Playing Favorites: Reflections on Jazz in the 1970s

[HutchFan]

26 minutes ago, mjazzg said:

Holland, Cowell and Bartz. All great recordings. Nice choices.

I didn't realise 'Illusion Suite' was oop. Always been a vinyl listen for me.

Per discogs, it's never been issued on CD in the US or Europe.  One Japanese reissue. (Probably for 1 week or so.  )

My copy is vinyl too.  

 

 

[felser]

I must have gotten lucky a couple decades ago, as I have the Cowell on CD, and would not have paid a drastic premium for it (relative lack of funds back then).   But it's a wonderful album, and certainly belongs on the list.  I am delighted to see Philly's Catalyst (Odean Pope, Tyrone Brown, et al.) on the list, as they seem to be largely overlooked/forgotten.  I would have chosen their first album, but 'Perecption' is also quite worthy.  The Holland and Corea/Burton are inarguably classics.  And allows you to get yet another Corea album onto the list!  I lke the Bartz fine, but definitely would have chosen the glorious live-at-Montreux "I've Known Rivers" for him, and also rate the Harlem Bush Music combined set ahead of this one.   Have never heard the Ellington/Brown (thought I've heard of it), and the Braff/Larkins is many miles outside of my selected channel of listening.  Really enjoying this series, thanks!

[HutchFan]

2 hours ago, felser said:

I am delighted to see Philly's Catalyst (Odean Pope, Tyrone Brown, et al.) on the list, as they seem to be largely overlooked/forgotten.  I would have chosen their first album, but 'Perecption' is also quite worthy. 

I love the Joe Lovano quote on Odean Pope's website: "Odean Pope is bad, bad man!"  

It really is a shame that Pope isn't more well-recognized. 

That whole Catalyst band was excellent, top to bottom.  But Pope's the one who consistently grabs my ear when I'm listening to their music.

 

[JSngry]

I think I first heard/heard of Odean when I heard him w/Max at Carnegie Hall, Newport/New York, 1980. Was expecting Billy Harper, was momentarily disappointed, but that was, like micro-momentarily.

Next heard him on Almost Like Me, which was a bit of a mindfuck, between him and Gerald Veasley. I've been an advocate ever since.

Catalyst, though, was never really on my radar for whatever reason. The records were in the stores, but they never got radio play or word of mouth around here. Bought the 32 Jazz(?) collection, and kinda see why...but hindsight is 20/20, as it is with The Visitors. Not standing out is not the same as not being there, lesson(s) learned.

The Ellington/Brown is a stone gas, bought that one as soon as it was in the stores, iirc. Strongly, urgently recommended, as are any later Ellington "piano-centric" records. Live At The Whitney, that's another one. But this duet with Brown is something else, very, very open playing there.

Apart from that, remember when ECM had....edge?

[Peter Friedman]

The Ruby Braff - Ellis Larkins is (for me) ok. But I am a very big Ruby Braff fan, and there are numerous other recordings by him I much prefer. Though they are likely not from the '70's.

I agree with Jim on the Ellington/Ray Brown session, it is a delight.

The others on the current list are not really "my cup of tea".

[felser]

26 minutes ago, JSngry said:

I think I first heard/heard of Odean when I heard him w/Max at Carnegie Hall, Newport/New York, 1980. Was expecting Billy Harper, was momentarily disappointed, but that was, like micro-momentarily.

Next heard him on Almost Like Me, which was a bit of a mindfuck, between him and Gerald Veasley. I've been an advocate ever since.

Catalyst, though, was never really on my radar for whatever reason. The records were in the stores, but they never got radio play or word of mouth around here. Bought the 32 Jazz(?) collection, and kinda see why...but hindsight is 20/20, as it is with The Visitors. Not standing out is not the same as not being there, lesson(s) learned.

The Ellington/Brown is a stone gas, bought that one as soon as it was in the stores, iirc. Strongly, urgently recommended, as are any later Ellington "piano-centric" records. Live At The Whitney, that's another one. But this duet with Brown is something else, very, very open playing there.

Apart from that, remember when ECM had....edge?

I do remember edgy ECM, but that was 40+ years ago!  As far as Catalyst/Visitors/et al - there was so much coming at us musically in that age, it was impossible to keep up with it all, plus we were new to the music, with limited incomes, and had the whole history of the music to try to learn/absorb at the same time!  I had an advantage on those two as they were Philly-based so right in front of us here.  And Cobblestone cutouts were cheap and plentiful in Philly.  Will definitely check out the Ellington.  I have the Whitney set and like it quite a bit.  Late Ellington (post the Reprise monstrosities) has always worked very very well for me.

1 hour ago, HutchFan said:

That whole Catalyst band was excellent, top to bottom.

Odean Pope - reeds, Eddie Green - Keyboards, Tyrone Brown - bass, Sherman Ferguson - Drums.  Saw Pope and Brown with Max Roach 15-20 years later, and they were great.  Saw Pope's saxophone choir in the late 80's, and it was intense.  Had some jazz newcomers with me, and they were quite appalled!   Both were free outdoor concerts at Penn's Landing in Philly,on the edge of the Delaware River.  All four of the musicians had significant biographies before and after Catalyst, and only Ferguson was in his 20's, the others were older (Green was already 40 - BTW, he remained an institution in Philly, I saw him in different contexts).  That being said, Catalyst was very much of it's time, but what a time!

 

Edited March 25, 2020 by felser

[HutchFan]

Weekly Recap - PLAYING FAVORITES: Reflections on Jazz in the 1970s

03/31/20 - Joachim Kühn – This Way Out (MPS, 1973)

03/30/20 - Joe Henderson – Multiple (Milestone, 1973)

03/29/20 - Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Prepare Thyself to Deal with a Miracle (Atlantic, 1973)

03/28/20 - Lucky Thompson – Illuminations (Groove Merchant, 1974)

03/28/20 - Buddy Terry – Pure Dynamite (Mainstream, 1972)

03/26/20 - Jack McDuff – The Heatin' System (Cadet, 1972)

03/26/20 - Oscar Peterson & Ben Webster – During This Time (Art of Groove/MIG, 2014)

 

Things are starting to return to "normal" (a relative term during this pandemic) at work, so I have a little more energy at the end of my day.  I was able to write entries for five of the seven albums.  A big improvement over last week.

About this week's selections:  If I were forced to reduce my list from 366 to 36, RRK's and Lucky Thompson's albums would definitely be among them.  Joe Hen's and McDuff's would likely make the cut too.  I like them that much.

But I'd recommend all seven at the drop of a hat. 

"Even the Oscar Peterson disc?" I hear some asking incredulously.  "Yes!," I say. "Without a doubt!  The fact that Peterson plays wonderfully is just the icing.  Ben Webster is the cake!"

 

Edited March 31, 2020 by HutchFan

[Gheorghe]

On 24.3.2020 at 4:50 PM, HutchFan said:

I love the Joe Lovano quote on Odean Pope's website: "Odean Pope is bad, bad man!"  

It really is a shame that Pope isn't more well-recognized. 

That whole Catalyst band was excellent, top to bottom.  But Pope's the one who consistently grabs my ear when I'm listening to their music.

 

I heard him with Max Roach. Also Tyrone Brown became a member of Max Roach´s quartet a little later. 

[JSngry]

Those Lucky records just don't get enough love, imo. They are beautiful.

[felser]

Not familiar with the Kuhn or the McDuff, which I should try to rectify, though it looks like neither ever made it to CD?  I do love the Kirk, and am a huge fan of the Terry, especially "Baba Hengates".    I like the Henderson, he made so many wonderful albums during the decade, but I am partial to "Joe Henderson in Japan", where his playing is especially "on" to me.  Count me as a fan of those Thompson sides, though they have been so haphazardly reissued that I don't really know what are the original albums, and which are bizarro random compilations.  Have not heard the Webster, but I appreciate his later playing for reasons I can't even verbalize to myself.  

Addendum:  McDuff is available on CD, and I was able to grab one on ebay for $10.  Looking forward to hearing it!

Edited April 1, 2020 by felser

[HutchFan]

7 minutes ago, felser said:

Not familiar with the Kuhn or the McDuff, which I should try to rectify, though it looks like neither ever made it to CD?   

Nope. Neither one.  ... Argh!

On some level, I suppose I can understand why Kühn's This Way Out hasn't been reissued.  He's an important and wonderful musician, but I would suspect that many Americans aren't all that familiar with him.  I don't think any of his MPS records were released in the U.S.

OTOH, the fact that McDuff's Heatin' System hasn't ever been reissued makes NO sense.  At a minimum, I would have thought that Dusty Groove would pick it up for their Real Gone Music imprint.  It's right up their alley.  Likewise, Soul Brother in the U.K.  ... Somebody needs to do Brother Jack right!  It's one of his very best records.

In the meantime, get it on vinyl!  

[HutchFan]

2 hours ago, JSngry said:

Those Lucky records just don't get enough love, imo. They are beautiful.

Yes.  It's time-standing-still music.  

I bet you a dollar that some people dismiss these records just because Cedar Walton plays electric piano and celeste, along with piano.  But I think Cedar sounds fantastic.  I LOVE his playing.  It's otherworldly and perfect.  

 

[JSngry]

To the best of my knowledge, the totality of Lucky's GM work can be found on three LPs - Goodbye Yesterday!, I Offer You, and  a side of Concert Friday The 13th Cook County Jail (of which I've never been convinced that Lucky's tracks were in fact recorded live there).

Of course, this being sonny Lester Cartel material, I'd not at all be surprised to find out that alternate takes had been released under some weird album with some weird name somewhere.          

And yeah, Cedar sounds great on Rhodes. A lot of people did for as long as they felt like it.

[felser]

Count me in on those who really appreciated Cedar on Rhodes.  He was able to get a distinct sound. Especially sounded great on those early 70's Blakey albums on Prestige.

[sidewinder]

Cedar on Fender-Rhodes is great. His later albums ‘Animation’ and the two on RCA (‘Mobius’ and ‘Beyond Mobius’) are a bit of a mixed bag though.

[JSngry]

27 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

Cedar on Fender-Rhodes is great. His later albums ‘Animation’ and the two on RCA (‘Mobius’ and ‘Beyond Mobius’) are a bit of a mixed bag though.

Yeah, those RCA records pretty much suck. But they don't suck because of the Rhodes, they suck because they suck.

[sidewinder]

1 minute ago, JSngry said:

Yeah, those RCA records pretty much suck. But they don't suck because of the Rhodes, they suck because they suck.

I put it down to disco-era madness. The sound of those LPs didn’t do Cedar any favours though.

Fortunately, around the same time he was still putting out good stuff like the Timeless LPs.

Edited April 1, 2020 by sidewinder

[JSngry]

I do like the Columbia sides well enough, though, especially Animation, which has plenty of tunes that could be played in a different format and work just dandy (or is it dandily?).

 

[felser]

4 hours ago, sidewinder said:

I put it down to disco-era madness. The sound of those LPs didn’t do Cedar any favours though.

Fortunately, around the same time he was still putting out good stuff like the Timeless LPs.

And the Magic Triangle gems on Steeplechase.

[HutchFan]

Weekly Recap - PLAYING FAVORITES: Reflections on Jazz in the 1970s

04/07/20 - Gil Evans – Svengali (Atlantic, 1973)

04/07/20 - Airto Moreira – Fingers (CTI, 1973)

04/05/20 - Woody Herman – Giant Steps (Fantasy, 1973)

04/05/20 - Ian Carr with Nucleus Plus – Labyrinth (Vertigo, 1973)

04/03/20 - João Donato & Eumir Deodato – Donato/Deodato (Muse, 1973)

04/03/20 - Cecil Payne & Duke Jordan – Brooklyn Brothers (Muse/Elemental, 1973)

04/03/20 - Eddie Henderson – Realization (Capricorn, 1973)

 

I will say this: Do not sleep on the Labyrinth!  Norma Winstone is the secret sauce.

The same could be said of Airto.

Any recounting of "Jazz in the 1970s" must acknowledge the heroic deeds of these two extraordinary musicians.

 

So... What say you?

 

Edited April 8, 2020 by HutchFan

[HutchFan]

On 4/1/2020 at 1:11 PM, JSngry said:

I do like the Columbia sides well enough, though, especially Animation, which has plenty of tunes that could be played in a different format and work just dandy (or is it dandily?).

Please don't say "dandily" -- ever.  Even if it's right, it's wrong.

 

Edited April 8, 2020 by HutchFan

[felser]

Good choices.  You got the right albums by Airto and Henderson, and I have no problem with the Carr., though I would have selected "Elastic Rock".   We diverge majorly on the Evans.  Needs to be "Priestess" for me hands down.  "Svengali" has always had the reputation, but I consider it overrated.  I have not heard the other three, but have certainly heard of the Herman and the Payne.   My heart is broken that you got past 1972 without listing McCoy Tyner's mighty "Sahara" !!

 

 

 

[HutchFan]

12 hours ago, felser said:

Good choices.  You got the right albums by Airto and Henderson, and I have no problem with the Carr., though I would have selected "Elastic Rock".   We diverge majorly on the Evans.  Needs to be "Priestess" for me hands down.  "Svengali" has always had the reputation, but I consider it overrated.  I have not heard the other three, but have certainly heard of the Herman and the Payne.   My heart is broken that you got past 1972 without listing McCoy Tyner's mighty "Sahara" !!

I'm not familiar with Priestess.  I'd assumed that it was from the 1980s, didn't realize that it was recorded in '77.  Thanks for the heads-up.  I'll check it out.

Re: McCoy's Sahara...  I know it's one of your favorites -- and I know it's a very important record.  I think you could make a solid argument that it's the most important record of McCoy's career as a leader.  It had a tremendous impact on jazz. ... But that's not what my blog is about.  I'm not writing history or criticism or musicology.  The personal, subjective angle is what I'm shooting for with my blog.  That's why I call it Playing Favorites. ... So I can't and I shouldn't include Sahara on my blog if it's never had the devastating impact on me that it's clearly had on you.  I'd be cheating.

But it's beautiful that you love Sahara.  I even love that you love it.  Seriously.  I think those feelings are what matter most of all.  The cultural considerations and the history and the musicology and all of that is very, very important.  Of course it is.  I'm not discounting that whole enterprise one bit.  But I think the reason that we spend so much time on this forum talking about music has NOTHING to do with the music's historical/objective/broader cultural importance. (All the things that will continue to exist "on the outside" after we're gone.)  Nope!  We listen and we obsess because we love this music.  We listen because of the way the music makes us feel.  That's THE THING, right there.  That's the center of the target, the bulls-eye.

So it's not a game of right and wrong; it can't be.  Sahara is in your heart.  It's not in mine in the same way.  That's O.K.

You dig?

 

[Peter Friedman]

The one for me on this latest list is - Cecil Payne / Duke Jordan - Brooklyn Brothers.

[sidewinder]

I picked up the ‘Realization’ LP on Capricorn as a 50p cutout in its UK version around 1976. Been a fan of it ever since !