Jazz Archives

This encounter between Chick Corea (sticking to acoustic piano), tenor saxophonist Michael Brecker, bassist Eddie Gomez, and drummer Steve Gadd lives up to expectations. The original program featured three lengthy "Quartet" pieces including sections dedicated to Duke Ellington and John Coltrane. The CD reissue adds four briefer pieces that were previously unissued, including an unaccompanied Brecker workout on "Confirmation" that would be perfect for "blindfold" tests. This blowing date is highly recommended for all true jazz fans.

:::Review by Scott Yanow:::

Chick Corea - Three Quartets (1981)

1. Quartet No. 1 10:09
2. Quartet No. 3 9:36
3. Quartet No. 2 Part 1 (Dedicated To Duke Ellington) 7:05
4. Quartet No. 2 Part 2 (Dedicated To John Coltrane) 11:48

Credits
Bass - Eddie Gomez
Drums - Steve Gadd
Piano - Chick Corea
Saxophone - Michael Brecker

Recorded in 1973 as a foray away from the Modern Jazz Quartet, Milt Jackson's second entry on the CTI label is also one of its highlights. This is one of Creed Taylor's finest productions both in terms of material and sidemen. Drummer Steve Gadd, flutist Hubert Laws, bassist Ron Carter, and pianist Cedar Walton accompany Jackson on the majority of the album. Indeed, Jackson's ability to swing funky is evidenced to delightful extremes on "Old Devil Moon," with a rolling cymbal shakeout from Gadd, whose rim shots and tempo-pushing musculature are a sharp contrast to those of the MJQ's Connie Kay. Likewise, Laws, whose playing is usually over the top, stays inside melodic nuances here and provides Jackson with an essential harmonic foil. And Ron Carter is playing throughout with a popping edge he never had before or since. On Jackson's own SKJ, recorded in December of 1972, Don Sebesky conducted a jazz orchestra for Taylor that included Herbie Hancock, Freddie Hubbard, Billy Cobham, Carter, a string section, a reed and woodwind and brass section, and a harp. Sounds sticky, eh? Hardly, Jackson is pure Bags here, playing it blue-black and rolling out around the ends of the turnarounds into deep, funky, post-bop terrain.
The orchestra is mixed way down and is added for texture so the sextet is what one hears most -- along with a burning Freddie Hubbard solo. The other number of real note here is a ripping rendition of Horace Silver's "Opus de Funk," which sprawls the slim harmonic edge, rolls it out on a carpet, and turns it inside on itself, before rolling through the blues to move the intervals into a sequence Silver might not have considered when he wrote it, but which Jackson reveals was in there all the time.

:::Review by Thom Jurek:::

Milt Jackson - Goodbye (1973)

1. Detour Ahead
2. Goodbye
3. Old Devil Moon
4. SKJ
5. Opus De Funk

Credits
Drums - Billy Cobham, Steve Gadd
Flute - Hubert Laws
Piano - Cedar Walton, Herbie Hancock
Vibraphone - Milt Jackson

With song structures similar to Mahavishnu Orchestra and electric-era Return to Forever, Michal Urbaniak's Fusion III appealed to the same fusion-buying clientele. What most distinguishes this music from that of its contemporaries was the unique vocalizing of Urbaniak's wife, Ursula Dudziak. She could sound at times like a Polish Flora Purim, at other times like a synthesized presence from another world. On this recording, Urbaniak's playing is fresh and engaging, and his compositions occasionally sound like Frank Zappa's instrumental work from this same era. John Abercrombie and Larry Coryell turn in blistering guitar passages, and bassist Anthony Jackson and drummer Steve Gadd provide a funkified rhythmic foundation.

:::Review by Jim Newsom:::

Michał Urbaniak - Fusion III (1975)

A1. Chinatown (Part I) 5:24
A2. Kuyaviak Goes Funky 6:12
A3. Roksana 5:42
Drums - Gerald Brown
Guitar - Joe Caro
A4. Crazy Kid 2:35
A5. Prehistoric Bird 5:19

B1. Bloody Kishka 4:21
Drums - Gerald Brown
Guitar - Larry Coryell
B2. Cameo 4:41
B3. Stretch 6:20
Voice - Bernard Kafka
B4. Metroliner 4:44
B5. Chinatown (Part II) 3:56

Credits
Bass - Anthony Jackson
Composed By - Michał Urbaniak
Drums - Steve Gadd
Electric Piano, Organ [Electric] - Wlodek Gulgowski

Guitar - John Abercrombie

Violin [Electric], Producer - Michał Urbaniak
Vocals, Percussion, Percussion [Electric], Synthesizer - Urszula Dudziak

Al Di Meola's second album is ultimately my favorite album of his and is one of the best jazz rock albums available. All the elements of total success are here, stellar musicianship, creative songwriting, and fun and imaginative variances in the music. From heavy hitting power riffing to soft spoken acoustic guitar interludes, it is all here. From the very first second of Flight Over Rio to the pulsating closing seconds of Elegant Gypsy Suite, one thing is clear, this is an album that will be remembered for many many years to come. Like I said with my review for Casino, this album will surely be up the alley of any fan of guitar oriented music and any fan of high velocity Spanish influenced jazz rock.

Flight Over Rio opens the album with some intuitive bass riffing from Anthony Jackson and some very smooth keyboards from Jan Hammer. There's a definite mellow mood during this introduction, but once Di Meola enters everything slowly changes. The track becomes more fast paced and high energy, with some stellar ascending riffs from Di Meola and great and precise percussion from Mingo Lewis, as well as a great keyboard/guitar duel between Di Meola and Hammer. It opens the album brilliantly, and the quality of the songs never really goes down. Midnight Tango has a very mellow atmopshere in comparison to Flight Over Rio, with some intuitive soloing from Di Meola over a steady rhythm section and some great wavy piano lines. Slowly the pace increases, although not to the pace of the first track. The well timed chord based bass guitar work is also really well conceived. Mediterranean Sundance begins with a nice drum/percussion duet between Mingo Lewis and Lenny White, but soon becomes an exceedingly complicated piece with some great acoustic work from Di Meola and Paco de Lucia.

The interplay between these two (and later along with John McLaughlin on Friday Night in San Francisco) is incredible and shows some stellar abilities for both musicians who take turns hammering out the main beat while another solos on top of it, eventually becoming a duel solo movement.
Race With Devil on Spanish Highway is probably my favorite song on this album. Beginning with a strong percussive rhythm and a cool bass line, the song soon evolves into an all out shred piece with riff after riff of powerful guitar lines that intertwine and spell out brilliance. There's a riff in this song that the group Liquid Tension Experiment would also quote in their song Acid Rain (or so I believe, they are very very similar). But besides that, there's nothing to dislike about this song, it's just high energy and very inspiring to listen to. Lady of Rome, Sister of Brazil is a short interlude before the finale of the album, Elegant Gypsy Suite. It is a little acoustic ditty that has some very somber playing on the part of both Di Meola and Paco de Lucia, who create a very mellow and light atmosphere with this piece. The album ends with the song Elegant Gypsy Suite, which begins with some acoustic work from Paco de Lucia before becoming a nicely flowing piece, with a great bassline from Anthony Jackson and some great underlying percussion from Mingo Lewis. As with all the tracks on the album, Di Meola is nothing short of brilliant, who really creates some gentle yet rough riffs on this piece, as well as gentle and incredibly complicated leads that utilize a nice wah/phaser effect. Throughout the 9 minutes of the track, there is a great sense of evolution and progression, and I never really tire of this stellar piece.
In the end, Elegant Gypsy is right up there with Bill Bruford's One of a Kind as one of my favorite records in the jazz rock genre. There's a lot of excellent musicianship, killer songs, great arrangements, and an overall spectacular feel I get from this album. As I said in my opening paragraph, fans of guitar oriented music and highly technical jazz rock will probably be right at home with this album. I can't call this album anything less than a masterpiece and I am very impressed with this album. You probably won't be either. 5/5.

:::Review by Cygnus X-2:::

Al di Meola - Elegant Gypsy (1977)

1. Flight Over Rio (7:10)
2. Midnight Tango (6:14)
3. Mediterranean Sundance (5:07)
4. Race With Devil On Spanish Highway (6:15)
5. Lady Of Rome, Sister Of Brazil (1:44)
6. Elegant Gypsy Suite (9:12)

Credits
Acoustic Guitar - Paco De Lucía (tracks: 3)
Bass - Anthony Jackson (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 6)
Congas, Percussion, Keyboards - Mingo Lewis (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 6)
Drums - Lenny White (tracks: 2, 4) , Steve Gadd (tracks: 1, 6)
Guitar, Keyboards, Percussion - Al Di Meola
Keyboards - Barry Miles (tracks: 2, 4) , Jan Hammer (tracks: 1, 6)
Producer, Arranged By, Composed By - Al Di Meola