A brilliant little CD – one that features 2 rare 60s recordings by vibraphonist
Walt Dickerson! First up is Unity, a session that has
Dickerson in the company of pianist
Walter Davis Jr. and drummer Andrew Cyrille. The record is very unusual for the time – as each side is one long track, both very open-ended, with a haunting approach to vibes that had yet to be cut on wax by any other player.
Dickerson is as fantastic as always, and this session ranks right next to his classic "To My Queen" for sheer brilliance. Titles are "Unity" and "High Moon" – both with writing credits split between
Dickerson and Sidney Frey, the guy who owned Audio Fidelity! This one's followed by Vibes In Motion, a strange little album – one that repackages
Walt's Lawrence Of Arabia album in the early 60s, ostensibly because the big Arabia buzz had died down! Forget the "Lawrence Of Arabia" in the title, or any of the cheesy references that it might imply, because this LP is as great as any of
Walt Dickerson's other records from the time, and it's got the same band that graced his Prestige recordings – Andrew Cyrille on drums, Henry Grimes on bass, and Austin Crow on piano. The music's a beautiful blend of piano and vibes, played with
Dickerson's usual dark edge – and even though the compositions are from a familiar soundtrack of the time,
Dickerson makes them into moody bases for improvisation over some exotic jazz changes. Beautiful all the way through – and featuring the tracks "That Is The Desert", "Motif", "Nefud Mirage", and "Voice Of The Guns".
(Out of print.)