Jazz Archives

Like the weather itself, this band would assume a new shape with virtually every release - and this album, half recorded in the studio and half live in Tokyo, set the pattern of change. Exit Airto Moreira and Alphonse Mouzon; enter percussionist Dom Um Romao, drummer Eric Gravatt, and a slew of cameo guests like guitarist Ralph Towner, flutist Hubert Laws, and others. The studio tracks are more biting, more ethnically diverse in influence, and more laden with electronic effects and grandiose structural complexities than before. The live material (heard in full on the import Live in Tokyo) is even fiercer and showcases for the first time some of the tremendous drive WR was capable of, though it doesn't give you much of an idea of its stream of consciousness nature.

:::Review by Richard S. Ginell:::

Weather Report - I Sing the Body Electric (1972)

1. Unknown Soldier 7:57
2. The Moors 4:40
3. Crystal 7:16
4. Second Day In August 4:09
5. Medley: Vertical Invader, T.H., Dr. Honoris Causa 10:10
6. Surucucú 7:42
7. Directions 4:37

Credits
Bass - Miroslav Vitous
Drums - Eric Gravátt
Flute - Hubert Laws  Jr.
Guitar [12-string] - Ralph Towner (tracks: 2)
Keyboards [Electric & Acoustic] - Josef Zawinul
Percussion - Dom Um Romao (tracks: 2)
Reeds - Wayne Shorter
Trumpet [D And Piccolo] - Wilmer Wise
Vocals - Chapman Roberts , Joshie Armstrong , Yolande Bavan

Imagine writing for an instrumentation of two electric guitars, two tubas, French horn, drums and Henry Threadgill's alto. Threadgill was up to the challenge and his four avant-garde originals utilize the odd combination of tones to great advantage. Two additional songs feature Threadgill, just one tuba, drums, a

few exotic instruments and three strings to create some particularly unusual music. It's for the open-eared listener only.

1. Little Pocket Size Demons 10:48

2. In Touch 8:48

3. Paper Toilet 5:38

4. Better Wrapped, Better Unwrapped 13:04

5. Too Much Sugar 2:59

6. Try Some Ammonia 12:22

Composed By - Henry Threadgill

Drums - Gene Lake (tracks: 1 to 4, 6) , Larry Bright (tracks: 2, 4)

French Horn - Mark Taylor 

Guitar - Brandon Ross , Masujaa

Oud - Simon Shaheen (tracks: 2, 4)

Percussion [Fulia, Culo'e Puya] - Johnny Rudas (tracks: 2, 4) , Miguel Urvina (tracks: 2, 4, 5)

Producer - Bill Laswell , Henry Threadgill

Saxophone [Alto] - Henry Threadgill

Tuba - Dorian L. Parreott II (tracks: 2, 4, 6) , Edwin Rodriguez , Marcus Rojas

Violin - Jason Hwang (tracks: 2, 4) , Leroy Jenkins (tracks: 2, 4) , Simon Shaheen (tracks: 2, 4)

This is a major set, "new" music from John Coltrane that was recorded February 15, 1967, (five months before his death) but not released for the first time until 1995. One of several "lost" sessions that were stored by Alice Coltrane for decades, only one selection ("Offering" which was on Expression) among the eight numbers and three alternates was ever out before. The music, although well worth releasing, offers no real hints as to what Coltrane might have been playing had he lived into the 1970s. The performances by the quartet (with pianist Alice Coltrane, bassist Jimmy Garrison, and drummer Rashied Ali) are briefer (from two-and-a-half to five-plus minutes) than Coltrane's recordings of the previous year, but that might have been due to the fact that this music was played in the studio (as opposed to the marathon live blowouts with Pharoah Sanders) or to Coltrane's worsening health. Actually 'Trane (who sticks exclusively to tenor here) is as powerful as usual, showing no compromise in his intense flights, and indulging in sound explorations that are as free (but with purpose) as any he had ever done. Coltrane's true fans will want to go out of their way to acquire this intriguing CD.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

John Coltrane - Stellar Regions (1967)

1. Seraphic Light 8:54
2. Sun Star 6:05
3. Stellar Regions 3:31
4. Iris 3:50
5. Offering 8:20
6. Configuration 4:01
7. Jimmy's Mode 5:58
8. Tranesonic 4:14
9. Stellar Regions (Alternate Take) 4:37
10. Sun Star (Alternate Take) 8:05
11. Tranesonic (Alternate Take) 2:48

Credits
Bass - Jimmy Garrison
Drums - Rashied Ali
Piano - Alice Coltrane
Producer, Composed By, Saxophone [Tenor] - John Coltrane

Of pianist McCoy Tyner's seven Blue Note albums of the 1967-1970 period, Expansions is the most definitive. Tyner's group (comprised of trumpeter Woody Shaw, altoist Gary Bartz, tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter on cello, bassist Herbie Lewis, and drummer Freddie Waits) is particularly strong, the compositions (four Tyner originals plus Calvin Massey's "I Thought I'd Let You Know") are challenging, and the musicians seem quite inspired by each other's presence. The stimulating music falls between advanced hard bop and the avant-garde, pushing and pulling at the boundaries of modern mainstream jazz.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

McCoy Tyner – Expansions (1968)

1. Vision 12:15
2. Song of Happiness 11:55
3. Smitty's Place 5:20
4. Peresina 10:20
5. I Thought I'd Let You Know 6:25

Credits
Bass - Herbie Lewis
Cello - Ron Carter
Drums - Freddie Waits
Piano - McCoy Tyner
Producer - Duke Pearson
Recorded By - Rudy Van Gelder
Saxophone [Alto], Flute [Wooden] - Gary Bartz
Saxophone [Tenor], Clarinet - Wayne Shorter
Trumpet - Woody Shaw

Now this is more like it. In its Connoisseur Series, Blue Note is making available a completely unreleased Andrew Hill date from 1969. Passing Ships wasn't even included in the Mosaic box because the master tape wasn't found until 2001. The band Hill employed on this session was a nonet, featuring Woody Shaw and Dizzy Reece on trumpets, Joe Farrell on reeds, woodwinds, and English horn, Howard Johnson on tuba and bass clarinet, Ron Carter on bass, Lenny White (on only his second recording date) playing drums, trombonist Julian Priester, and French horn player Bob Northern. The music here is ambitious. Hill's scoring for one reed, two trumpets, and low brass is remarkable for the time. In fact, it isn't until his big-band album of 2002 that he ever ventured into these waters again. The title cut, with its bass clarinet and English horn counterpoint, is almost classical in structure but nearly Malian in melody. While the cut's dynamics are restrained, its color palette -- especially with the lilting muted trumpets playing a mysterious harmonic line -- is flush and royal.
"Plantation Bag" is a showcase for Farrell's tough, grooved-out soloing as he blows blue and free in response to Hill's funky, large-spread chord voicings. The trumpets layer one another in the middle of the tune, alternately soloing and punching comp lines through the middle. The Asian melodic figures at the heart of "Noon Tide" add exoticism to one of the most adventurous tunes ever written by Hill. Rhythmically it turns on pulse rhythms that shift and slide methodically as Priester takes the tune's first solo, playing against Hill's left-hand stridency. Of the remaining three selections, "Cascade," with its staggered harmonic architecture that goes against all common wisdom for big-band harmony, is remarkable for its precision and rhythmic invention. Why this isn't going to be out there for the general public for all time is beyond reason. Why punish the artist that way? Conventional wisdom would suggest that something that has been unearthed for the first time in 34 years deserves to be a part of the general catalog. Get it quick.

:::Review by Thom Jurek:::

Andrew Hill - Passing Ships (1969)

1. Sideways 4:09
2. Passing Ships 7:08
3. Plantation Bag 8:32
4. Noon Tide 9:49
5. The Brown Queen 6:22
6. Cascade 6:27
7. Yesterday's Tomorrow 5:11

Credits
Bass - Ron Carter
Clarinet [Bass Clarinet] - Howard Johnson , Joe Farrell
Drums - Lenny White
English Horn - Joe Farrell
Flute [Alto] - Joe Farrell
French Horn - Bob Northern

Piano - Andrew Hill
Producer - Francis Wolff
Saxophone [Soprano Sax] - Joe Farrell
Saxophone [Tenor Sax] - Joe Farrell
Trombone - Julian Priester
Trumpet - Dizzy Reece , Woody Shaw
Tuba - Howard Johnson

After leaving Soft Machine after their fifth album (in 72), Elton dean returned to the jazz scene for a few years and created his own groups and projects like Just Us, Elton Dean Quartet and big band Ninesense. Around Jan 78, Soft Heap was created by him with ex- Hatfield and Gligamesh members Pip Pyle and Alan Gowan, and Elton thought of inviting his old buddy and ex-Machinist Hugh Hopper. Thus the name of the band being a bit of revenge, using the Soft part of the Machine, the Heap being their respective forename's first letter. (Thus Soft Head was the same, when Pyle was unavailable and they called upon Dave Shean). Sadly Esoteric Record did not find any extra tracks lying around for this album's only second reissue, but deliver some neat liner notes.
Starting slowly , as if from a Tery riley album, the gorgeous Circle Line is the only Hopper- penned track, but certainly the most poignant on this album, in no small part due to Elton's impression of Coltrane. The collective jamming AWOL is a much more furious affair, breathing Elton's intentions with Phil Howard's short tenure of the drum stool in Soft Machine. Demented and sometimes spacey, but never really totally dissonant either. Gowen's Petit 3's is a much quieter affair with the dominating electric piano, but the slow groove is evolving a bit in an early Nucleus lava stream, pouring down a volcano's cone. Cool yet torrid, but not reaching the apex you'd wish it had.
The flipside starts on the Terra Nova were the Softs would be meeting Coltrane on the way to Ascenscion, but not reaching the summit either, even though this is the album's best track. The other Dean composition Fara is a slow jazz, close to standard granddaddy jazz and it sticks out a bit from the rest of the album. Not even old Tippettt mate Mark Charig can bring much excitement to this crooning jazz track that's only missing Louis or Ella's vocals. The closing short Hand is a free-form jazz piece written by Gowan, and sticks out just as muchas its predecessor, but in the opposite direction. True enough, Soft Heap has the inevitable Soft machine traits, but you won't catch this writer to say that they were trying to revive a spirit, even though by now, the SM mothership had folded after much more line-up changes.
A very worthy one shot album from a group that would go on to record under this name but with different personnel, their debut remaining their best. Both owan and Pyle woud go on in National Health (this album was a bit delayed to that group's schedule), but today as I write this review, Soft Heap is the first prog group (let's put aside Jimi Hendrix Experience), with Hugh Hopper's death, this group is the first to extinct by all of its members, something I'd have rather not seen or known.

:::Review by Sean Trane :::

Soft Heap - Soft Heap (1979)

1. Circle Line (6:54)
2. A.W.O.L. (9:35)
3. Petit 3's (6:17)
4. Terra Nova (10:03)
5. Fara (6:42)
6. Short Hand (3:11)

Credits
- Hugh Hopper / bass
- Elton Dean / saxes
- Alan Gowen / keyboards
- Pip Pyle / drums and percussion
- Mark Charig / cornet and trumpet
- Radu Malfatti / trombone

John Greaves and Peter Blegvad project Kew. Rhône is a jazzy RIO project quite similar to some Henry Cow music. The music is more accessible in this album, though. But it doesn't mean that the band is not RIO or that the music is not crazy and innovative in this album. Lisa Herman does most of the vocals, with the help of the other members and is credited as a main member of the project, along with Greaves and Blegvad.
A kind of a concept album, with many songs having their names containing numerals. The music is primarly jazzy, with great piano, bass and guitar work by Greaves and Blegvad. The album starts with a short interlude and goes directly to a RIO song, Twenty-Two Proverbs, whose lyrics are really proverbs. The instrumental part of the music is rich and diverse.
Seven Scenes From The Painting, the third song, is more jazzy, with great piano, saxophone and vocal work. The title track has good orchestral and piano work, with a very good melody. Pipeline is another jazzy song with good piano and saxophone work, with not much RIO elements. Catalogue Of Fifteen Objects & Their Titles is another RIO song, with good piano intro and many changes and strange elements in the song.
One Footnote has a long brassy intro and a good melody. Three Tenses Onanism is a song with a great piano work and some instrumental craziness in the middle of the song. Nine Mineral Emblems is a good jazzy song with good bass, guitar, piano and drum work, which changes and contains crazy saxophone and guitar solos. Apricot is another RIO song with good musicianship. Gegenstand is the last song, a quiet and somber song that closes the album.
The album is very good and it is the album that made me become interested in RIO. I didn't become a huge fan of RIO, but I enjoy it and I think this album is good both for people who like RIO and for people who don't know RIO very well, because, along with Henry Cow's debut, it blends jazzy songs with crazy RIO songs and are easier to get.

:::Review by akin :::

John Greaves - Kew Rhône (1977)

1. Good Evening (0:33)
2. Twenty-Two Proverbs (4:08)
3. Seven Scenes From The Painting (3:32)
4. Kew Rhône (3:04)
5. Pipeline (3:41)
6. Catalogue Of Fifteen Objects & Their Titles (3:36)
7. One Footnote (to Kew Rhône) (1:29)
8. Three Tenses Onanism (4:07)
9. Nine Mineral Emblems (5:51)
10. Apricot (3:05)
11. Gegenstand (3:46)

Credits
-Lisa Herman/ Vocals
-John Greaves/ Piano, Organ, Bass, Vocals, Percussion ( Tr.7)
-Peter Blegvad/ Vocals, Guitar, Tenor Sax (Tr. 5)
-Andrew Cyrille/ Drums, percussion
-Mike Mantler/ Trumpet, Trombone
-Carla Bley/ Vocals, Tenor Sax (Tr. 1 & 7)
-Michael Levine/ Violin, Viola, Vocals ( 9 )
-Vito Rendace/ Alto & Tenor Saxes, Flute
-April Lang/ Vocals (Tr. 5 & 8)
-Dana Johnson/ Vocals (Tr. 2)
-Boris Kinberg/ Clave (Tr. 5)

Breathtaking instrumental progressive rock from Japan carrying a nice laid back Canterbury fusion element throughout. This is truely beautiful music with some great jazz-like imagery(jazz piano..), loads of atmospheric synths (aka CAMEL), wonderful guitar accents and superb bass and drum interplay. "A Story of Mysterious Forest" seems to progress seamlessly through its wild musical transformation which moves from the intro of fusion jazz into the lounge-like excursions to its grand finale resting spot, the title 20 mins track which is full of the most wonderful pastoral, space prog you have ever heard. This epic track nicely captures with the use of the mellotron the atmosphere of the fog laden imagination within the mysterious forest... sounds deep eh! Album offers enough mood and tempo swings to satisfy every progressive rock fan for years to come. Without a doubt this is an essential jem and would most certainly be one of my personal fav from Japan...

:::Review by loserboy:::

Ain Soph - A Story Of Mysterious Forest (1980)

1. Crossfire (2:54)
2. Interlude I (1:30)
3. Natural Selection (8:10)
4. Variations on a Theme by Brian Smith (9:44)
5. A Story of Mysterious Forest (18:47)
a) Awakening
b) Longing-Whith the Wind
c) Mysterious Forest
d) Passion
e) Deep Sleep
f) Darkness
g) Dance
h) Misfortune
i) Mysterious Forest
j) Awakening
6. Interlude II (0:33)

Bonus

7. A Story Of Mysterious Forest (Oryginal version) (24:24)

Credits
- Masey Hattori / acoustic & electric pianos, celeste, Hammond organ, clavinet, synthesizers, strings, vocoder, mellotron

- Hiroshi Natori / drums, percussion, crystal gong
- Masahiro Torigaki / bass
- Yozox Yamamoto / acoustic & electric guitars

Arc of Testimony is one of the last recordings to feature legendary drummer Tony Williams, and its bold, experimental textures are a fitting epitaph to his career. Arcana was formed by bassist/producer Bill Laswell with the intention of exploring the outer reaches of fusion, ambient and free jazz. Like the group's debut, Last Wave (released only in Japan), Arc of the Testimony is a freewheeling, unpredictable blend of electronic and acoustic sounds. However, this record is even more adventurous, since it finds a common ground between improvisation and post-production studio trickery. All of the musicians Williams, Laswell, saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, saxophonist Byard Lancaster, cornetist Graham Haynes, guitarist Nicky Skopelitis and guitarist Buckethead are open-minded and help push the music forward, resulting in a thoroughly involving, challenging listen.

:::Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine:::

Bill Laswell - Extending energy and experimentation by Anil Prasad

Arcana - Arc Of The Testimony (1997)

1. Gone Tomorrow 9:39
2. Illuminator 6:07
3. Into The Circle 9:25
4. Returning 4:29
5. Calling Out The Blue Light 6:37
6. Circles Of Hell 7:15
7. Wheeless On A Dark River 4:27
8. The Earth Below 5:28

Credits
Bass - Bill Laswell
Cornet - Graham Haynes (tracks: 1, 3)
Drums - Tony Williams
Guitar - Buckethead (tracks: 2, 4, 6) , Nicky Skopelitis (tracks: 1 to 7)
Saxophone [Alto] - Byard Lancaster (tracks: 1, 3, 5)
Saxophone [Tenor] - Pharoah Sanders (tracks: 1 to 6)

Arti+Mestieri's debut album titled "Tilt" was Italy's answer to the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Layer on top of an album full of high energy and high creative explosions the masterful drumming of Furio Chirico and you have a recipe for great success. With varing styles and major tempo and mood swing this band unleash a truely wonderful album that will light the ital-prog veins in you! I should also mention that there is a good dose of Mellotron work here too. The addition of Saxes, piano, and vibraphone also give this album a stong polarity into the jazz genre. The violin wok of this album (Giovanni Vigliar) reminds me very much of Jean Luc Ponty and when combined with the band in full sounds truely majestic. Strongly recommend this album to all fans of Fusion and Ital-prog genres.

:::Review by loserboy :::

Arti E Mestieri - Tilt - Immagini Per Un Orecchio (1974)

1. Gravità 9,81 (4:05)
2. Strips (4:39)
3. Corrosione (1:37)
4. Positivo / Negativo (3:29)
5. In Cammino (5:36)
6. Scacco Matto (0:52)
7. Farenheit (1:15)
8. Articolazioni (13:24)
9. Tilt (2:29)

Credits
- Furio Chirico / drums and percussion
- Beppe Crovella / acoustic and electric pianos, synths, mellotron, Hammond organ
- Marco Gallesi / bass
- Gigi Venegoni / guitar, synthetizers
- Giovanni Vigliar / violin, vocals, percussions
- Arturo Vitale / soprano and baritone saxes, clarinets, vibraphone

This album by Zbigniew Namyslowski is considered by many as a great peak in his long career. His abilities as an improviser and his skills as a composer come together in order to create a perfect modern jazz recording. The 3 brass instruments (2 saxes and trombone) and the pianoless rhythm section all work in perfect unison with amazing interplay and scary solos chasing one after another. One can find of course influences by John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman, but this is truly original in every sense. A masterpiece!
Polish Jazz Vol.33

:::Review by Jazzis:::

Zbigniew Namysłowski – Winobranie (1973)

1. Winobranie (Wine Feast) / Jak nie masz szmalu to jest łaź (No Dough, No Kicks) 9:55
2. Nie mniej niż 5% (Not Less Than Five Per Cent) 6:35
3. Gogoszary 4:40
4. Pierwsza przymiarka (First Take) / Ballada na grzędzie (Ballad on the Roost) / Misie (Teddy Bears) 14:05
5. Taj Mahal / Winobranie (Wine Feast) 6:55

Credits
Bass - Paweł Jarzębski
Cello, Composed By, Piano, Saxophone [Alto] - Zbigniew Namysłowski
Clarinet [Bass], Saxophone [Tenor] - Tomasz Szukalski
Drums - Kazimierz Jonkisz
Trombone, Percussion - Stanisław Cieślak

The third album by the king band of Slovekian prog, Fermata's "Huascaran" is one of the most accomplished works ever recorded in the realm of jazz-oriented prog rock. Being a concept album around the tragedy of Huascaran's deadly eruption (back in 1970), this album evokes ideas of destruction, power and solidarity with multiple colors and moods, all of them properly delivered through effective musical ideas and solid, tight performances. Fermata is very heavily influenced by the powerful dynamics of Mahavishnu Orchestra and special exuberance of Di Meola-era return to Forever, but there is also some important room for the delivery of soaring moods in the vein of space-rock and classic nuances on a symphonic-related note. The long namesake opener gets started with cosmic synth ornaments properly accompanied by floating electric piano lines, serving a preparation for the whole ensemble to state a full frontal jazz-rock main motif. The funky vibe that works in the rhythm section allows the band to convey warmth through the pyrotechnics, not unlike Iceberg.
At the 5 minute mark, things shift toward a stylish solemnity featuring piano and cello, a soft passage that seems to portray the survivors 'grief. The sense of sadness becomes even more overwhelming in the following section, which sounds somewhat related to 73-75 era Pink Floyd with Akkerman replacing Gilmour: the symphonic element is retained all the way until the final section brings a reprise of the initial jazzy motif with augmented Latin touches. What a way to start an album!... and there is more greatness to be enjoyed, let me assure you. '80,000' is the approximated number of victims of this terrible natural disaster, and so the band decides to go for a denser mood: there is lots of heavy psych-rock and electric blues going on in this piece. The Hendrixian guitar and Zawinulesque electric piano melt amazingly well, as unlikely as it may sound in written form. Eventually, the Latin-jazz centered coda takes advantage of the fire that had been delivered during the previous section. Since the word 'Solidarity' conjures images of love for your fellowman and togetherness, it is no wonder that this track no. 3 should bear such a warmth feel on its basic compositional body. Santana seems to be the dominant reference now, although guitarist Griglák never lets go of his combined McLaughlin and Akkerman influences. This track's melodic basis is so colorful that its monotonous framework never gets boring, not even for a second. There is the long namesake closer that wraps up the album's official tracklist. Segued to 'Solidarity', 'Huascaran II' has a recurrent bizarre similarity to Iceberg during its first section. The joyful spirit delivered through the successive link of various motifs apparently alludes to the reconciliation between Man and Nature: beside the always spectacular guitar solos by Grilák, here are also the most accomplished Moog solos in the album. The last 100 seconds are occupied by synth emulations of birds' singing and wing shaking. The cosmic reconciliation has been achieved at last. This is the end for the "Huascaran" album per se, but the bonus tracks are excellent as well. '15' is very related to the funky flairs of  Return to Forever's joyous side, while 'Valparaiso' is more frantic and 'Perpetuum' bears a more complex scheme. Fermata is a name that must be included in any good prog collection and/or good jazz collection, with "Huascaran" being one of its most distinguished assets. Indeed, this is a masterpiece.

:::Review by Cesar Inca:::

Fermáta – Huascaran (1977)

1. Huascaran I (13:41)
2. 80 000 (7:30)
3. Solidarity (6:34)
4. Huascaran II (11:13)
5. 15 (4:03)
6. Valparaiso (6:09)
7. Perpetuum (2:17)

Credits
- Tomás Berka / piano, synthesizer
- Frantisek Griglák / guitar, piano, synthesizer
- Ladislav Lučenič / bass
- Karol Oláh / drums, percussion
- Peter Oláh / vocals
- Dezider Pito / violoncello

Highly experimental, with one foot solidly in the RIO camp and the other in outer space, Astro Can Caravan is an unconventional mix of large ensemble post-Sun Ra cosmic jazz, Magma-influenced Euro-fusion and Herbie Hancock/Miles Davis-styled avant-jazz funk. The 20 members of ACC (most of whom are apparently Finnish) all display a consummate musicianship and a keen awareness of the intricacies of ensemble playing throughout the ten tracks on 21st Century Drifting Episode, and in the process virtually create a new sub-genre one might call "big band space rock." The uncanny mesh of horns (trumpet, trombone), winds (sax, oboe, clarinet), guitar, bass, synthesizer and four percussionists, in addition to being unusual when transposed to the context of space rock, creates some undeniably astounding altered states of consciousness if listened to for extended periods of time. The more overtly Arkestra-influenced pieces ("De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium" and "Kohoutek") are brilliant, if not wholly original, exercises in solar jazz, in some ways extending, though not surpassing, the experiments in cacophony and atonalism that Sun Ra pioneered on Heliocentric Worlds. But ACC is quite capable of rocking the house, too, as both "Meteor Shower Geel" and "Mad Oracle" show. The up-tempo pace allows for some dynamic jamming where the synthesizers and saxes literally race each other as if they were on some intergalactic speedway. Imagine if Sun Ra's Arkestra were composed of members of Amon Duul II and Can - 21st Century Drifting Episode is the kind of album he would've done. Like most "difficult' music, you'll have to listen to it at repeated intervals in order to truly appreciate the thorough-going nonconformist approach that Astro Can Caravan adopts - especially on a piece like "The Scale of Anubis" - but rest assured that 21st Century Drifting Episode will clear out the cob webs in your CD collection and will probably find a place of distinction there in the near future.

:::Review by Charles Van de Kree:::

Astro Can Caravan - 21st Century Drifting Episode (2004)

1. Tungar Tudu (6:21)
2. Mad Oracle (2:56)
3. De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium (6:17)
4. Beef Jeans (4:27)
5. Dark Bravos (4:16)
6. Moon Boots (1:40)
7. Tapernaakkeli (4:23)
8. The Scale of Anubis (5:11)
9. Meteor Shower Geel (4:17)
10. Kohoutek (9:47)

Credits
- Otto Eskelinen / piano, organ, accordion, synthesizer, bandoneón
- Pharaoh Pirttikangas / synthesizer, guitar
- Joonas Hytti / trumpet, euphonium
- Tuomas Eriksson / trombone
- Joakim Berghall / soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
- Tomi Kosonen / tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
- Veli-Pekka Parkkinen / clarinet
- Suvi Pappi / bass clarinet, flute
- Arvi Hasu / bass
- Niko Votkin / drums
- Jari-Pekka Hautalampi / drums, percussion
- Torsti Tuovinen / percussion
- Jarkko Pellikka / trumpet
- Samuli Peltoniemi / trumpet
- Artturi Taira / alto saxophone, baritone saxophone
- Tapani Varis / baritone saxophone, bass
- Henna Karhunen / oboe
- Emil Luukkonen / electric piano, synthesizer
- Pentti Dassum / guitar, mandolin
- Jape Karjalainen / percussion, bass
- Teemu Mäenpää / percussion
- Rasmus Pailos / percussion

What a stunning album is Banquet. A truly amazing symphonic album with a jazzy elements and a great brass section. Every track is quite enjoyble to me, but the forte ones are the opening piece Spanish galleon and Sorrow, the longest tracks from here. The incorporation of brass section combined with great keys and guitars and a solid voice of John Lawton made this album to be a masterpiece of the '70's, at least for me. Transitions between music segments where the instruments take the lead are very well done, specially the keys and guitars. After all this album has nothing to do with early works of Lucifer's Friend, witch are more rough, more hevy prog, than this one. Here the sound and the entire album, musicaly speaking is much mature and deserve to be included in top of the most amazing albums of the '70's. So a 5 stars for this great and never old album.

:::Review by b_olariu :::

Lucifer's Friend – Banquet (1975)

1. Spanish Galleon (11:50)
2. Thus Spoke Oberon (6:44)
3. High Flying Lady-Goodbye (3:40)
4. Sorrow (11:36)
5. Dirty Old Town (4:46)

Credits
- John Lawton / vocal
- Peter Hecht / piano, organ, mood, synthesizer, Fender Rhodes
- Dieter Horns / bass, backing vocals
- Peter Hesslein / guitar, 12 string guitar, acoustic guitar, percussion, backing vocals
- Herbert Bornhold / drums, percussion, backing vocals
Guest musician:
- Herb Geller / Soprano saxophone solo on (1) and flute on (4)

Definitely a masterpiece of British Jazz-Rock/Fusion along with Neil Ardley's amazing Kaleidoscope of Rainbows. Here, Nucleus appear a much tighter group. After their stunning first album, they decided to create this amazing follow-up, as if the first album wasn't great to begin with. I can't even express in words how highly I regard this album, truly Nucleus's finest effort.

The opening track is quite possibly the most famous Nucleus piece, and for a good reason. What a fantastic opener! By the way, for those who have heard Soft Machine's Bundles, Jenins decided to use the riff on "Song for the Bearded Lady" for "Hazard Profile Part 1." While this is by far my favorite piece on the album, the other ones are just as great; tons of wicked oboe, trumpet, guitar, etc.. pasages played by these virtuosos. This is, to my knowledge, the only Nucleus album with vocals, although they only appear on two tracks. Sure, they take some getting used to, but definitely do not affect the album in any negative way IMO. In fact, I think they even enhance the album, making it seem more coherent overall.

Although I do not think that this album is quite as good as the Neil Ardley album I mentioned earlier, this is a MUST for all fans of Jazz-Rock, a masterpiece of the genre. Buy it, now, you won't be disappointed! In fact, you can get this and the first album in a 2-CD set from BGO, so you have no excuse. Highly recommended, 5 stars, no doubt in my mind!

:::Review by Zac M :::

Nucleus - We'll Talk About it Later (1970)

1. Song For The Bearded Lady (7:25)
2. Sun Child (5:19)
3. Lullaby For A Lonely Child (4:21)
4. We'll Talk About It Later (6:19)
5. Oasis (9:49)
6. Ballad of Joe Pimp (3:48)
7. Easter 1916 (8:47)

Credits
- Ian Carr / trumpet, flugelhorn
- Karl Jenkins / electric piano, oboe, piano, baritone saxophone
- Brian Smith / tenor & soprano saxes, flute
- Chris Spedding / guitars
- Jeff Clyne / bass, electric bass
- John Marshall / drums, percussion

As jazz's first extended, continuous free improvisation LP, Free Jazz practically defies superlatives in its historical importance. Ornette Coleman's music had already been tagged "free," but this album took the term to a whole new level. Aside from a predetermined order of featured soloists and several brief transition signals cued by Coleman, the entire piece was created spontaneously, right on the spot. The lineup was expanded to a double-quartet format, split into one quartet for each stereo channel: Ornette, trumpeter Don Cherry, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Billy Higgins on the left; trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, bass clarinetist Eric Dolphy, bassist Charlie Haden, and drummer Ed Blackwell on the right. The rhythm sections all play at once, anchoring the whole improvisation with a steady, driving pulse. The six spotlight sections feature each horn in turn, plus a bass duet and drum duet; the "soloists" are really leading dialogues, where the other instruments are free to support, push, or punctuate the featured player's lines. Since there was no road map for this kind of recording, each player simply brought his already established style to the table. That means there are still elements of convention and melody in the individual voices, which makes Free Jazz far more accessible than the efforts that followed once more of the jazz world caught up. Still, the album was enormously controversial in its bare-bones structure and lack of repeated themes. Despite resembling the abstract painting on the cover, it wasn't quite as radical as it seemed; the concept of collective improvisation actually had deep roots in jazz history, going all the way back to the freewheeling early Dixieland ensembles of New Orleans. Jazz had long prided itself on reflecting American freedom and democracy and, with Free Jazz, Coleman simply took those ideals to the next level. A staggering achievement.

:::Review by Steve Huey:::

Ornette Coleman - Free Jazz (1961)

1. Free Jazz 37:03
2. First Take 17:00

Credits
Bass - Charlie Haden , Scott LaFaro
Clarinet [Bass] - Eric Dolphy
Drums - Billy Higgins , Ed Blackwell
Engineer - Tom Dowd
Producer - Nesuhi Ertegun
Saxophone [Alto] - Ornette Coleman
Trumpet - Freddie Hubbard
Trumpet [Pocket] - Don Cherry

For saxophonist/flutist David Liebman, the collective septet Lookout Farm earmarked him as an emergent band leader and conceptualist, not to mention top-of-the-heap unabashed improviser, especially on the soprano. With Richie Beirach on acoustic piano, identifying him as the post-Lennie Tristano disciple of the '70s, electric guitarist John Abercrombie, East Indian percussionists Badal Roy and Armen Halburian, drummer Jeff Williams, and underrated upright bassist Frank Tusa, Lookout Farm's sheer democracy in motion, for progressive modern jazz in a fusion era, defined how far artistically a group could go while retaining a distinct identity. Tack-on to that the stunning production values of ECM's Manfred Eicher, and you have a trend setting icon of a large ensemble for the ages. This one-of-a-kind band and recording set a high-water mark for far too few bands, even unto itself, to follow. This is worth searching for and savoring.

:::Review by Michael G. Nastos:::

Dave Liebman - Lookout Farm (1973)

1. Pablo's Story 14:08
2. Sam's Float 8:47
3. M. D. / Lookout Farm 24:00

Credits
Bass - Frank Tusa
Congas, Bongos - Don Alias
Drums - Jeff Williams
Engineer - Tony May
Guitar - John Abercrombie
Percussion - Armen Halburian
Piano - Richard Beirach
Producer - Manfred Eicher
Saxophone [Soprano], Saxophone [Tenor], Flute [Alto C] - Dave Liebman
Tabla - Badal Roy
Tambourine [Tamburine], Cowbell - Steve Sattan
Vocals - Eleana Sternberg

The album Overdrive, initially released in 1972 on Tempo Records, is an absolute exception for German jazz music and is even not very well-known in confirmed rare groove circles.
The mastermind and initiator behind THE BRIDGE was keyboarder KRISTIAN SCHULTZE, who created an unique style with his blend of spacy sounds, kicking a Fender Rhodes through a ring modulator. SCHULTZE was born in 1945. He studied composition and piano at Berlin Music University and at Graz Jazz Academy. During these years SCHULTZE met JOE NAY, who many friends of jazz music rate as the best German drummer ever. Nay died in a car accident in 1991.  In the late 60s both met again in Munich and used to jam the legendary jazz club "Domicile". There they met the Polish bass player Pawel Jarzebski and along with him they formed THE BRIDGE. The trio played many gigs in the major German jazz clubs, eventually supported by OLAF KUBLER on sax and DUSKO GOYKOVICH on trumpet.
KUBLER is an important figure in the German jazz scene; Krautrock fans know him as the Amon Duul producer.
GOYKOVICH, whom Dizzy Gillespie described as a "hell of a trumpet player", is already a cult figure. He has performed with the bulk of famous jazz musicians.
In 1972 the trio recorded just one album.
Different influences are melting into rare fusion, bridging the gap between jazz, e-music and pop. All of Schultze's compositions are denying any rigid classification. His smooth was to play keyboards leads to an undreamt-of tension when meeting with the rough and tough electronic sounds of his fender piano and synthesizer. Nay and Jarzebski add their straight rhythm and the result is a brilliant, funky permutation of jazz.
This re-issue contains two additional tracks with sax and trumpet that were previously unreleased. The line-up for this album is simply called KRISTIAN SCHULTZE SET.

:::From Liner Notes:::

The Bridge – Overdrive (1972)

1. phrase-overdrive
2. ambivalens
3. dinghi
4. alles klar alles klar (absolution)
5. start (echo-drum suite)
6. stupsi
7. recreation
8. don't count it
9. relation
10. puls
11. phrase-overdrive (add. edit)

Credits
Kristian Schultze - Fender piano, synth
Pawel Jazerbski - bass
Joe Nay - drums
Dusko Goykovich - trumpet
Olaf Kübler - tenor sax/flute

Drummer Tony Williams' first recording as a leader (made when he was 18 and still billed as Anthony Williams) gave him an opportunity to utilize an advanced group of musicians: tenor saxophonist Sam Rivers, vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, pianist Herbie Hancock, and both Richard Davis and Gary Peacock on bass. Williams wrote all four of the pieces and has a different combination of players on each song. The freely improvised "Memory" features Hutcherson, Hancock, and Williams in some colorful and at times spacy interplay; "Barb's Song to the Wizard" is a Hancock-Ron Carter duet; "Tomorrow Afternoon" has Rivers, Peacock and Williams in a trio; and all of the musicians (except Hutcherson) are on the sidelong "2 Pieces of One." The unpredictable music holds one's interest; a very strong debut for the masterful drummer.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

Tony Williams - Life Time (1964)

1. Two Pieces Of One: Red 8:03
2. Two Pieces Of One: Green 10:36
3. Tomorrow Afternoon 5:31
4. Memory 8:02
5. Barb's Song To The Wizard 5:56

Credits
Artwork By [Cover Design] - Reid Miles
Artwork By [Creaive Director For Rvg Series] - Gordon H Jee
Artwork By [Design For Rvg Series] - Eric Bernhardi , Michael Boland
Bass - Gary Peacock (tracks: 1 to 3) , Richard Davis (2) (tracks: 1, 2) , Ron Carter (tracks: 5)
Drums - Tony Williams (tracks: 1 to 3)
Drums [Drum Set], Percussion [Wood Block], Timpani, Maracas, Triangle - Tony Williams (tracks: 4)
Other [Original Liner Notes] - Lawrence Rutter
Other [Reissue Liner Notes] - Bob Blumenthal
Photography [Cover Photograph, Liner Photographs From The Actual Session] - Francis Wolff
Piano - Herbie Hancock (tracks: 4, 5)
Producer - Alfred Lion
Recorded By, Mastered By [Remastered By] - Rudy Van Gelder
Reissue Producer - Michael Cuscuna
Saxophone [Tenor] - Sam Rivers (tracks: 1 to 3)
Vibraphone, Marimba - Bobby Hutcherson (tracks: 4)
Written-By - Tony Williams

Though some will argue about whether Wayne Shorter's primary impact on jazz has been as a composer or as a saxophonist, hardly anyone will dispute his overall importance as one of jazz's leading figures over a long span of time. Though indebted to a great extent to John Coltrane, with whom he practiced in the mid-'50s while still an undergraduate, Shorter eventually developed his own more succinct manner on tenor sax, retaining the tough tone quality and intensity and, in later years, adding an element of funk. On soprano, Shorter is almost another player entirely, his lovely tone shining like a light beam, his sensibilities attuned more to lyrical thoughts, his choice of notes becoming more spare as his career unfolded. Shorter's influence as a player, stemming mainly from his achievements in the 1960s and '70s, has been tremendous upon the neo-bop brigade who emerged in the early '80s, most notably Branford Marsalis. As a composer, he is best known for carefully conceived, complex, long-limbed, endlessly winding tunes, many of which have become jazz standards yet have spawned few imitators.

:::www.allmusic.com:::

:::Review Scott Yanow@allmusic.com:::

Wayne Shorter - The All Seeing Eye (1965)

1.The All Seeing Eye (10:30)

2. Genesis (11:42)

3. Chaos (6:54)

4. Face Of The Deep (5:27)

5. Mephistopheles (9:39)

Credits

Bass - Ron Carter

Drums - Joe Chambers

Flugelhorn - Freddie Hubbard

Piano - Herbie Hancock

Producer - Rudy Van Gelder

Saxophone [Alto] - James Spaulding

Saxophone [Tenor] - Wayne Shorter

Trombone - Grachan Moncur III

Trumpet - Freddie Hubbard

Sonny Rollins will go down in history as not only the single most enduring tenor saxophonist of the bebop and hard bop era, but also the greatest contemporary jazz saxophonist of them all. His fluid and harmonically innovative ideas, effortless manner, and easily identifiable and accessible sound have influenced generations of performers, but have also fueled the notion that mainstream jazz music can be widely enjoyed, recognized, and proliferated. Born Theodore Walter Rollins in New York City on September 7, 1929, he had an older brother who played violin. At age nine he took up piano lessons but discontinued them, took up the alto saxophone in high school, and switched to tenor after high school, doing local engagements. In 1948 he recorded with vocalist Babs Gonzales, then Bud Powell and Fats Navarro, and his first composition, "Audubon," was recorded by J.J. Johnson. Soon thereafter, Rollins made the rounds quickly with groups led by Art Blakey, Tadd Dameron, Chicago drummer Ike Day, and Miles Davis in 1951, followed by his own recordings with Kenny Drew, Kenny Dorham, and Thelonious Monk.
In 1956 Rollins made his biggest move, joining the famous ensemble of Max Roach and Clifford Brown, then formed his own legendary pianoless trio with bassist Wilbur Ware or Donald Bailey and drummer Elvin Jones or Pete La Roca in 1957, doing recorded sessions at the Village Vanguard. Awards came from Down Beat and Playboy magazines, and recordings were done mainly for the Prestige and Riverside labels, but also for Verve, Blue Note, Columbia, and Contemporary Records, all coinciding with the steadily rising star of Rollins. Pivotal albums such as Tenor Madness (with John Coltrane), Saxophone Colossus (with longstanding partner Tommy Flanagan), and Way Out West (with Ray Brown and Shelly Manne), and collaborations with the Modern Jazz Quartet, Clark Terry, and Sonny Clark firmly established Rollins as a bona fide superstar. He also acquired the nickname "Newk" for his facial resemblance to Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Don Newcombe.

:::www.allmusic.com:::

:::Review Scott Yanow@allmusic.com:::

Sonny Rollins - Saxophone Colossus (1956)

1. St. Thomas 6:46
2. You Don't Know What Love Is 6:28
3. Strode Rode 5:13
4. Moritat 10:06
5. Blue 7 11:18

Credits
Piano - Tommy Flanagan
Bass - Doug Watkins
Drums - Max Roach
Tenor Saxophone - Sonny Rollins

When it comes to avant-garde jazz/rock noise, few bands kicked out the jams better than did Last Exit. A who's-who of jazz players with punk-ass attitudes, Last Exit -- guitarist Sonny Sharrock, bassist Bill Laswell, drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson, and saxophonist Peter Brotzmann -- could swing, rock, and create an all-out free-jazz din all in the blink of an eye. More important, Last Exit was about was the thrill and danger of total improvisation; so much did they believe in this concept that their debut performance in Zurich in 1986 was completely improvised and unrehearsed. Granted, one person's free improvisation is another's tuneless chaos, but Last Exit, due primarily to the skill of its individuals, only infrequently fell off the precipice into the netherworld of arty wanking. These were four men that emotionally, intellectually, and musically belonged together: Sharrock had gotten his start playing blues, but rebelled against structured, proper guitar technique, preferring to play sheets of atonal metallic distortion; Shannon Jackson grew up playing Texas blues, but through working with players such as Blood Ulmer, explored a percussive world that was not regimented by time and meter; Bill Laswell played and produced rock, funk, and "straight" jazz, and in Last Exit he mashed all of these influences into one feral ball of noise and rhythm; and Peter Brotzmann didn't simply blow sax, he blew it to bits as if his life depended on it.

:::www.allmusic.com:::

:::Review by John Dougan@allmusic.com:::

Last Exit - Iron Path (1988)

1. Prayer 4:37
2. Iron Path 3:28
3. The Black Bat (For Aki Ikuta) 4:33
4. Marked for Death 2:19
5. The Fire Drum 4:18
6. Detonator 3:47
7. Sand Dancer 1:56
8. Cut and Run 2:30
9. Eye for an Eye 4:54
10. Devil's Rain 4:12

Credits
Bass - Bill Laswell
Drums - Ronald Shannon Jackson
Engineer - Martin Bisi
Guitar - Sonny Sharrock
Mastered By - Howie Weinberg
Photography, Artwork By [Front Cover Design] - Thi Link Le
Producer - Bill Laswell , Last Exit
Saxophone [Bass] - Peter Brötzmann

First among many ensembles in different genres that have chosen the name Air, this trio specializing in collective improvisation grew directly from the membership of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians. Throughout 11 albums that appeared over a span of one dozen years this group operated in modes comparable to that of the Art Ensemble of Chicago and at times some of Albert Ayler's early trio realizations. Its inception occurred in 1971, when saxophonist Henry Threadgill agreed to fulfill a request from the theater department at Chicago's Columbia College to devise modern arrangements based upon ragtime compositions of Scott Joplin (a concept borne to fruition by Anthony Braxton and Muhal Richard Abrams in 1976). Threadgill joined forces with bassist Fred Hopkins and drummer Steve McCall, and named the trio Reflection.
Although they parted ways the following year, the cooperative unit reassembled in New York in 1975 and chose the elemental name Air.

:::www.allmusic.com.com:::

:::Review by Scott Yanow@allmusic.com:::

Air - Air Time (1977)

1. I'll Be Right Here Waiting (2:37)
2. No. 2 (2:00)
3. G.v.E. (7:00)
4. Subtraction (13:34)
5. Keep Right On Playing Through The Mirror Over The Water (9:17)

Credits
Bass - Fred Hopkins
Percussion - Steve McCall
Saxophone (alto, Tenor), Flute (bass), Hubkaphone - Henry Threadgill

When five Downtown New York improvisers with deep roots in the jazz tradition embrace the Hasidic musical legacy and the scintillating rhythms of the holy land, a new voice emerges. Blending together an intense mixture of ethnic and cosmopolitan sounds, Hasidic New Wave fuses spiritual songs from Hasidic dynasties to funk and jazz, Arabic dances with avant-garde rock, and juxtaposes horas and freylekhs with sheer improvisation. Hasidic New Wave's alternatingly ecstatic and meditative performances, imbued (as is consistent with Hasidic tradition) with joy and passion, has led critics to liken the band to Sun Ra meets Jimi Hendrix at a Jewish wedding and exclaim HNW marries Hasidic music to avant-jazz, spinning traditional Jewish celebratory songs into extended Jazz improvisations that incorporate ferocious horn blowing and raucous electric guitar solos.

:::Review by Adam Greenberg@allmusic.com:::

Hasidic New Wave - Psycho-Semitic (1998)

1. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas
2. AKS
3. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas ve-achas
4. Hebe Bop
5. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas ve-shtayim
6. Transcendence / U'Mipney Khata'eynu
7. Al-Osfour Al-Majnoun (The Crazy Bird)
8. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas ve-sholosh
9. Ve-Samakhto Dub
10. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas ve-arba
11. Habibi
12. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas vo-sheysh
13. Blues In Exile
14. Seven Blessings from the High Priest: Achas ve-khamesh
15. Men Trinkt Mashke (People Drink Whiskey

Credits
Frank London - trumpet
Greg Wall - sax
David Fiuczynski - guitar
Fima Ephron - bass
Aaron Alexander - drums

DEDALUS - not to be confused with another Italian 'DEDALUS' who mix folk with jazz - were a most enterprising 70's jazz-rock quartet from Turin who still keep a high public profile among collectors. Evoking SOFT MACHINE but with an emphasis on keyboards, they use the violin, synthesizer, guitar, sax, cello, bass and drums; their style is more experimental and spacer than other Italian jazz-rock bands (KALEIDON, DUELLO MADRE, PERIGEO). After a first album in 1973, they lost their bassist and went on as a trio for a second album; they then lost their drummer and split up. In 1990, they reappeared for a third album that featured the original line-up minus the drummer. After many personnel changes, the keyboard player reformed the band under the name The BONANSONE DEDALUS GROUP who released a fourth album in 2004.
The eponymous first LP was their most SOFT MACHINE-like album, featuring some particularly spacey experimentation. "Materiale per Tre Esecutori e Nastro Magnetico" (1974) contains some highly complex music in a contemporary classical vein à la John Cage or Edgar Varese; it is also marked by a stronger use of electronics (no doubt due to the loss of their drummer). The privately released "Pia Visione" (1997) tried to revive the original spirit of the band but with a very minimalist approach. As for "Nomos Apache Alpha" (2004), it has a strong classical chamber music feel as it is mainly cello and flute based.
Fans of SOFT MACHINE and ARTI E MESTIERI should find the first, and particularly the second album, quite enjoyable.

:::Lise (HIBOU), CANADA@ www.progarchives.com:::

album review@www.progarchives.com

Dedalus – Dedalus (1973)

1. Santiago (9:13)
2. Leda (4:30)
3. Conn (3:48)
4. C.T.6 (14:02)
5. Brilla (5:39)

Credits
- Fiorenzo Bonansone / cello, electric piano, synthesizer
- Marco Di Castri / guitars, Tenor saxophone, percussion
- Furio Di Castri / bass, percussion
- Enrico Grosso / drums, percussion
- Rene Montegna from "AKTUALA" / African percussion

Releases information
LP Vynil Magic VM 009 (1973)

Grachan Moncur III was one of the top trombonists of the jazz avant-garde in the 1960s although he had only a few chances to lead his own record sessions. This 1964 set (which has been reissued on CD) was one of his finest, a quintet outing with bassist Cecil McBee, two of the members of the Miles Davis Quintet (pianist Herbie Hancock and drummer Tony Williams), and tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter just a brief time before he joined Miles. The group performs four of Moncur's challenging originals, including "Nomadic" (which is largely a drum solo) and "The Twins," which is built off of one chord. None of the compositions caught on but the strong and very individual improvising of the young musicians is enough of a reason to acquire the advanced music.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

Grachan Moncur III - Some Other Stuff (1964)

1.Gnostic (11:42)
2. Thandiwa (8:17)
3. The Twins (12:53)
4. Nomadic (7:41)

Credits
Bass - Cecil McBee
Drums - Anthony Williams
Engineer - Rudy Van Gelder
Piano - Herbie Hancock
Producer - Alfred Lion
Saxophone [Tenor] - Wayne Shorter
Trombone - Grachan Moncur III

:::Review by M. Hiraldo:::

Krakatau – Volition (1992)

1. Brujo (7:38)
2. Volition (9:26)
3. Nai (6:03)
4. Bullroarer (2:16)
5. Changgo (4:22)
6. Little Big Horn (8:41)
7. Dalens Ande (6:21)

Credits
Artwork By [Cover Design] - Sascha Kleis
Artwork By [Cover Painting] - Päivi Björkenheim
Bass [Acoustic] - Uffe Krokfors
Drums - Alf Forsman
Engineer - Jan Erik Kongshaug
Guitar, Shekere - Raoul Björkenheim
Photography - Stefan Bremer
Producer, Other [Notes] - Steve Lake
Saxophone [Tenor], Performer [Krakaphone, Toppophone, Whirlpipe] - Jone Takamäki
Written-By - Forsman (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 7) , Takamäki (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 7) , Björkenheim , Krokfors (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 7)

This was the first real indication to the world that Keith Jarrett was an ambitious, multi-talented threat to be reckoned with, an explosion of polystylistic music that sprawled over two LPs (now squeezed onto a single CD). Using his classic quartet (Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, Paul Motian) as a base, Jarrett occasionally adds the biting rock-edged electric guitar of Sam Brown and always-intriguing percussionist Airto Moreira, and indulges in some pleasant string and brass arrangements of his own, along with some grinding organ smears and acceptable soprano sax. Jarrett again turns his early rampant eclecticism loose -- from earthy gospel-tinged soul-jazz to the freewheeling atonal avant-garde -- yet this time he does it with an exuberance and expansiveness that puts his previous solo work in the shade. "Common Mama," a spicy Latin workout with brass punctuations, "Take Me Back," driving soul jazz with streaks of electric jazz-rock, and the lengthy, nearly free "Nomads" are the most invigorating tracks.

:::Review by Richard S. Ginell:::

Keith Jarrett – Expectations (1971)

1. Common Mama (8:11)
2. The Magician In You (6:52)
3. Roussillion (5:22)
4. Expectations (4:26)
5. Take Me Back (9:30)
6. The Circular Letter (For J.K.) (5:04)
7. Nomads (17:21)
8. Sundance (4:27)
9. Bring Back The Time When (If) (9:51)
10. There Is A Road (God's River) (5:32)

Credits
Arranged By - Keith Jarrett
Bass - Charlie Haden
Composed By - Keith Jarrett
Drums - Paul Motian
Engineer - James Green , Tim Geelan
Guitar - Sam Brown
Mastered By [Remaster] - Mark Wilder
Other [Back Cover Photo] - Urve Kuusik
Other [Cover Art] - Robert Horvitz
Percussion - Airto Moreira
Piano - Keith Jarrett
Producer [Digital] - Nedra Neal
Producer [Original Recordings] - George Avakian
Saxophone [Soprano] - Keith Jarrett
Saxophone [Tenor] - Dewey Redman

This album, which in the imaginary world of jazz critics has been spirited off to many a desert island, represents one of the genre's supreme paradoxes. It is a music in which the way is led by certain individual figures, most of them bandleaders. Drummer Billy Hart rarely records on his own, but has been in many great bands. Somehow, in this rare outing as a bandleader for the extravagent A&M Horizon series, he manages not only to make his best album, but the best album of partipants such as Oliver Lake, Don Pullen, Dewey Redman and Hannibal Marvin Peterson, all known as bandleaders in their own right. Bassist Dave Holland also is present as a player and composer, and while this album doesn't better Holland's Conference of the Birds, it is certainly on par with that masterpiece. These comments are offered not as a sniveling jazz critic counting great moments on an abstract abacus, but as a lifelong fan and listener to the music who recognizes there are really very few of these sorts of special records.
There are a variety of factors enhancing Enchance. Obviously, the players present are all individual stylists who bring personality, strength and spirituality to all their performances. Lake has a composition at the beginning and the end of the record, while the others including Hart come up with one tune each. This gives the program a tremendous variety, along with the use of material coming from several different sessions with overlapping but not identical instrumental line-ups. At the same time it is a remarkably consistent album that never gives the sense of jumping around from session to session or from the psyche of one creative mind to another in terms of the compositions. Hart's taste looms large over the entire project, since it has been his taste in projects as a percussionist that led him to contact with the players that are featured to begin with. He drums brilliantly throughout, including plenty of solo spots.
"Diff Customs", the opening track, is one of Lake's best jazz heads and the type of performance that, in the pre-cellular days, made car listeners pull off the road to either seek psychiatric care or call the radio station to find out where the album could be bought. The great studio production, obviously sparing no expense, is a real treat for fans of this type of music since every instrument can be heard so clearly, and so dynamically. Sometimes it is amazing how much material, including solos, ensemble transitions and thematic statements, can be packed into less than three minutes, the length of Redman's "Corner Culture". The rest of the pieces range between four and nine minutes, and there really is not a dull moment. The album actually seems be something like the essence of so many enjoyable directions in improvised music during this period and is full of the excitement such activity is known for when the action on the bandstand is at its best.

:::Review by Eugene Chadbourne:::

Billy Hart - Enchance (1977)

1. Diff Customs 5:44
2. Shadow Dance 7:43
3. Layla-Joy 6:55
4. Corner Culture 2:47
5. Rahsaan Is Beautiful 4:31
6. Pharoah 9:31
7. Hymn for the Old Year 8:48

Credits
Billy Hart - drums
Oliver Lake - alto saxophone
Dewey Redman - tenor saxophone
Hannibal Marvin Peterson - trumpet
Eddie Henderson - trumpet, flugelhorn, koto
Don Pullen - acoustic piano

Kenny Wheeler's beautiful sound on trumpet and his wide range are well-displayed on his four compositions, three of which are given performances over ten minutes long. With the assistance of ECM regulars Jan Garbarek (on tenor and soprano), guitarist John Abercrombie, bassist Dave Holland, drummer Jack DeJohnette and (on one song) guitarist Ralph Towner, Wheeler emphasizes lyricism and romantic moods on this fine set of original music.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::


Kenny Wheeler - Deer Wan (1977)

1. Peace For Five 16:27
2. 3/4 In The Afternoon 5:50
3. Sumother Song 11:25
4. Deer Wan 10:04


Credits
Artwork By [Cover Design] - B. Wojirsch
Bass - Dave Holland
Composed By - Kenny Wheeler
Drums - Jack DeJohnette
Electric Guitar, Mandolin [Electric] - John Abercrombie
Engineer - Jan Erik Kongshaug
Guitar [12 String] - Ralph Towner (tracks: 2)
Photography - Klaus Knaup [Front Cover], Roberto Masotti
Producer - Manfred Eicher
Saxophone [Tenor, Soprano] - Jan Garbarek
Trumpet, Flugelhorn - Kenny Wheeler

This is the second of two performances from February 1975 at the Osaka Festival Hall in Japan. This is the evening show; the Columbia release Agharta was the afternoon show. Pangaea is comprised either as a double LP or double CD of two tracks, "Zimbabwe" and "Gondwana." Each is divided into two parts. The band here is comprised of Sonny Fortune on saxophones, Pete Cosey (who also played synth) and Reggie Lucas on guitars, Michael Henderson on bass, Al Foster on drums, James Mtume on percussion, and Davis on trumpet and organ. The band, no doubt inspired by their amazing performance earlier in the day, comes out swinging, and I mean like Muhammad Ali, not Benny Goodman. This is a take-no-prisoners set. Davis seems to be pushing an agenda of "What the hell is melody and harmony? And bring on the funk -- and while you're at it, Pete, play the hell outta that guitar. More drums!" If there is anything that's consistent in this free-for-all, as everybody interacts with everyone else in an almighty dirty groove & roll while improv is at an all-time high, it's the rhythmic, or should we emphasize "polyrhythmic," invention. Mtume and Foster are monstrous in moving this murky jam session along ("Zimbabwe" is one set, and "Gondwana" is the second of the evening) some surreal lines. When Cosey's not ripping the pickups out of his guitar, he's adding his hands to various percussion instruments in the pursuit of the all-powerful Miles Davis' inflected voodoo funk. And while it's true that this set is as relentless as the Agharta issue, it's not quite as successful, though it's plenty satisfying. The reason is simple: the dynamic and dramatic tensions of the afternoon session could never have been replicated, they were based on all conditions being right. Here, while the moods and textures are carried and the flow is quite free, the dramatic tension is not as present; the mood is not quite so dark. And while the playing of certain individuals here may be better than it is on Agharta, the band's playing isn't quite at that level. That said, this is still an essential Miles Davis live record and will melt your mind just as easily as Agharta. People would complain on this tour that Davis played with his back to the audience a lot -- Lester Bangs went so far as to say he hated his guts for it. But if you were this focused on creating a noise so hideously beautiful from thin air, you might not have time to socialize either.

:::Review by Thom Jurek:::

Miles Davis – Pangaea (1975)

Disc One

1. Zimbabwe - 41:48

Disc Two

1. Gondwana - 46:50

Credits
Bass [Fender] - Michael Henderson
Congas, Percussion, Drums [Water], Performer [Rhythm Box] - Mtume
Directed By [Album & Cd] - Keiichi Nakamura
Drums - Al Foster
Engineer [Assistant] - Mitsuru Kasai , Shuichi Takamoto , Takaaki Amano
Engineer, Engineer [Cd Remix] - Tomoo Suzuki
Guitar - Reggie Lucas
Guitar, Synthesizer, Percussion - Pete Cosey
Other [Contemporary Jazz Masters Coordination] - Amy Herot , Gary Pacheco , Mike Berniker
Other [Liner Notes] - Kevin Whitehead
Other [Package Coordination] - Tony Tiller
Producer [Album] - Teo Macero
Saxophone [Soprano, Alto], Flute - Sonny Fortune
Trumpet, Organ - Miles Davis

The Herbie Hancock Septet was technically out of business around this time, superseded by the Headhunters, yet the group shouldered on briefly in the studio for a second album under the leadership of its trumpeter, Eddie Henderson. With Bennie Maupin back on a variety of reeds, Hancock on electric keyboards, Patrick Gleeson on synthesizers, Buster Williams on bass, and Billy Hart on drums, Henderson again had rounded up everyone in the group except Julian Priester, adding second drummer Eric Gravatt (from Weather Report) and Bill Summers (from the Headhunters) on congas. One can feel the funky influence of the Headhunters entering the building, particularly in the basslines and Hancock's wah-wah keyboard work, but this is still very much the music of the Septet -open-ended and almost free, heavily electronic, spiritual in intent, and enormously stimulating. Although Henderson and Maupin control the repertoire, the trumpeter continues to interact virtually as an equal among equals, sounding more haunting and free-floating now. Drier in texture and less frantically driven than Realization (its Capricorn label predecessor), Inside Out nevertheless is the de facto swan song of one of the great bands of jazz-rock.

:::Review by Richard S. Ginell:::

Eddie Henderson - Inside Out (1973)

1. Moussaka 8:59
2. Omnipresence 2:14
3. Discoveries 5:08
4. Fusion 3:33
5. Dreams 7:21
6. Inside Out 9:25
7. Exit #1 2:54

Credits
Bass, Bass [Fender] - Buster Williams
Clarinet, Clarinet [Bass], Flute, Flute [Alto], Piccolo Flute, Saxophone [Tenor] - Bennie Maupin
Congas - Bill Summers
Drums - Billy Hart , Eric Gravatt
Piano [Electric], Clavinet, Organ - Herbie Hancock
Producer - Skip Drinkwater
Synthesizer - Patrick Gleeson
Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Cornet - Eddie Henderson