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Steve Lacy / Mal Waldron


Chuck Nessa

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I'm not informed, but need to be.

I like Lacy. I like Waldron. But I haven't got to their recordings together...

Where should I start?

Reflections (a limited edition OJC) is a great album. I haven't heard any of their duo albums, though Communique is in the "listen to" pile.

Guy

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I only have Communique on Soul Note, recorded in 1994, a duo recording. Two Monk compositions, two Mingus compositions, an Elmo Hope composition, and the rest Lacy and/or Waldron.

I particularly like the two Mingus composition performances (Peggy's Blue Skylight and Smooch), and Lacy's Prayer.

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I just received an OJC Lp today of Reflections. I've heard it before, but just casually.

I've never heard any of their duo stuff. What's it like? Mellow? Or do they rip it up, too?

Mostly abstract/reflective stuff. By "abstract" I do not mean "hard to listen to". At it's best it just friggin' sings. There was a huge gap between Reflections and the rest of the stuff.

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4718582333.jpg

This was the first Lacy/Waldron LP I ever bought--and that includes "Refelctions." I don't know if it's because I've become a sentimental middle-aged fool, but it's still my favorite. "I feel a draft . . ."

The last time I heard them live was in the Spring of 2001--maybe April or May in New York.

I am embarassed to say I only own one of their 90's duo albums on Soul Note (Communique)and I never seem to pull it out. I need to put the damn thing in my car!

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Hard Talk (Enja, 1974) and One-Upmanship (Enja, 1977) are both excellent. "The Seagulls of Kristiansund" is sublime; an achingly beautiful piece of music.

Another favorite of mine is Mal Waldron with the Steve Lacy Quintet, recorded in 1972 in Paris, and available in the (limited edition) Free-America series.

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There's a Steve Lacy discography here, and it shows the following with Waldron:

Reflections (1958)

Journey Without End (1971)

Mal Waldron with the Steve Lacy Quintet (1972)

Hard Talk (1974)

One-Upmanship (1977)

Moods (1978)

Snake-Out (1981)

Herbe De L'oubli (1981)

Let's Call This (1981)

Sempre Amore (1986)

Live at Sweet Basil (1987)

Flakes: Tiziana Simona (1988)

Hot House (1990)

Let's Call This (1993)

Live at Dreher, Paris (1981)

I Remember Thelonious (1992)

Communique (1994)

I found the 13-year gap (between '58 and '71) interesting -- I wonder if there is any significance to that, or if their paths just crossed again in the early 70's.

It appears that some of the above recordings may overlap others, so any help sorting that out would be appreciated. :)

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Mal's advise as relates to presenting music? I've forgotten his exact words, Chuck, so please serve as backup memory if you're able to recall what I told you. He was forthright about taking it straight ahead and keeping music uncompromised by commercial distractions. As it boiled down he was confident in his path through music and counciled no compromise in the presentation of jazz. So did Lacy.

I'd been walking from the Grant Park underground. Mal appeared on the street in front of the old Blackstone Hotel, on the Michigan avenue side. A couple in front of me on the sidewalk walked up to him as he was lighting a "Moore."

"Excuse me? Can you tell me where Marshal Fields is?"

Waldron struck a match, pulled the un-lit cigarette out of his mouth, smiled and said, "No, I just flew in from Germany a couple of minutes ago" then lit up.

The couple turned to me and asked, "Do you know where Marshall Fields is?"

I said, "No, but aren't you Mal Waldron?"

He was suprised. So was the couple. They had no idea but were intrigued. I looked at them and said, "Do you know who Billie Holiday was?" They did. "He played with her." Mal laughed, but didn't laugh it off. He said what he learned from accompanying Billie, but mostly remembered being overwhelmed in front of a jazz audience on a scale he hadn't imagined as a young man.

"That's right, you were on t.v. with her. 'Nervous.'?"

"I WAS."

After the cigarette and more questions he was like, If we're going to do this, let's sit down and have some coffee. We wedged under a black rubber topped table at the greasy spoon in the Blackstone for breakfast and coffee. After explaining in the previous week I'd done a retrospective radio feature on him for this appearance he went into details and he hipped me to what more could have been a part of the radio program and why. We talked for about 40 minutes. It was helpful, he said, because he was still recovering from an amnisic (sp) episode in his life, right? Didn't he go through a crisis like that?

Of course, it was far more helpful to me than he'll ever know. At that time his quartet recording with Joe Henderson, David Friesen, and Billy Higgins, "One Entrance, Many Exits," was freshest in my mind, as well as the duo record with Steve Lacy on Hat Hut called "Herbe De L'oubli."

"Hurray for Herbie" on that recording is 17 minutes long. Some of the long, feeling out improvisations revealing ideas that would be refined over the long course of their collaboration.

I asked him, "What does 'Herbe De L'oubli' mean?"

He had his finger tips pressed together with his elbows on the table, making this pyramid with his face behind it. He moved out from behind his hands and said with a broad grin, "The green grass of forgetfulness."

He brought up the Mingus and Max Roach period recordings which I'd missed, talked about Booker Little as someone to pay closer attention to. "The Quest" was required listening by Nessa, and Waldron appreciated that.

There was no "All Music Guide" to give you the narrative then. Just books, records, concerts and most of all knowing Chuck.

That was Chuck's gig: putting together a Monk re-union big band that included Monk. After Monk's death the project was carried through with Mal. Killer band. Steve Lacy, Phil Woods, Charlie Rouse in the sax section. Supposed to have been Pepper Adams, but he was ill, too, so Howard Johnson. Ben Riley on drums? Who was in that band, Chuck? Do you still have the set list?

After the show the crowd pressed back to the Blackstone. Waldron, in his dark suit, was standing at the top of the marble stairs just beaming when he saw us. He held his hands open at about pocket level, just grinned, and said, "What did you think?" Then he was mobbed.

Lacy and Waldron. That was Lacy's thing: duets with piano. He recorded with Gil Evans, Micheal Smith and Ulrich Gumpert in that format, but it was his assoication with Mal that developed beyond just another project. They were a working band, a special one, but on-going.

Edited by Lazaro Vega
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That was Chuck's gig: putting together a Monk re-union big band that included Monk. After Monk's death the project was carried through with Mal. Killer band. Steve Lacy, Phil Woods, Charlie Rouse in the sax section. Supposed to have been Pepper Adams, but he was ill, too, so Howard Johnson. Ben Riley on drums? Who was in that band, Chuck? Do you still have the set list?

I had been planning a concert like this while Monk was alive and after his death I could not continue. A couple years later Art Lange revived the idea and carried it off supurbly. Don Sickler, Tom Harrell, Cecil McBee and Eddie Bert were in the band too. I have a tape of the gig. They played Epistrophy, Bye-Ya, I Mean You, Evidence, Light Blue, Oska T and Four In One.

Edited by Chuck Nessa
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Mal's advise as relates to presenting music? I've forgotten his exact words, Chuck, so please serve as backup memory if you're able to recall what I told you. He was forthright about taking it straight ahead and keeping music uncompromised by commercial distractions. As it boiled down he was confident in his path through music and counciled no compromise in the presentation of jazz. So did Lacy.

I'd been walking from the Grant Park underground. Mal appeared on the street in front of the old Blackstone Hotel, on the Michigan avenue side. A couple in front of me on the sidewalk walked up to him as he was lighting a "Moore."

"Excuse me? Can you tell me where Marshal Fields is?"

Waldron struck a match, pulled the un-lit cigarette out of his mouth, smiled and said, "No, I just flew in from Germany a couple of minutes ago" then lit up.

The couple turned to me and asked, "Do you know where Marshall Fields is?"

I said, "No, but aren't you Mal Waldron?"

He was suprised. So was the couple. They had no idea but were intrigued. I looked at them and said, "Do you know who Billie Holiday was?" They did. "He played with her." Mal laughed, but didn't laugh it off. He said what he learned from accompanying Billie, but mostly remembered being overwhelmed in front of a jazz audience on a scale he hadn't imagined as a young man.

"That's right, you were on t.v. with her. 'Nervous.'?"

"I WAS."

After the cigarette and more questions he was like, If we're going to do this, let's sit down and have some coffee. We wedged under a black rubber topped table at the greasy spoon in the Blackstone for breakfast and coffee. After explaining in the previous week I'd done a retrospective radio feature on him for this appearance he went into details and he hipped me to what more could have been a part of the radio program and why. We talked for about 40 minutes. It was helpful, he said, because he was still recovering from an amnisic (sp) episode in his life, right? Didn't he go through a crisis like that?

Of course, it was far more helpful to me than he'll ever know. At that time his quartet recording with Joe Henderson, David Friesen, and Billy Higgins, "One Entrance, Many Exits," was freshest in my mind, as well as the duo record with Steve Lacy on Hat Hut called "Herbe De L'oubli."

"Hurray for Herbie" on that recording is 17 minutes long. Some of the long, feeling out improvisations revealing ideas that would be refined over the long course of their collaboration.

I asked him, "What does 'Herbe De L'oubli' mean?"

He had his finger tips pressed together with his elbows on the table, making this pyramid with his face behind it. He moved out from behind his hands and said with a broad grin, "The green grass of forgetfulness."

He brought up the Mingus and Max Roach period recordings which I'd missed, talked about Booker Little as someone to pay closer attention to. "The Quest" was required listening by Nessa, and Waldron appreciated that.

There was no "All Music Guide" to give you the narrative then. Just books, records, concerts and most of all knowing Chuck.

That was Chuck's gig: putting together a Monk re-union big band that included Monk. After Monk's death the project was carried through with Mal. Killer band. Steve Lacy, Phil Woods, Charlie Rouse in the sax section. Supposed to have been Pepper Adams, but he was ill, too, so Howard Johnson. Ben Riley on drums? Who was in that band, Chuck? Do you still have the set list?

After the show the crowd pressed back to the Blackstone. Waldron, in his dark suit, was standing at the top of the marble stairs just beaming when he saw us. He held his hands open at about pocket level, just grinned, and said, "What did you think?" Then he was mobbed.

Lacy and Waldron. That was Lacy's thing: duets with piano. He recorded with Gil Evans, Micheal Smith and Ulrich Gumpert in that format, but it was his assoication with Mel that developed beyond just another project. They were a working band, a special one, but on-going.

Great story - thank you!

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I've got the 'Super Quartet of Mal Waldron featuring Steve Lacy Live at Sweet Basil' cd on Paddle Wheel (Bellaphon pressing). Reggie Workman and Eddie Moore complete the quartet. I'll have to give it a spin, I can't recall very much about it.

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I Remember Thelonious (1992)

It appears that some of the above recordings may overlap others, so any help sorting that out would be appreciated. :)

'I Remember Thelonious' came out on the JazzAround label. It also was released under the same title - with a different cover and liner notes - on Nel Jazz, another Italian label!

One of the best Lacy/Waldron get-together!

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That was Chuck's gig: putting together a Monk re-union big band that included Monk. After Monk's death the project was carried through with Mal. Killer band. Steve Lacy, Phil Woods, Charlie Rouse in the sax section. Supposed to have been Pepper Adams, but he was ill, too, so Howard Johnson. Ben Riley on drums? Who was in that band, Chuck? Do you still have the set list?

I had been planning a concert like this while Monk was alive and after his death I could not continue. A couple years later Art Lange revived the idea and carried it off supurbly. Don Sickler, Tom Harrell, Cecil McBee and Eddie Bert were in the band too. I have a tape of the gig. They played Epistrophy, Bye-Ya, I Mean You, Evidence, Light Blue, Oska T and Four In One.

Great thread, thanks Lazaro for sharing these remembrances!

Chuck, part of this tape is circulating (it was on radio, back then, I assume) - if you're talking of Chicago Jazz Festival 1986. Here's the line-up going with it:

Tom Harrell - trumpet

Don Sickler - trumpet

Eddie Bert - trombone

Steve Lacy - soprano sax

Phil Woods - alto sax

Charlie Rouse - tenor sax

Howard Johnson - baritone sax, bass clarinet

Barry Harris - piano

Cecil McBee - bass

Ben Riley - drums

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I had been planning a concert like this while Monk was alive and after his death I could not continue. A couple years later Art Lange revived the idea and carried it off supurbly. Don Sickler, Tom Harrell, Cecil McBee and Eddie Bert were in the band too. I have a tape of the gig. They played Epistrophy, Bye-Ya, I Mean You, Evidence, Light Blue, Oska T and Four In One.

Great thread, thanks Lazaro for sharing these remembrances!

Chuck, part of this tape is circulating (it was on radio, back then, I assume) - if you're talking of Chicago Jazz Festival 1986. Here's the line-up going with it:

Tom Harrell - trumpet

Don Sickler - trumpet

Eddie Bert - trombone

Steve Lacy - soprano sax

Phil Woods - alto sax

Charlie Rouse - tenor sax

Howard Johnson - baritone sax, bass clarinet

Barry Harris - piano

Cecil McBee - bass

Ben Riley - drums

Yes I'm sure broadcast tapes are floating around. Barry Harris was NOT on piano. Mal was. In 1982 Mal and Steve performed as a duo at the same festival. It was broadcast too.

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I had been planning a concert like this while Monk was alive and after his death I could not continue. A couple years later Art Lange revived the idea and carried it off supurbly. Don Sickler, Tom Harrell, Cecil McBee and Eddie Bert were in the band too. I have a tape of the gig. They played Epistrophy, Bye-Ya, I Mean You, Evidence, Light Blue, Oska T and Four In One.

Great thread, thanks Lazaro for sharing these remembrances!

Chuck, part of this tape is circulating (it was on radio, back then, I assume) - if you're talking of Chicago Jazz Festival 1986. Here's the line-up going with it:

Tom Harrell - trumpet

Don Sickler - trumpet

Eddie Bert - trombone

Steve Lacy - soprano sax

Phil Woods - alto sax

Charlie Rouse - tenor sax

Howard Johnson - baritone sax, bass clarinet

Barry Harris - piano

Cecil McBee - bass

Ben Riley - drums

Yes I'm sure broadcast tapes are floating around. Barry Harris was NOT on piano. Mal was. In 1982 Mal and Steve performed as a duo at the same festival. It was broadcast too.

Then Mal also did the quartet part (with Rouse, McBee & Riley)? Will have to sit down and listen...

The idea was resurrected with a very similar line-up in 2000, btw:

Monk Tentet All Stars

New Morning, Paris (FR) - April 4, 2000

Don Sickler - trumpet

Jack Walrath - trumpet

Eddie Bert - trombone

Steve Lacy - soprano sax

Phil Woods - alto sax, clarinet

Johnny Griffin - tenor sax

Ronnie Cuber - baritone sax

Ronnie Matthews - piano

David Williams - bass

Ben Riley - drums

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Then Mal also did the quartet part (with Rouse, McBee & Riley)? Will have to sit down and listen...

The idea was resurrected with a very similar line-up in 2000, btw:

Monk Tentet All Stars

New Morning, Paris (FR) - April 4, 2000

Don Sickler - trumpet

Jack Walrath - trumpet

Eddie Bert - trombone

Steve Lacy - soprano sax

Phil Woods - alto sax, clarinet

Johnny Griffin - tenor sax

Ronnie Cuber - baritone sax

Ronnie Matthews - piano

David Williams - bass

Ben Riley - drums

You must have stuff from a later concert. No quartet performances at this one. I also think the Chicago concert was earlier than '86 - maybe '85 or even '84.

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