What Jazz are you listening to now?

[Ian Thumwood]

The first official release of part of the 1962 Graz concert by the John Coltrane Quartet:

http://www.squidco.com/miva/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=S&Product_Code=28368

JR

Jazzrook

I am not sure if you have come across the article on line that was tagged on to a review of "Blue world" which outlined the extent of unreleased Coltrane material in the vaults. I believe the statistic was something like 80 CD's worth of material. This poses an interesting dilemma for me as you could envisage the point being reached where this "bootleg" material is sufficient to revise our understanding of a musician. Given the extent of what has not been issued by John Coltrane probably exceeds what has been made public to date, it is no inconceivable that it may be possible to encounter a performance that is on major significance.

I have been looking with interest at some of the swathe of recordings that have surfaced in the last few years and the music that is being made available is quite incredible. I am no fan of Stan Getz yet the "Live at the Village Gate" double CD sounded incredible when I heard a track n the radio before Christmas. I was really tempted but wanted to read some more reviews and maybe hear the opinion of others. Last year a Cannonball Adderley set appeared which was just as tempting. In the past I have been a bit reticent about live recordings as they can include elements which I find really annoying such as poor audio quality, hackneyed material with a preponderance of standards and, worst of all, out of tune pianos - the latter totally saps my enjoyment of jazz. Putting this aside, I ordered a live session from the Onkel Po jazz club which have been fascinating me for ages because they feature musicians like Woody Shaw who are seriously under-appreciated at this point in time. The disc that particularly appealed featured Harold Land, Curtis Fuller, Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Bobby Hutcherson and Buster Williams. Land is one of those musicians that is largely forgotten these days but his disc "The Fox" and his appearances with Gerald Wilson always impressed me. In addition, any record that also features Bobby Hutcherson and Curtis Fuller in the line up is too good to resist. I would have to say any ensemble with Fuller on trombone has got to sound good!

[Jazzrook]

Jazzrook

I am not sure if you have come across the article on line that was tagged on to a review of "Blue world" which outlined the extent of unreleased Coltrane material in the vaults. I believe the statistic was something like 80 CD's worth of material. This poses an interesting dilemma for me as you could envisage the point being reached where this "bootleg" material is sufficient to revise our understanding of a musician. Given the extent of what has not been issued by John Coltrane probably exceeds what has been made public to date, it is no inconceivable that it may be possible to encounter a performance that is on major significance.

I have been looking with interest at some of the swathe of recordings that have surfaced in the last few years and the music that is being made available is quite incredible. I am no fan of Stan Getz yet the "Live at the Village Gate" double CD sounded incredible when I heard a track n the radio before Christmas. I was really tempted but wanted to read some more reviews and maybe hear the opinion of others. Last year a Cannonball Adderley set appeared which was just as tempting. In the past I have been a bit reticent about live recordings as they can include elements which I find really annoying such as poor audio quality, hackneyed material with a preponderance of standards and, worst of all, out of tune pianos - the latter totally saps my enjoyment of jazz. Putting this aside, I ordered a live session from the Onkel Po jazz club which have been fascinating me for ages because they feature musicians like Woody Shaw who are seriously under-appreciated at this point in time. The disc that particularly appealed featured Harold Land, Curtis Fuller, Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Bobby Hutcherson and Buster Williams. Land is one of those musicians that is largely forgotten these days but his disc "The Fox" and his appearances with Gerald Wilson always impressed me. In addition, any record that also features Bobby Hutcherson and Curtis Fuller in the line up is too good to resist. I would have to say any ensemble with Fuller on trombone has got to sound good!

Thanks, Ian
Just discovered this video of the excellent group you mentioned, 'The Timeless All Stars':

https://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=9wHL7WYmzW0

JR

[Joseph K]

John Coltrane - Transition

[Stanfordian]

‘Street Singer’ – Jackie McLean & Tina Brooks
Jackie McLean & Tina Brooks with Blue Mitchell, Kenny Drew, Paul Chambers & Art Taylor
Blue Note (1960)

[Joseph K]

Thelonious Monk Trio.

[Serial_Apologist]

Another from Ron Mathewson's amazing archive - this time a long set from Harry Beckett's S&R Powerhouse Section, with Ron depping on a 1975 Hamburg gig. Harry had some dream line-ups back then - this was one of the best.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwdKwTYtiag&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0IKUqh2F7Qr7gduIG9Ri-gcUW1PqUCs4JQB_PdJe54JXjUkO1nB8dJ3ww

[Ian Thumwood]

Thelonious Monk Trio.

This is the first modern jazz record I bought when I was 16. I cycled 8 miles in to Southampton to buy the LP from HMW. I still think it is one of Monk's best albums. I have been playing Vol. 2 of the Blue Note recordings in the car throughout last week. I find this a problematic record. It has some of Monk's best tunes on yet even the stellar musicians such as Kenny Dorham, Lucky Thompson, etc struggle to get their hands around the heads. I find this annoying because there are rarely played tunes like "Four in one" and "hornin' in" which are amongst my favourite Monk compositions.

[Ian Thumwood]

I have been playing the latest album by Argentinian composer and pianist Guillermo Klein. Klein is a musician I have heard name-checked quite frequently and had a mental impression of him being associated with the avant garde. However, I cannot recollect ever hearing anything by him or any of his groups, the most celebrated of which is a small big band called "Los Gauchos" which I think translates as "The blokes."

The latest record got a favourable review and I ordered back in the middle of December out of curiosity. I have been playing the record today and the music is certainly unique. It sounds like the recordings of a sensual South American dance band from the mid twentieth century which somehow has been dropped and shattered before being reassembled in a fashion which is determinedly post-modern. It is like an aural mosaic built from the fragments of something else. The sumptuous melodies are still there somewhere within the mix yet the arrangements are full of dissonance and irregular time signatures that jump all over the place. The scores sound frighteningly difficult to play and the ensemble includes some stellar contemporary soloists who are given the task of performing the music. These include the likes of Ben Monder, Chris Cheek and Miguel Zenon. Parts of the music recall minimalism although there is a very strong folk / nostalgia element within the music.

I did not appreciate that "Los Gauchos" have been around for about 25 years and they have been totally beneath my radar. The music is ambitious and Klein knows how to write for an ensemble even if much of the music does not swing in a traditional sense. It almost feels like something ECM could have produced in the mid 1980s although I think the writing is pretty demonstrative of how jazz has evolved in the last 35 years. (Thinking along the lines of Charlie Haden's Liberation Orchestra but I have also seen comparisons with Gil Evans' later work too. ) I am still ploughing through this disc which is fascinating and has the feel of something that will yield more treasures as you repeatedly listen to it.

Wondered if anyone else was familiar with Guillermo Klein? Listening to this record I think it would strongly appeal to Elmo and may even be something that Jazzrook would be intrigued by. It has little to do with bop and the writing for the ensemble makes good use of the reduced resources so the ensemble sounds larger than it is whilst still being pretty nimble. I would also add the comment that this is yet another musician who is new to me who seems to add credence to my perception of the increasingly skill and complexity in jazz orchestration that is such a feature of contemporary jazz. The music is so unique that you are immediately pulled in listening to what is going on.

[Stanfordian]

‘The Waiting Game’ - Tina Brooks
Tina Brooks with Johnny Coles, Kenny Drew, Paul Chambers & Philly Joe Jones
Blue Note (recorded 1961: first released 2002)

[CGR]

Bruce Forman - "Forman on the Job"

Bruce Forman Quartet
with Joe Henderson guesting on four tracks
Kamei Recordings (Recorded in 1992)

Just discovered Bruce Forman. There doesn't seem to be a lot of recordings available. What a great guitarist.

[Joseph K]

The first official release of part of the 1962 Graz concert by the John Coltrane Quartet:

http://www.squidco.com/miva/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=S&Product_Code=28368

JR

FWIW: This concert is featured in complete form on John Coltrane European Tour 62 10-disk boxed set, which I've just picked up.

[Serial_Apologist]

I have been playing the latest album by Argentinian composer and pianist Guillermo Klein. Klein is a musician I have heard name-checked quite frequently and had a mental impression of him being associated with the avant garde. However, I cannot recollect ever hearing anything by him or any of his groups, the most celebrated of which is a small big band called "Los Gauchos" which I think translates as "The blokes."

The latest record got a favourable review and I ordered back in the middle of December out of curiosity. I have been playing the record today and the music is certainly unique. It sounds like the recordings of a sensual South American dance band from the mid twentieth century which somehow has been dropped and shattered before being reassembled in a fashion which is determinedly post-modern. It is like an aural mosaic built from the fragments of something else. The sumptuous melodies are still there somewhere within the mix yet the arrangements are full of dissonance and irregular time signatures that jump all over the place. The scores sound frighteningly difficult to play and the ensemble includes some stellar contemporary soloists who are given the task of performing the music. These include the likes of Ben Monder, Chris Cheek and Miguel Zenon. Parts of the music recall minimalism although there is a very strong folk / nostalgia element within the music.

I did not appreciate that "Los Gauchos" have been around for about 25 years and they have been totally beneath my radar. The music is ambitious and Klein knows how to write for an ensemble even if much of the music does not swing in a traditional sense. It almost feels like something ECM could have produced in the mid 1980s although I think the writing is pretty demonstrative of how jazz has evolved in the last 35 years. (Thinking along the lines of Charlie Haden's Liberation Orchestra but I have also seen comparisons with Gil Evans' later work too. ) I am still ploughing through this disc which is fascinating and has the feel of something that will yield more treasures as you repeatedly listen to it.

Wondered if anyone else was familiar with Guillermo Klein? Listening to this record I think it would strongly appeal to Elmo and may even be something that Jazzrook would be intrigued by. It has little to do with bop and the writing for the ensemble makes good use of the reduced resources so the ensemble sounds larger than it is whilst still being pretty nimble. I would also add the comment that this is yet another musician who is new to me who seems to add credence to my perception of the increasingly skill and complexity in jazz orchestration that is such a feature of contemporary jazz. The music is so unique that you are immediately pulled in listening to what is going on.

On this recommendation I rather think I should look up Mr Klein!

[Serial_Apologist]

Bruce Forman - "Forman on the Job"

Bruce Forman Quartet
with Joe Henderson guesting on four tracks
Kamei Recordings (Recorded in 1992)

Just discovered Bruce Forman. There doesn't seem to be a lot of recordings available. What a great guitarist.

From memory he's pretty mainstream in the modern sense - our own Jim Mullen is just as good in my estimation - but yes, Bruce Foreman is all right.

[Joseph K]

FWIW: This concert is featured in complete form on John Coltrane European Tour 62 10-disk boxed set, which I've just picked up.

Just on the first track of the first CD: it's awesome.

[Jazzrook]

FWIW: This concert is featured in complete form on John Coltrane European Tour 62 10-disk boxed set, which I've just picked up.

Does the 10 CD set of the 1962 European tour include 'Autumn Leaves' from the Graz concert?
As far as I know this was the only time Coltrane recorded this song.

JR