tkeith

Forgot to follow the thread. Mistaking Roscoe for Joseph -- SHAME on me. That said, I usually find Joseph a bit more down home, so it's a complimentary assessment, as Roscoe doesn't always reach me.

Late to the dance, here. Sorry. This one hit some strange areas, but also some areas that REALLY struck a note with me (especially where it wound up!). Track 01 - Seems like a remake (sort of like the ones you see on YouTube of bands redoing music from the 20s and/or modern tunes in that style. Accomplished musicians, but not sure how frequently I would spin this. Track 02 - Now this is right in the happy zone. Decidedly Tyner-esque feel. Some touches of Charles Brackeen in the cry of that tenor, but the player seems more out of that Liebman set than CB. That bass sound is off-putting. I don't think it's the player, but the recording. If not McCoy, somebody that owes a HUGE debt. Possibly Franklin Kiermyer on drums? I want to guess Jon Faddis on trumpet because of the heavy Dizzy influence, but seems to have more taste than JF, and his sound isn't so... well... ugly (never sold on JF). Track 03 - Very little of this pocket of the genre reaches me (Peter Apfelbaum is a noted exception). It just doesn't seem to... swing. Love the growl of the bari against the more trebly sound of the guitar. Underwhelmed by the improvisational segments. This type of music should have a fun feel to it... to my ear, it's missing here. It seems more forced than fun. Track 04 - I like this one better than the last, but it suffers from a bit of the same issue, to my ear. This stuff is brutal to read and difficult to play. When the right band does it, though, it has the feel of fun that it's supposed to inspire. This track comes closer, but still seems to miss by a bit. Track 05 - This one is as cerebral/technical as either of the last two, but it works much better, IMO. Can't put my finger on why, but I'm not focused on the counting so much (though that's definitely in there), it just seems to have a more lyrical underpinning, in spite of all that technique. Mild, Woody-esque trumpet sound (flugel?); whatever, it works well against the tension build by the piano comping, without feeling frenetic. Even when it gets loco, it's still within itself. Reminds me of a Jimmy Owens album I have (and, of course, later Miles). Not completely sold on the use of effects, but it still works. For this style of tenor playing, I'm less bothered by the effects (in much the same way I appreciate Bob Berg's more commercial/smoothish recordings more than his straight-ahead endeavors). The feel works, but it goes on too long, and when the tenor gets into the repetitive articulation, my interest wanes. Track 06 - A little too late-70s Weather Report-ish for my liking. Definitely hear the Bitches Brew influence on this, but lacks the same fire. Track 07 - Aw yeah! That's the AEC, baby! I think this is from one of the Dreaming Of The Masters sets, but can't recall which one. Man, LOVE when these guys lock into that groove! A little sleuthing tells me I have the right song but the wrong date. It appears to be the last track from this. Joseph Jarman is a baaaaaaaaaaad man. Track 08 - This one is interesting. I first, I was thinking a Billy Bang date, has that feel. But, alas... no Billy. I'm not sure I'm entirely sold, but this one WILL get another listen or two, for sure. It's busy, but in an interesting way. Compositionally, it's kind of Braxtonian, which ordinarily would lead me to click fast forward, but this one interests me. Track 09 - I want to like this more than I do. There's a lot here I SHOULD like, but it seems to be taking forever to unfold. Has the feel of Old and New Dreams larger projects (like the one with Dewey Redman, Ballad of the Fallen), but never seems to quite develop to that point. Not sure who this is, but I don't think it's that band. Track 10 - Does Tad Dameron ever NOT work? I don't have any guesses, but I completely love everything about this. Track 11 - No clue, but it's a BFT... so... I'm guessing it's Gene Harris. Maybe Ben Riley on drums? Track 12 - Liking this loads. A lot of thoughts as to who it might be, but keep talking myself out of all of them (David Harris, Frank Lacy). This one works. Has the feel of a Peter Warren date. Track 13 - Well, there's Mr. Shepp, and unmistakable as only he can be. This is older, because he's got a certain bite that is missing in his more recent recordings. I'll guess this is around 1976. I had a date from the late 80s (may still have it) with Richard Davis, but this has it ALL over that date. Man! I love Shepp! Thanks for the sounds!

Shame on me! I should have had that.

Here's my take on this one. I did get a bit of an advance listen, but responses are from the first listen. Track 01 - This reminds me a lot of one of the cuts from my BFT. Soprano player strikes me as maybe more of a regional player, but I think that adds to the draw of this cut, because it's not "perfect". This is not in my usual ballpark, but hear a lot to like here. Track 02 - Yeah, I'm all in on this one. This is the sort of thing made me go out and buy a bass clari. Or course, that was forgetting that I suck. This has all kinds of things I love. That bass hook, the groove -- it's all there. (Incidentally, seeing Mathieu Belanger in Montreal was another of the motivating factors!) Track 03 - Sounds like Kenny Wheeler to me. Maybe with a Pat Methenyish guy. I like the trumpet more than the guitar on this. Track 04 - First reaction is Giuffre on bari. Again, a lot to like here. You're en fuego! Straight ahead, good ol' fashioned no bullshit swinging 4/4 Jazz. Not a thing wrong with that. Track 05 - I was thinking Lazy Afternoon, at first. No idea who, but again, this is VERY nice. Piano is absolutely haunting. Track 06 - Really loving both the bone and the instrumentation. This is one of my favorite BFTs of this year. Track 07 - More strange instrumentation, but more love. This damned test is going to cost me money!!! Track 08 - Sounds like Sean Bergin and Curtis Clark to me, but I don't recognize it, so I am most likely wrong. Track 09 - Odd. Got an Elanor Rigby vibe on the head. Loses a touch of its cool once the solos start -- gets more of a CTI feel, but overall, I still like this a lot. Track 10 - Has an ECM feel to it, similar to the DeJohnette bands, but it's its own thing. Abstract, but musical. Another one I like a lot. Track 11 - Ordinarily, this would be a stretch for me, as the head seems a bit math-jazzy. But this combination works here. Clearly a modern player (Bob Berg influence?). I don't love the improvisational statement, but there's no denying the overall groove. Another keeper. Your killin' it, but I'm able to ID NADA! Track 12 - This has a Sam Rivers feel to it, but perhaps a bit more European (think Gunther Hampel). Again, abstract, but musical. This has a bit less of the groove that the others had, but it still works. Track 13 - That modern guitar sound that I find so troubling. I suppose it's the influence of Pat Metheny (with whom I rarely click). This seems more like Ben Monder or someone of that ilk. The heavily effected guitar always sort of bugs me... frankly, kind of puts me to sleep. I like the loping feel of the drums (I'm a sucker for 3), but otherwise, this strikes me more as a background cut. Also, MG, try refreshing your browser -- I'm able to see it from my tablet.

Got around to this while staying at the beach during a rainy stretch. Track 01 — The gospel feel doesn’t bother me, but the vibrato is a bit over the top. Could be Byard Lancaster, though the genre seems all wrong for that guess. Song reminds me of something else and I keep expecting it to go there. Listening on a tablet —am I hearing a tuba in there? Track 02 — Slam Stewart, for sure. I know there is an album with this tune w/Papa Jo and Wild Bill Davis — this is not that. Track 03 — Needle drop. No guess on the guitar. Sounds like Ain’t Nobody’s Business in 3. Tenor is a Jazz guy (as opposed to a blues guy) but not someone I am familiar with. It works, but I’m convinceI don’t know any of these people. Track 04 — Strikes me as a pianist playing the organ, but can’t say who. Don’t recognize the drummer. Track 05 — Somebody Makin’ Whoopie. Playing like Ray would sing it. Since it’s a blindfold test, I’ll guess Gene Harris. 😁 Track 06 — I do not know these people. Enjoying, but as background. Track 07 — willow weeping for someone I do not know. A very tappy player. Seems influenced by Django. Track 08 — I am a sucker for this feel. No idea who it is, but I’ll take seconds, please. Oddly, bari solo didn’t really click for me. Track 09 — sounds like the Crusaders. Nope. I was thinking Way Back Home. Could be them backing a vocalist. Sounds like Joe for sure. I can’t recall Wilton on soprano, but I’d bet it sounds about like this. Man, this REALLY sounds like that song. One owes the other royalties. Track 10 — Likable, but I keep wanting to hear an Ellington blend in the sax section. Enjoyable, no guess. Track 11 — Intrigue on the intro, wasn’t prepared for Gershwin. Don’t know the vocalist. Has that feel that maybe she’s someone famous trying her hand at singing (reasonably successfully). No guess. Track 12 — sounds like a variant of Lester Leaps In. Perhaps a later contemporary, but not quite on the same plane. I like this guy’s beastly tone Track 13 — weird guess here: O. C. Smith? No idea on the band. Track 14 — Wow, I really whiffed on this test. I was thinking Mr. Jordan at first, but that does not seem correct. As always a challenging test. I really hate it when I get no-hit! After reading the thread: Welp, my ears didn't betray me on #9, but did on #2. Correct me if I'm wrong, here, isn't Major usually signing an octave ABOVE his bow?

You are most welcome and I'm sure all the musicians thank you for your purchases!

Welcome!

Happy to spend your money.

01 - El-P, Please Stay (Yesterday) from High Water (2004) From Thirsty Ear’s The Blue Series Continuum. This was an interesting project from Thirsty Ear that you can read more about here. I first heard some of this on Prime Cuts on MPBN back when Ken Eisen was hosting the show. Roy Campbell - trumpet, Steve Swell - trombone, Matthew Shipp - piano, Daniel Carter - woodwinds, William Parker - bass, Guillermo E. Brown - drums, El-P - producer 02 - Henry Butler, Fivin’ Around from Fivin’ Around (1986) This was a discovery back in my college radio days. Knew nothing about Butler, but fell in love with this track. Jeff Clayton - oboe, Henry Butler - piano, Charlie Haden - bass, Billy Higgins - drums 03 - Martina Almgren Quartet, Rumsia Samla from Unden (2009) I discovered this completely by accident back when I was subscribing to eMusic. It popped up and I listened to clips, liked it, took a chance. Nothing ground-breaking, but really enjoy most of this record. Björn Almgren - tenor saxophone, Tommy Kotter - piano, Owe Almgren - electric bass, Martina Almgren - drums 04 - Bridgewater Bros, Dear Trane from Lightning And Thunder (1978) I found my way to Cecil through Max Roach’s band, and then to this record via an article about the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis band. Cecil Bridgewater - trumpet/flugelhorn, Ron Bridgewater - tenor saxophone, Stanley Cowell - piano, Reggie Workman - bass, Michael Carvin - drums 05 - Robert Stewart, Get Out! from In The Gutta (1996) Robert Stewart is another guy I discovered through Ken Eisen. Robert used to have all of his stuff on his website. I sent him a message letting him know it was all downloadable. He said he knew. I told him I’d prefer to see him make a living and offered to pay for the downloads. He told me he wanted people to have his music. So I have it. (And yes, I have bought the albums, since). Robert Stewart - vocals & tenor saxophone, Ed Kelly - organ, Reginald Veal - bass, Jeff “Tain” Watts - drums 06 - Bobby Battle, To Wisdom, The Prize from The Offering (1993) This record showed up in my iPod rotation and never fails to send me to the screen to see what I’m listening to. Mapleshade really managed to capture that Prestige drum sound, and it frequently messes with me when trying to ID a track. Larry Willis - piano, Santi Debriano - bass, Bobby Battle - drums 07 - Sonny Fortune, Billy Harper, Stanley Cowell, Reggie Workman, Billy Hart, Awakening from Great Friends (1986) Billy Harper is a hero to me, but I like his own stuff usually much better than his stuff as a sideman. This one is is the middle ground. Sonny always leaves me a bit off, but again, he works in this setting. Sonny Fortune - alto saxophone, Billy Harper - tenor saxophone, Stanley Cowell - piano, Reggie Workman - bass, Billy Hart - drums 08 - George Adams, City of Peace from Paradise Space Shuttle (1979) My father picked this record out for me at Loony Tunes in Boston when I was… hell… 13? At first, I didn’t care for it, but George quickly became a personal favorite. This was the inspiration for my first attempt at improvising on the saxophone. Thanks to Richard Gardzina for his patience and support in that endeavor. George Adams - tenor saxophone, Rahn Burton - piano, Don Pate - bass, Al Foster - drums, Azzedin Weston - percussion 09 - Lloyd McNeil, Salvation Army from Treasures (1976) I became familiar with Lloyd through the BFTs. Man, am I glad I did! Covering this tune is a goal of the current quartet/quintet project I’m involved in. Lloyd McNeill - flute, Dom Salvador - piano, Cecil McBee - bass, Brian Blake and Portinho - drums, Ray Armando - percussion 10 - John Gordon, Making Memories from Step By Step (1976) I’m a sucker for most all things Strata-East, and this is no exception. John Gordon - trombone, Charles Tolliver - trumpet, Roland Alexander - woodwinds, Stanley Cowell - piano, Lisle Atkinson - bass, Andrew Cyrille - drums Probably a good time to mention that none of the reoccurring personnel on this BFT were intentional, excepting the two tracks from El-P. 11 - Charles Brackeen Quartet, Cing Kong from Worshippers Come Nigh (1988) available here: https://silkheart.bandcamp.com/ Brackeen is an under appreciated genius in my estimation. Here is the link to Silkheart's bandcamp page. Charles Brackeen - tenor saxophone, Olu Dara - cornet, Fred Hopkins - bass, Andrew Cyrille - drums 12 - Frank Lacy, Settegast Strut. 12:50 This is another tune I want to cover with the current project. I *love* Frank Lacy. I first heard this covered by Bluiett’s Baritone Saxophone Group, and they completely missed the feel of the song. This song has the strut, and Lacy feels the spirit. This interview may also be of interest. Frank Lacy - trombone, Katy Roberts - piano, Radu Olawu Ben Juda (Richard “Radu” Williams) - bass, Doug Hammond - drums 13 - El-P, Please Leave (Yesterday) from High Water (2004) Roy Campbell - trumpet, Steve Swell - trombone, Matthew Shipp - piano, Daniel Carter - woodwinds, William Parker - bass, Guillermo E. Brown - drums, El-P - producer

Felser is correct and this is my Favorite Frank Lacy release. Much to love on this record.

Frank Lacy is correct.

Older than that group... or at least, in a different loft. Yes, yes you do. It is available and I can provide you with the link in the reveal. Sorry about the dent. Not Roswell, and probably considered more mainstream than that, but actually covers a broader spectrum. One might (and this player DOES) argue that this trombonist is "the most widely idiomatically recorded musician of [their] generation".

Nailed it.

Man, you are so sniffing around the fire! Azar Lawrence DOES appear on this album, but this is not him. I'll be surprised if anyone gets this one. Your assessment that they are not Caribbean is correct. They seem to cover a fairly wide stylistic swath. Nothing about your reaction to this is a surprise, and yes, the bassist is INDEED a heavy musician. I would say the pianist qualifies, as well. This guy was a discovery to me about 20 years back. Haven't heard all that much from him recently, which could be as much my fault as his. I like where your ears took you, but this test does the impossible -- a BFT from me absent a John Hicks appearance.

Ding! Ding!

He is in there, and it is his composition, but the band operates under multiple names.

Not KB. I figured you'd dig this one and figured you for a lock to get it. Hint: Trumpet player identifies as something else and THEN a guy who plays trumpet. I'd be surprised if you're not correct about most of those.

Glad you could stop by! I think you called this one pretty well, though I think the perceived failure to pull it off is intentional. They call it something else, but parentheticaly "Yesterday". Pretty well assessed. Really don't expect this one to get ID'd. Certainly a period that influenced this band. That assessment comes as no surprise. I'm surprised this one hasn't been pegged, yet. Exactly. Seems to have been an occasional mark of the label that produced this music. In my mind, it was frequently the recording (there were some great drummers in the stable), but some of the recordings seemed to feature the "b" team. Appreciate that. This one, IMHO, gets better upon repeated listening. Another tenor who leaves it all on the field. I mostly agree on the composition, but the rhythmic pattern and the movement in the piano's left hand (freeing up the bass for ad-libs) make this one special to my ear. Composed by a GREAT musician and an underrated composer. Thanks, again!

Invisible Funk-A-Roonie-Peacock can be challenging, and the title track always seemed a bit short of the rest of the album to my ear, particular the A side.

Correct! My father picked this record out for me at Looney Tunes in Boston. At first, I didn't care for it. Upon repeated listenings, it became a favorite. There's a couple of filler tracks, but most of the album is excellent.

Spot on on track 9. LM was introduced to my via the BFT, and boy am I glad. LOVE this tune. And, I agree about how we are wired. Of course, I knew that the first time I saw your avatar! A few years back this happened:

Wow! Some definite surprises. Never would have gotten Alan Dawson, but feel pretty good about my assessment of James Williams. A lot of people saw him in a lower tier, but I've always felt he was under-respected within the genre.

Shoulda had your skates on!

To access July’s BFT, please use the following link. http://thomkeith.net/index.php/blindfold-tests/ at the risk of stepping on KEN’s toenails, I’m going to start this today (not sure I am available tomorrow). Apologies in advance — this is a long BFT. I am usually better about that. Mostly long tracks, more of a listener than a fooler. Enjoy!