All Categories — All Formats  

Unreleased genius from the vaults of ECM – a double-length live set from the Magico trio of Jan Garbarek on reeds, Egberto Gismonti on guitar and piano, and Charlie Haden on bass! The trio have a wonderfully balanced sound – completely evocative and filled with soul – spacious, yet never sleepy – as the voice of each individual player is given plenty of room for expression, but also comes together in this rich new sound that's a great illustration of ECM at its finest. Garbarek's tenor and soprano sax seem to have a deeper sense of soul than usual in this setting, Gismonti's guitar lines are especially warm and personal, and the bass of Haden always shines in a format like this. Titles include "Folk Song", "Spor", "Carta De Amor", "Two Folk Songs", "Palhaco", "Branquinho", and "La Pasionaria".

With Ernie Watts on tenor, Alan Broadbent on piano, and Lawrence Marable on drums – plus a string orchestra conducted by Broadbent on most tracks!

Charlie Haden and Hank Jones reunite as a duo – working through a set of songs with spiritual sources, in ways that really seem to unlock the warmest elements of both players! Jones is no stranger to this sort of mode, especially in later years – and his gentle, spacious touch on the keys of the piano is a real change from some of the heavier modes you might have heard when these tunes were played along with a choir. But the real revelation is possibly Haden – who hits some of his most evocative, sentimental sounds in years – a great reminder of the ways that he could always paint such a pretty picture with his basslines when he wanted. Titles include "Deep River", "The Old Rugged Cross", "Down By The Riverside", "Going Home", "Blessed Assurance", "Come Sunday", and "Nearer My God To Thee".

A sweet trio session with Charlie Haden on bass and Bill Higgins on drums. Titles include "The Calling", "Tears Inside", "Lonely Woman", and "Rejoicing".

One of the greatest records ever from Japanese drummer Masahiko Togashi – a rare European session that features the talents of Don Cherry on trumpet and Charlie Haden on bass! The session's one of Cherry's most compelling performances from the time – a really loose and free date that could have easily been recorded a decade before – yet which also seems to have that new sense of warmth and spiritualism that Don brought to his best experiments in the 70s. And Togashi really brings this spiritual, soulful quality to the proceedings – using percussion in earthy and subtle ways that really let Haden's basslines come forward too! Titles include "Rain", "Song Of Soil", "June", "Oasis", and "Words Of Wind (parts 1 & 2)".

An overlooked gem from the revival years of Impulse Records – a set recorded in the mid 80s, but one that easily matches the soul and spirituality of the label's best work from the late 60s and early 70s! Pianist Henry Butler steps out here with a strong musical vision – one colored by his own bold McCoy Tyner-esque lines on the piano – and embellished by great solo work from Freddie Hubbard on trumpet and Azar Lawrence on tenor. Rhythm is by Charlie Haden on bass and Billy Higgins on drums – who definitely match Butler's pulsating, modal-influenced groove here – and additional instrumentation includes bits of flute and oboe, plus a string quartet on 2 numbers – coming off with Alice Coltrane-like brilliance! Great proof that righteous jazz was still being made in the 80s – with titles that include "Fivin Around", "LA Samba", "Improvisation On An Afghan Theme", "Giant Steps", and "Butler's Blues".

The title gets it right – as the album's easily the closest thing to free jazz that Ornette Coleman ever recorded – an album-length improvisation played by a "double quartet" that's overflowing with classic players! The style here is a fair bit like John Coltrane's Ascension album for Impulse – and like that one, the session features Ornette and his contemporaries really stretching out – blowing like never heard before on record, and working in a highly unstructured setting! Other players include Eric Dolphy on bass clarinet, Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, and Scott LaFaro on bass – alongside regular group members Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Charlie Haden on bass, and both Ed Blackwell and Billy Higgins on drums. One long track – just titled "Free Jazz"!

An album that certainly lives up to the promise of its title – as it's filled with amazing instrumentation, groundbreaking compositions, and a sound in jazz that few ears could imagine at the time! The groove here is extremely modal – all instruments rolling along on the same rhythmic pulse, with drums, bass, trumpet, and alto sax incredibly intertwined! Ornette's really got an edge on his instrument – cutting even more deeply here than the clipped, punctuated cornet work of Don Cherry – and the rhythm team of Charlie Haden and Billy Higgins are simply amazing – not just keeping up with the energy of Ornette, but also really helping facilitate it as well! Titles include the haunting "Lonely Woman", plus "Peace", "Chronology", and "Focus on Sanity".

Late work from Miles Davis – his last-ever appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival – but a set that still has him sounding great! The performance is a special tribute to Quincy Jones, so instead of playing material from the Doo Bop generation, Miles is going more for a late 50s mode – blowing over backings put together by Quincy Jones and Claude Nobs, intended to recreate the sound of the Gil Evans/Miles collaborations. Titles include "The Duke", "Miles Ahead", "Blues For Pablo", "Summertime", "The Pan Piper", "Maids Of Cadiz", and "Gone Gone Gone". DVD features inerviews with Betty Carter, Helen Merrill, Charlie Haden, Monty Alexander, Stanley Clarke, and others.

Dark and moody work from Keith Jarrett – a record that builds strongly off his ensemble feeling of the Impulse years, but which also seems to carry a bit more of the introspective vibe he was building up in some of his more stripped down solo recordings! The group's still a great one here – with Dewey Redman on reeds, Charlie Haden on bass, Paul Motian on drums, and Guilhermo Franco on percussion – and the tunes, although long and somewhat free, still show Jarrett's great ear for a lyrical melody – carried off wonderfully without cliche, and still with more sharp edges than you might expect. Titles include "Rotation", "Everything That Lives Laments", "Flame", and "Mysteries".

At the height of his success, Pat tries to prove to the world that he's still got cred – and hooks up with Ornette, Charlie Haden, and Denardo Coleman for a little bit of harmelodic jamming. Thing is, we actually liked the slick stuff better! Titles include "Mob Job", "Video Games", "Song X Duo", and "Long Time No See".

Music that really made the career of drummer Paul Motian – work that firmly established his power as a leader in the 70s, and showed the world that he had a huge range of music to offer beyond his initial fame with Bill Evans! Motian works here both on percussion and a standard drum kit – often in ways that intertwine rhythmic and melodic elements, in the freer structures that ECM helped unleash in the 70s – modes that often show a spiritual side to Paul's music that would have been unexpected a decade before – wrapped up in the company of some fresh young talents from the underground! Players on the dates include Keith Jarrett on piano, Leroy Jenkins on violin, Becky Friend on flute, Charles Brackeen on tenor and soprano sax, Joe Lovano on tenor, Bill Frisell on guitar, Billy Drewes on alto and tenor, David Izenzon and Charlie Haden on bass, and Sam Brown on guitar – and the 6 CD set features the full albums Conception Vessel, Tribute, Dance, Le Voyage, Psalm, and It Should've Happened A Long Time Ago.

Growing brilliance from the young Archie Shepp – a record that's not just about Archie's own amazing work on the tenor, but also his keen modern vision as a leader! The combo here is an ensemble that features some of the hippest modernists of the 60s – Roswell Rudd and Grachan Moncur on trombone, Perry Robinson on clarinet, Howard Johnson on tuba, Charlie Haden on bass, and Tommy Turrentine on trumpet – making a rare non-bop appearance here, and further enforcing our already-high estimation of his talents! The style's somewhat in the "new thing" mode of the period, but it's also a bit more tightly arranged too – almost hitting Mingus-like modes for the bigger ensemble – balancing the force of the group together with very free, bold solo impulses from the players. Side one features the extended "Portrait Of Robert Thompson (As A Young Man)" – and side two features "Mama Too Tight", "Theme For Ernie", and "Basheer".

Growing brilliance from the young Archie Shepp – a record that's not just about Archie's own amazing work on the tenor, but also his keen modern vision as a leader! The combo here is an ensemble that features some of the hippest modernists of the 60s – Roswell Rudd and Grachan Moncur on trombone, Perry Robinson on clarinet, Howard Johnson on tuba, Charlie Haden on bass, and Tommy Turrentine on trumpet – making a rare non-bop appearance here, and further enforcing our already-high estimation of his talents! The style's somewhat in the "new thing" mode of the period, but it's also a bit more tightly arranged too – almost hitting Mingus-like modes for the bigger ensemble – balancing the force of the group together with very free, bold solo impulses from the players. Side one features the extended "Portrait Of Robert Thompson (As A Young Man)" – and side two features "Mama Too Tight", "Theme For Ernie", and "Basheer".

Don Cherry conducts and solos within a large group featuring Frank Lowe, Dewy Redman, Charlie Haden, Ed Blackwell, Charles Brackeen, and other out players associated with the Jazz Composers Orchestra. Weird rhythms and haunting solos throughout, and titles include "Tantra", "Desireless", "Infinite Gentleness", and "Trans-Love Airways".

The title gets it right – as the album's easily the closest thing to free jazz that Ornette Coleman ever recorded – an album-length improvisation played by a "double quartet" that's overflowing with classic players! The style here is a fair bit like John Coltrane's Ascension album for Impulse – and like that one, the session features Ornette and his contemporaries really stretching out – blowing like never heard before on record, and working in a highly unstructured setting! Other players include Eric Dolphy on bass clarinet, Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, and Scott LaFaro on bass – alongside regular group members Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Charlie Haden on bass, and both Ed Blackwell and Billy Higgins on drums. One long track – just titled "Free Jazz"!

Ornette's masterpiece for Flying Dutchman – and a great set that features Charlie Haden, Dewey Redman, Ed Blackwell, and assorted unnamed "Friends & Neighbors". The majority of the tracks on the LP – "Let's Play", "Long Time No See", "Forgotten Songs", and "Tomorrow" – feature prime playing in the Ornette late 60s/early 70s mode, with a slight bit of a spiritual bent that marks the material from the rest of his work. The group is incredibly tight, and Blackwell and Haden have never sounded better. The title cut, though, is the real mind-blower. It's in 2 parts, with vocal accompaniment by the unnamed mass of "extras", and a tight pulsing groove, with what sounds like an electric bass, and Ornette wailing away on violin. Great stuff, and a record that we hardly ever see in the original!

A wonderful illustration of the inherent sense of beauty in Keith Jarrett's early work – an approach to piano that was simple, straightforward, and marked by a ringing sense of tone that's evident in the very first note of the set! Jarrett here isn't trying to break any rules in jazz piano, nor is he trying to go out of his way to make the world known of his presence – and instead, he's got a simple, subtle approach to the keys that's filled with tenderness and gentle tones – but not in a way that's hokey or overly sentimental. There's certainly echoes here of 60s work by Steve Kuhn, and of earlier records by Vince Guaraldi – but Jarrett also hints at a bold power underneath that seems likely to break out at every turn. The album's a live recording, with Charlie Haden on bass and Paul Motian on drums – and titles include "A Moment For Tears", "Pout's Over", "My Back Pages", "Pretty Ballad", "Moving Soon", "Old Rag", and "Dedicated To You".

Essential stuff! This is one of Ornette Coleman's greatest albums – and it was recorded during a period when he just couldn't miss! The group features Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Charlie Haden on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – working here with a lively dancing sound on the kit, one that works perfectly for Ornette's jaunty compositions. The chopped-up modal groove is in full effect here – making the record a treasure trove of angular, highly rhythmic numbers that are easily some of Coleman's best-remembered tunes! Titles include the classics "Ramblin" and "Una Muy Bonita" – performed in original early versions – plus "Free", "The Face Of The Bass", "Bird Food", and "Change Of The Century".

One of Ornette Coleman's best recordings from the 70s – and like his other album for Columbia, quite a change from the freewheeling sounds he was blowing over at Blue Note! The style here is a bit more high concept, but in a good way – with all the edges that Coleman had developed from the late 50s onward, brought into tighter focus for the Columbia setting – given a bit more complexity, although still with plenty of room for freedom – and played both with a smaller combo, and a slightly larger group. The mix of players is as striking as the sounds on the record – and includes Coleman on alto, trumpet, and violin – plus Dewey Redman on tenor, Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Bobby Bradford on trumpet, Jim Hall on guitar, Cedar Walton on piano, Charlie Haden on bass, and Billy Higgins and Ed Blackwell on drums. Asha Pulthi sings a bit on the larger ensemble tracks – making a rare appearance here before her 70s soul career in Germany – and titles include "What Reason Could I Give", "Street Woman", "The Jungle Is A Skycraper", and "All My Life".

An album that certainly lives up to the promise of its title – as it's filled with amazing instrumentation, groundbreaking compositions, and a sound in jazz that few ears could imagine at the time! The groove here is extremely modal – all instruments rolling along on the same rhythmic pulse, with drums, bass, trumpet, and alto sax incredibly intertwined! Ornette's really got an edge on his instrument – cutting even more deeply here than the clipped, punctuated cornet work of Don Cherry – and the rhythm team of Charlie Haden and Billy Higgins are simply amazing – not just keeping up with the energy of Ornette, but also really helping facilitate it as well! Titles include the haunting "Lonely Woman", plus "Peace", "Chronology", and "Focus on Sanity".

An album that certainly lives up to the promise of its title – as it's filled with amazing instrumentation, groundbreaking compositions, and a sound in jazz that few ears could imagine at the time! The groove here is extremely modal – all instruments rolling along on the same rhythmic pulse, with drums, bass, trumpet, and alto sax incredibly intertwined! Ornette's really got an edge on his instrument – cutting even more deeply here than the clipped, punctuated cornet work of Don Cherry – and the rhythm team of Charlie Haden and Billy Higgins are simply amazing – not just keeping up with the energy of Ornette, but also really helping facilitate it as well! Titles include the haunting "Lonely Woman", plus "Peace", "Chronology", and "Focus on Sanity".

A landmark in modern jazz – from the stark stares of the band on the cover, to the starkly haunting music in the grooves! Ornette, Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, and Ed Blackwell make severe statements about the future of modern music in tracks like "Humpty Dumpty", "Beauty Is a Rare Thing", and "Kaleidoscope" – bouncing the efforts of the whole group off the beat, in a way that's both challenging and groove-heavy at the same time, a key summation of the genius of Ornette's early vision!

Prime Keith Jarrett on Impulse Records – and a still-wonderful session that features work by Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, and Paul Motian! The sound here is a bit more focused than on some of Jarrett's earlier Impulse sides – but still has that rich and organic sound overall – blending instruments from all players with a sound that's spontaneous and flowing. Jarrett himself plays a bit of percussion and wood flute – and Redman also plays maracas and musette! Tracks are long, and include "Kuum", "Inflight", "Vapallia", and "Backhand".

An excellent live outing from pianist Denny Zeitlin – recorded at the height of his early powers! The session's got a fresly new conception to piano-based jazz – a style that resonates nicely with the best 60s work of Steve Kuhn or Keith Jarrett, sharing some of the tenderness of the former and the sense of color of the latter. Rhythm is from the team of Charlie Haden on bass and Jerry Granelli on drums – and Haden's bass is an especially powerful force in the set, pushing out the tunes with a flowing quality that pulsates nicely even on the more gentle numbers. Titles include "Lonely Woman", "Where Does It Lead", "My Shining Hour", "Spur Of The Moment", and "Carole's Waltz".

An excellent live outing from pianist Denny Zeitlin – recorded at the height of his early powers! The session's got a fresly new conception to piano-based jazz – a style that resonates nicely with the best 60s work of Steve Kuhn or Keith Jarrett, sharing some of the tenderness of the former and the sense of color of the latter. Rhythm is from the team of Charlie Haden on bass and Jerry Granelli on drums – and Haden's bass is an especially powerful force in the set, pushing out the tunes with a flowing quality that pulsates nicely even on the more gentle numbers. Titles include "Lonely Woman", "Where Does It Lead", "My Shining Hour", "Spur Of The Moment", and "Carole's Waltz".

Arguably the most classic Alice Coltrane album on Impulse – and a strong group effort that features some great work from Pharoah Sanders! Coltrane leads two different small combos on the record – both with Sanders on saxes, plus either Cecil McBee or Charlie Haden on bass, and Rashied Ali on drums – plus assorted percussion from Tulsi and Majid Shabazz, and some really enigmatic work on oud by Vishnu Wood! Tracks are long and drawn out, and open with the beauty of a field of flowers meeting the dawn – as Alice plays with a sound that's gentle and poetic, but which also has some wonderfully dark undertones. Titles include "Stopover Bombay", "Isis & Osiris", "Shiva-Loka", and "Journey In Satchidananda".

Beautifully high concept work from Alice Coltrane – the kind of record you'd use to announce the arrival of a new king – or lord, for that matter! The record features Coltrane at the head of a large group of string players – creating a full, rich sound that serves as the backdrop for the core group of musicians – a trio that features Alice on piano, organ, and harp, plus Charlie Haden on bass and Ben Riley on drums and percussion. The tracks are long, and at times very dark – extremely powerful in their sound, and with a sense of hope, life, and majesty that's extremely inspiring! Titles include "Sri Rama Ohnedaruth", "The Firebird", "Lord of Lords", and "Going Home".

Genre blending jazz altoist and and hip hop MC Soweto Kinch is on the cover of Jazzwize – which also has features on legendary sax player Charles Lloyd, drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, Polish jazz great Tomasz Stanko, pianist Julia Hulsmann on the Pat Methany/Charlie Haden record that proved to be a crucial one for her in this issue's Turning Point, plus Mark Lockheart's radical new Duke Ellington project, Fontanelle, Dave Hamblett, George Gruntz and more! Also includes all the great regular Jazzwize coverage of jazz news, reviews of records, film, books, DVDs, instruments and more.

Beautiful work from Seung-Hee – a vocalist who splits her time between Korea and North America, and who has a scope of sound that really lives up to her global stance! Seung-Hee has a really classic approach – not 50s torch, but that really inventive period of the 70s, when female jazz vocalists were really breaking free – finding new ways to inflect their notes, and often adding their own words too – in ways that made the music even more expressive than before! Seung-Hee's got a great way with a tune, and turns in some excellent compositions here – including a few set to music by Bill Evans and Charlie Haden – often with that freewheeling mix of breezy and soulful styles that we love in our favorite European jazz vocalists from years back. This album's a great step forward for the singer – and may well put her in a lineage that includes the best work by singers like Sheila Jordan, Monica Linges, and Karin Krog. Titles include "Sketc Part 2", "I'll Be Here", "Winter & Then", "Valparaiso", "An Elliptical Note", "By The Sea", "Visions", and a version of Edo Lobo's "Pra Dizer Adeus".

A beautiful meeting of two major talents from the left end of jazz – recorded in the early 60's when both were working for Atlantic! Despite the "avant garde" title, this set is straighter than you'd expect – very much in the spirit of Coltrane's work for the label, but with perhaps some of the more angular styles that Cherry was laying down with Ornette Coleman at the time. The session has Coltrane joining Ornette's group of Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, and Ed Blackwell – save for a few numbers that feature Percy Heath on bass instead of Haden. The set includes great readings of Ornette's "The Blessing", "The Invisible", and "Focus On Sanity", and Coltrane plays both soprano sax and tenor!

Very hip piano trio work – the second Columbia album by Denny Zeitlin, a young fresh talent in the 60s, with an approach that was lyrical, slightly modern, and a bit soulful. Carnival is a bit more free flowing than his first – with Charlie Haden doing some great bass, making a rare small group appearance here. Most tunes are originals by Zeitlin – and titles include "After The War", "Skippying", "Carnival", and "Minority".