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Andrew Hill, Point of Departure - 50 years ago ago


Guy Berger

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NorthSea sounds like totally the wrong venue for Andrew Hill's music - although when I saw him in Bath back in 2003/4-ish with a big band it sounded a bit under-rehearsed with with badly compromised stage sound. The solo piano and Archie Shepp duo performances at the QEH London a few years earlier were better/more coherent (especially the solo set).

Edited by sidewinder
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NorthSea sounds like totally the wrong venue for Andrew Hill's music - although when I saw him in Bath back in 2003/4-ish with a big band it sounded a bit under-rehearsed with with badly compromised stage sound. The solo piano and Archie Shepp duo performances at the QEH London a few years earlier were better/more coherent (especially the solo set).

Enjoyed the Hill/Shepp too.

I also saw a big band at QEH and best of all the band with Greg Osby at the Jazz Cafe

I remember that Tower Records in Piccadilly had a huge repro of 'Point of Departure' cover behind the counter - I always wanted that. Great album, my favourite until I heard Compulsion in the Mosaic box

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NorthSea sounds like totally the wrong venue for Andrew Hill's music - although when I saw him in Bath back in 2003/4-ish with a big band it sounded a bit under-rehearsed with with badly compromised stage sound. The solo piano and Archie Shepp duo performances at the QEH London a few years earlier were better/more coherent (especially the solo set).

The only time I saw him live was at The Irish Centre in Leeds in May 2003 with an Anglo-American Big Band. The band was obviously a bit under-rehearsed and Andrew looked rather frail. Although the band was billed as the Andrew Hill Big Band I seem to recall that it was lead on stage by another member of the band. An enjoyable evening but I'd loved to have seen him leading a small group in his heyday.

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Funny, while POD certainly is a spectacular date -- I must say that in the corner of my brain that it occupies, I often associate it as being as much an Eric Dolphy sort of date (for me, Dolphy dominates the proceedings), as Hill's. Early, early on in the first half-decade of my first jazz listening (mid 90's), I even filed it under "Dolphy" in my collection.

While I love POD, I think it's elevation (in most camps) as being almost THE definitive Andrew Hill date seems a little off to me. I'd be more likely to nominate "Black Fire" for that. When I'm loaning out Hill CD's to someone, I usually give folks "Black Fire" and "Passing Ships" to start with -- as (what I feel) are the two best examples of his early and later (60's) BN periods. POD does have numerous AMAZING performances -- but so does Black Fire, with the added benefit of (what I think) are stronger tunes (compositions).

I heard Andrew's quartet at the Iowa City Jazz Festival in 2003 - one of the most memorable live dates I've yet been to! (Along with Sun Ra, Sam Rivers, and Grachan Moncur)

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The only time I saw him live was at The Irish Centre in Leeds in May 2003 with an Anglo-American Big Band.

Saw the Bath Fest performance of that one (late May/early June). Even got to have a chat with Mr Hill after the show as he was having a beer and he signed some CDs and the Mosaic booklet for me (in really scrappy hand-writing !). A very nice person and really glad I got to meet him.

Edited by sidewinder
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This thread reminds me to see if I have the US RVG CD issue of POD (which I'm sure I probably have), to read the supplemental essay that appears there in the liners (which I haven't read in years).

POD is the Hill date I've had the longest - so I probably take it a little for granted (even as great as it is). But a few random thoughts...

  • If I'm recalling correctly, POD is the only Hill date (from the big Mosaic, 63-66) with three horns on the front line. And, yet, the date doesn't function anything like a date with a big horn-driven front-line (like the Messengers dates, for instance, with trombone).
  • Strangely enough, POD is also one of the only dates I can think of with Joe Henderson (another guy I also obsessively collect, every bit as much as Hill) -- that I really DON'T associate with Joe Henderson very much at all. My brain scarcely remembers that Joe is even on POD, unless I'm actually playing it (though I certainly associate Joe's other dates with Andrew quite strongly - both Black Fire and the date that was later released as Pax).
  • The one thing about POD that almost supersedes all else is DOLPHY.
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The only time I saw him live was at The Irish Centre in Leeds in May 2003 with an Anglo-American Big Band.

Saw the Bath Fest performance of that one (late May/early June). Even got to have a chat with Mr Hill after the show as he was having a beer and he signed some CDs and the Mosaic booklet for me (in really scrappy hand-writing !). A very nice person and really glad I got to meet him.

I think I was at that one too. Was it really 2003? Or did he come back again later?

Remember really enjoying it and going back to his more recent records as a result.

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Funny, while POD certainly is a spectacular date -- I must say that in the corner of my brain that it occupies, I often associate it as being as much an Eric Dolphy sort of date (for me, Dolphy dominates the proceedings), as Hill's. Early, early on in the first half-decade of my first jazz listening (mid 90's), I even filed it under "Dolphy" in my collection.

While I love POD, I think it's elevation (in most camps) as being almost THE definitive Andrew Hill date seems a little off to me. I'd be more likely to nominate "Black Fire" for that. When I'm loaning out Hill CD's to someone, I usually give folks "Black Fire" and "Passing Ships" to start with -- as (what I feel) are the two best examples of his early and later (60's) BN periods. POD does have numerous AMAZING performances -- but so does Black Fire, with the added benefit of (what I think) are stronger tunes (compositions).

I heard Andrew's quartet at the Iowa City Jazz Festival in 2003 - one of the most memorable live dates I've yet been to! (Along with Sun Ra, Sam Rivers, and Grachan Moncur)

Pretty much the same for me. I've never truly connected with POD, but very much so with "Black Fire" (I like "Dance with Death" for late 60's Hill).

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Well I think I know what record I'll play tonight if I get some time. Maybe "judgement" and "Andrew!!!" too if time allows....

I think Dolphy dominates this session too FWIW

I agree that Dolphy "dominates" this session as an instrumentalist. I view that as a point in its favor; Dolphy on a good day is one of the most glorious things in jazz, and here we have "Dolphy on a good day" complemented by an array of 5 other great musicians and 5 fantastic compositions.

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