

Post-fusion reconstructions of jazz standards are a dime-a-dozen, usually needing a high degree of artistic judgement to avoid collapsing under their own portentous weight. Few such worries for young Japanese pianist Hiromi, who brings largely fresh approaches to such evergreens as ‘Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise’, ‘Caravan’, and even ‘I’ve Got Rhythm’. Not unlike latter day Chick Corea, she abounds colour and energy and avoids sounding musically moribund. David Fiuczynski shares the solos, and although he’s the kind of testosterone oozing axe-man I normally avoid, his vulgarity is a strangely pleasant foil for Hiromi. Sonicbloom – how apt!

PAUL WHITEMAN King of Jazz 1920-27 (Timeless Historical CBC 1-093)

It’s sadly ironic that one of the earliest popularisers of ‘jazz’ in the United States should be a white man called Whiteman, who rarely played with anything more than a jazz veneer. The ‘King of Jazz’ certainly embodied the complex racial politics of the ‘Jazz Age’, and this selection offers a useful taster of his work. Musically credible enough for ‘long-hair’ collaborations with George Gershwin (Whiteman actually played at the premiere of Rhapsody In Blue in 1924), it’s also true that numerous famous employees, from Bix Beiderbecke to Jack Teagarden, were stifled by the syrupy dance-band-cum-tea-room arrangements heard here. Bouquets to Timeless though for such a well presented survey of music with massive historical significance.

LESTER YOUNG Jazz Giants ’56 (Lonehill Jazz 10330)

I already own a Verve release of this late Prez monument, but now courtesy of controversial label Lonehill Jazz it resurfaces with similar artwork and extra material. The label may at other times have taken advantage of Andorra’s relatively lax 25-year copyright protection loophole, but this music falls outside of the more general 50-year period in any event. Coming from Young’s last great flush of creativity, there is something especially moving about the brittleness of his sound on the ballads. Although much of the emphatic authority is gone, it’s great to hear him front a hard blowing septet that includes Roy Eldridge, Vic Dickenson, Teddy Wilson and Jo Jones. The extra material is the sprawling 27 minute ‘Funky Blues No. 2’ from a 1954 Norman Granz Jam Session. The group features Eldridge alongside precocious young admirer Dizzy Gillespie, but strangely not Prez.

Fred Grand