Jazz Archives

The first 120 seconds or so of "Mind Over Matter" feature Joe Henderson, Stanley Clarke, and underground luminaries Lenny White (drums) and George Cables (keyboard) engaged in free-form, expressionist, abstract improv and then, in a short contained explosion, Henderson starts blowing his tenor like he's spitting out rounds of bullets from a gun. 

A torrent solo follows and, just when you think the song won't let up, in comes Curtis Fuller's trombone and then Pete Yellen's flute. The song ends with what almost sounds like the soundtrack to an absurd dream. It's a 13-minute tune broken up into suites and, although it may not be the album's best, it's possibly its most enthralling, and it typifies this album's place in Henderson's Milestone discography -- not his best, but enthralling. There are songs with nouveau-bop heads ("No Me Esqueca") and all-in burners ("A Shade of Jade"). Although the album is rhythm-heavy, it was recorded a couple years before Henderson's funk cloud would really thicken -- Joewas still swinging here ("Invitation"), which ain't so bad. Still, despite the obvious highlights, this undersold gem is a must-listen if only to check "Gazelle" (recorded live) and hear a head-nodding bassline from Ron McClure backing Henderson and Woody Shaw at their fieriest.

:::Review by Vincent Thomas:::

Joe Henderson - In Pursuit of Blackness (1971)

A1. No Me Esqueca 7:08

A2. Invitation 7:36

A3. A Shade Of Jade 7:41

B1. Gazelle 7:34

B2. Mind Over Matter 13:16

Credits

Bass – Ron McClure (tracks: A2, B1), Stanley Clarke (tracks: A1, A3, B2)

Congas – Tony Waters (tracks: B1)

Drums – Lenny White

Piano [Electric] – George Cables

Saxophone [Alto], Flute, Clarinet [Bass] – Pete Yellen (tracks: A1, A3, B2)

Saxophone [Tenor] – Joe Henderson

Trombone – Curtis Fuller (tracks: A1, A3, B2)

Trumpet – Woody Shaw (tracks: A2, B1)

Recorded with a who's who of fusion titans including trumpeter Eddie Henderson, bassist Stanley Clarke, and keyboardist Herbie Hancock, Dance of Magic channels the lessons drummer Norman Connors learned in the employ of Pharoah Sanders, Sam Rivers, and Sun Ra, marshaling Latin rhythms, electronic textures, and cosmic mysticism to create nondenominational yet deeply spiritual funk-jazz. The sprawling 21-minute title cut spans the entirety of the record's first half, capturing a monumental jam session that explores the outer edges of free improvisation but never steps past the point of no return. Connors' furious drumming is like a trail of bread crumbs that leads his collaborators back home. The remaining three tracks are smaller in scale but no less epic in scope, culminating with the blistering "Give the Drummer Some."

:::Review by Jason Ankeny:::

Norman Connors - Dance Of Magic (1972)

A. Dance Of Magic (21:00)
B1. Morning Change (6:29)
B2. Blue (10:20)
B3. Give The Drummer Some (2:22)

Credits:
African Percussion, Baliphone - Anthony Wiles
African Percussion, Congas - Nat Bettis
African Percussion, Shakers - Babafemi (tracks: A)
Alto And Soprano Saxophones - Gary Bartz
Bass - Cecil McBee (tracks: A, B1) , Stanley Clarke
Drums - Norman Connors
Flute - Art Webb
Percussion - Airto Moreira (tracks: B1, B2, B3) , Alphonse Mouzon (tracks: A, B2) , Billy Hart (tracks: B1, B2, B3)
Piano, Fender Rhodes Electric Piano - Herbie Hancock
Producer - Dennis Wilen , Skip Drinkwater
Tenor And Soprano Saxophones - Carlos Garnett
Trumpet - Eddie Henderson
Vocals - U.B.F. Singers, The (tracks: A)

By 1971 Pharoah Sanders's playing essentially alternated between two moods: ferocious and peaceful. This live LP (whose contents have not yet been reissued on CD - as far as I know it has, in Japan obviously - by jazzlover) gives one a good example of how the passionate tenor sounded in clubs during the early '70s. Sanders is joined by an impressive group of players: trumpeter Marvin "Hannibal" Peterson, flutist Carlos Garnett, Harold Vick on tenor, pianist Joe Bonner, the basses of Stanley Clarke and Cecil McBee, drummers Norman Connors and Billy Hart and percussionist Lawrence Killian. On the 20-minute "Healing Song," the lengthy "Memories of J.W. Coltrane" and the two-part "Lumkili," Pharoah Sanders is heard in top form.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

Pharoah Sanders - Live At The East (1971)

1. Healing Song (21:43)
2. Memories Of J. W. Coltrane (12:51)
3. Lumkili (08:33)

Credits:
Bass - Cecil McBee , Stanley Clarke
Congas, Percussion [Bailophone] - Lawrence Killian
Drums - Norman Connors , William Hart
Flute, Voice - Carlos Garnett
Piano, Harmonium - Joseph Bonner
Saxophone - Pharoah Sanders
Tenor Vocals - Harold Vic
Trumpet - Marvin Peterson

Still considered an expatriate as he resided in Europe, Dexter Gordon (tenor sax) returned stateside in mid-1972 long enough to lay down two sessions' worth of material that would primarily be split between Tangerine (1972), Generation (1973), and Ca'Purange (1973). The opening update of the Johnny Mercer staple "Tangerine" gets things underway with a mid-tempo treatment allowing Gordon, Thad Jones (trumpet), Hank Jones (piano), and Stanley Clarke (bass) plenty of room to groove on their own as well as in the quintet with Louis Hayes' (drums) rock-solid downbeat. Oddly, the performance is not presented in its entirety, fading out nearly nine minutes in. Hank Jones shines on the easygoing "August Blues" -- the first of three Gordon originals featured on the platter. Gordon is more methodical as his interesting ideas develop organically and inspire the same from Thad Jones, who kicks things up with his dizzying double-time before handing things back to pianist Hank Jones. Clarke steps up and gives the tune a final shot of soul as the rest of the ensemble join back in. The funky "What It Was" is the most modern-sounding side on the album, with Clarke's undulating and propulsive bass giving the number a contemporary kick. Although pianist Jones decides to class up the joint with refined and bluesy contributions that rhythmically jump and jive all over the beat. From a slightly earlier date, Gordon is accompanied by Cedar Walton (piano), Buster Williams (bass), and Billy Higgins (drums) on the LP's final two entries. The interpretation of the Mancini/Mercer classic "Days of Wine and Roses" is suitably stately with Gordon's rich tone perfectly capturing the tuneful romanticism without seeming maudlin or trite. The same can be said of Walton's warm and inviting runs that glide into a short but sublime bass solo from Williams. It certainly ranks up there as one of Gordon's greats. Freddie Hubbard (trumpet) is on hand for the closer -- Gordon's "The Group" -- as listeners are given a taste of the former's strong melodic sense. His blows are resounding, particularly so when doubling up beside Gordon for maximum impact.

1. Tangerine 9:04

2. August Blues 9:56

3. What It Was 8:16

4. Days of Wine and Roses 8:46

Dexter Gordon- tenor saxophone

Thad Jones- trumpet

Hank Jones- piano

Stanley Clarke- bass

Louis Hayes- drums; 

Freddie Hubbard- trumpet

Cedar Walton- piano

Buster Williams- bass

Billy Higgins- drums

Recorded: June 22 & 28, 1972, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.

This 1976 release features Chick Corea in what was then, and remains, a unique musical setting. While it is truly an electric jazz fusion record, it is also the only solo recording of Corea's on which he attempted to truly explore the Latin side of his musical heritage. My Spanish Heart marks a full-scale, yet thoroughly modern, exploration in the musical lineage Corea sprang from. Making full use of synthesizer technology, a string section, and synth-linked choruses -- of two voices, his own and that of Gayle Moran -- as well as percussionist Don Alias, drummer Steve Gadd, a full brass section, and the sparse use of Jean Luc Ponty ("Armando's Rumba") and bassist Stanley Clark, Corea largely succeeded in creating a Spanish/Latin tapestry of sounds, textures, impressions, and even two suites -- "Spanish Fantasy" and "El Boro." The string quartet performs its intricate and gorgeously elegant arrangements with verve and grace on "Day Danse" and on the suites, with Corea's contrapuntal pianism creating a sharp yet warm contrast to the shifting tempos, wild interval leaps, and shimmering timbral balances that occur. The only pieces that sound dated on this double-album-length set are the fusion pieces, which are, with their production and knotty stop-and-start modulations and key signature equations -- omplete with aggressive arpeggios and scalar linguistics -- destined to be limited in expression by the voice of their use of technology. Thus, "Love Castles," "The Gardens," and "Night Streets" suffer from their rather cheesy production despite their tastefully done double fusion semantics (jazz to rock to Latin music). There is no doubt that Corea's musicianship was up to any task he chose at this point in time. Simply put, he was compositionally and intellectually at the top of his game, and this record, despite the many of his that haven't aged well, still surprises despite its production shortcomings.

1. Love Castle (4:47)

2. The Gardens (3:11)

3. Day Danse (4:29)

4. My Spanish Heart (1:37)

5. Night Streets (6:02)

6. The Hilltop (6:15) Composed By - Stanley Clarke

7. Wind Danse (4:55)

8. Armando's Rhumba (5:19) Handclaps - Narada Michael Walden Violin - Jean-Luc Ponty

9. Prelude To El Bozo (1:36)

10. El Bozo, Part I (2:49)

11. El Bozo, Part II (2:06)

12. El Bozo, Part III (4:56)

13. Spanish Fantasy, Part I (6:07)

14. Spanish Fantasy, Part II (5:11)

15. Spanish Fantasy, Part III (3:09)

16. Spanish Fantasy, Part IV (5:04)

Arranged By, Piano [Acoustic, Fender], Synthesizer [Moog 15, Mini-moog, Arp Odessy, Polymoog], Organ [Yamaha], Handclaps - Chick Corea

Bass [Acoustic] - Stanley Clarke

Composed By - Chick Corea (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 19)

Drums - Steve Gadd

Engineer - Bernie Kirsh

Percussion - Don Alias

Producer - Chick Corea

Strings - Arriaga Quartet

Trombone - Ron Moss

Trumpet - John Rosenberg , Stuart Blumberg

Trumpet [Lead] - John Thomas (3)

Vocals, Choir - Gayle Moran

Recorded in 1972 and released in 1973 with Herbie Hancock, Stanley Clarke, and Jack DeJohnette, Joe Farrell's Moon Germs was a foray into the electric side of jazz. More progressive than groove-oriented, three of the four compositions were written by Chick Corea and certainly reflect that knotty, angular, almost mathematic penchant of his for soaring arpeggios in the solos and contrapuntal basslines that circle DeJohnette's drumming. Nowhere is this truer than on the opener, "Great George," where Farrell leads off with the hint of a melody before careening into legato streams of thought along striated intervallic paths. DeJohnette is like a machine gun, quadruple-timing the band as Clarke moves against the grain in a series of fours and eights, and Hancock's attempts to keep the entire thing anchored are almost insufficient. On the title track there is more of a funk backdrop, but still, there are the knotty runs and insane harmonic reaches Farrell attempts on his soprano that crack, falter, and ultimately turn into something else even more satisfying that what Mr. Math (Corea) wanted, though the sheer business of the track is dizzying. "Bass Folk Song" is by Clarke, and is the only thing on the record that actively engages melody rather than harmonic structures. Farrell uses his flute and Hancock strides into the same kind of territory his explored with Miles Davis, chopping up chordal phrases into single lines and feeding them wholesale to the running pair frontmen in Clarke and Farrell. DeJohnette uses a Latin backdrop to hang his drumming on and pursues a circular and hypnotic groove on the cymbals and toms. It's a gorgeous piece of music and utilizes an aspect of space within the melodic frame that the rest of the firebrand tunes do not, though it's no ballad. This is sci-fi Farrell at his most intense.

1. Great Gorge (11:40)

2. Moon Germs (7:23)

3. Times Lie (8:25)

4. Bass Folk Song (9:50)

Bass - Stanley Clarke

Drums - Jack DeJohnette

Flute - Joe Farrell

Piano - Chick Corea

Saxophone - Joe Farrell

The second incarnation of Chick Corea's influential fusion group released only a single record, the magnificent Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy. Featuring a more rock-oriented approach than the Flora Purim-Joe Farrell band that was responsible for both Return to Forever and Light as a Feather, Corea and old standby Stanley Clarke join forces here with propulsive drummer Lenny White and electric guitarist Bill Connors. Although Connors lacks the sophistication of Al Di Meola, the young guitarist who replaced him, he possesses a deliciously raw sound that keeps Corea's heady compositions firmly grounded. White introduces a funk aspect to the music, replacing Airto's Latin grooves from the first two records. Clarke is as good, wrenching some truly frightening sounds out of his electric basses. This increased emphasis on electric instrumentation, also displayed in Corea's heavy use of synthesizers, is another thing that separates this record from the previous Return to Forever releases. And as good as the band performances are, it is the quality of the compositions that marks Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy as an indispensable disc of '70s fusion. "Captain Senor Mouse," one of Corea's finest fusion compositions, receives an excellent treatment here. Likewise, the two-part "Space Circus" is a fantastic mix of haunting and grooving elements, with some simply incredible solos thrown into the mix. With Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, Corea continues his streak of simply timeless fusion albums. The best of the electric RTF albums.

Acoustic Guitar, Guitar - Bill Connors
Bass, Bells - Stanley Clarke
Drums, Percussion, Congas, Bongos - Lenny White
Engineer - Shelly Yakus
Piano, Organ, Harpsichord, Gong - Chick Corea