Late

This was my first Shorter album, purchased on compact disc about 17 years ago, except that the disc wasn't actually compact, and it was glossy and black, and had all these grooves struck into it. Sometimes what I'm most struck by about Shorter's playing is how relatively fast (from his first recordings) his approach moved away from Coltrane's. I know the two were acquaintances, if not friends, in the late 50's, and I believe they shared some practice time together. You'd never hear Coltrane, for example, play high(er) notes the way Shorter does on the ballads for Adam's Apple. Very few tenor players, in my listening experience, have that type of delicacy, while still being a "delicacy" that I hear being pretty far removed from, say, a Stan Getz. In Getz's case, one can often hear breath in his tone, whereas in Shorter's there's less of an airy quality, and more saxophone sound. That takes a lot of embouchre control, and just the right balance of air pressure against the reed. At any rate, I agree — those ballads are something to marvel at, and reveal a style of playing that is inimitably Wayne Shorter. Perversely perhaps (because it wasn't on the original session), my favorite track has always been "The Collector" (that is, after I purchased the actual compact disc). This track became, I believe, "Teo's Bag" when it was recorded with Miles, but there it lacks a lot of the intensity that this version has. I wish that Shorter had come back into the studio around this time to make an album (or complete an album) that continued the path that this track started. To my ears, this track is darker than the rest of Adam's Apple, and I think that's when Shorter gets most interesting — a la The All Seeing Eye, I suppose. If you have Andrew Hill's Lift Every Voice, check out Carlos Garnett's soloing there. To me, some of his phrases on this record are unmistakably under the influence of Shorter. And it was only 1969! Whether or not Garnett was one of the first to be attracted to Shorter's style, there were many, many to follow.

How long do you guess it will be until the single disc (or double-disc) issue of this comes out? While I think I would like the box set, I've decided to go the album reissue route on this one. If it's a single disc, do you suppose any extras will be added, or just the original two tunes? Curious.

It seems like Ron McMaster ate his Wheaties before remastering this one. Mother Ship sounds a lot better here than on the Mosaic. Eddie Gladden is still a little too far back in the mix for my taste, but this may be in the original recording. I think that Herbert Morgan's horn benefits most from this new remastering, adding some depth to his sound, and I'm all the happier for it. A solid tenor player. The album itself — five of these: . Great to have it out as a single disc. In fact, my expression is near that of Larry's (on the cover) as I play it.

And here's what we still have to look forward to: Unissued Andrew Hill dates: • February 10, 1967: Robin Kenyatta, Sam Rivers, Cecil McBee, Teddy Robinson, Nadi Quamar 5 tracks • May 17, 1967: Ron Carter, Teddy Robinson 6 tracks — the Chained session • October 31, 1967: Woody Shaw, Robin Kenyatta, Sam Rivers, Howard Johnson, Herbie Lewis, Teddy Robinson 5 tracks • June 13, 1969: Carlos Garnett, Karl Porter (bassoon), Richard Davis, Freddie Waits, Sanford Allen (vocal) + string quartet Future Connoisseurs?

Going through this again, I tried to have a more critical ear. I agree that a few more rehearsals to tighten up some of the ensemble passages would have helped, but I also agree that this is not a concern that inhibits enjoying the music. I'm liking Ron Carter less on this session ... and Lenny White more! But, I usually find that when I initially really like an album, my response over time takes a drastic dip at first (critically, that is; the happy sheen wears off some), and then I gradually come back to liking it the same all over again. What's most important to me about this session is that it can be returned to and still provide interest — something that I find a lot of hardbop dates don't do.

Dig. Didn't mean to suggest that you, in particular, had forgotten the Shrek connection; just a comment in general. If your kids, as well as yourself, like Steig's narratives and drawings, I think you'll really like The World of. Now if only Mr. Steig had been a guest artist for a Blue Note album cover!

In the ongoing search for Capra Black, and actually not having any Harper, I picked up Black Saint yesterday. I put it on, and my face looked like this: You think you've been listening to this music for a while, and you're surpised all over again: there are always artists out there that you've simply passed by for one reason or another. This is one passionate session. And chops? Billy Harper knows the tenor saxophone. Good gracious. "Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart" has one of the most ecstatic tenor saxophone solos I've heard in a long time. If you're like me, and didn't have this one until yesterday ( -_- ), do something nice for yourself and splurge on this one. Man oh man.

Steig was one of the best in his field of work, if not the. I adore Slyvester and the Magic Pebble, as well as Abel's Island. (Don't forget too, for better or worse, that Steig was the creator of Shrek.) There is a great coffee table book out entitled The World of William Steig (Artisan Books) that is well worth purchasing if you have an interest in this writer's work. Children's literature is much more difficult to create — in any authentic sense — than it appears.

Two other impressions: • Damn cool color photos of Farrell and Shaw on the inside booklet jacket! Let this be a trend! • Why is the (colorized black-and-white) inlay photo of Andrew Hill the same one used for Grass Roots? Surely there are others that could have been used.

Initial impressions: • Joe Farrell came to play on this session. In the context of this recording, and considering he's covering five reeds, I can't think of anyone I'd rather hear. While I think I generally prefer the "abandon" of Carlos Garnett or Bennie Maupin, Farrell is near-perfect for this date. And some of his tenor solos truly do have that sense of "abandon" that Hill's music seems to call out for. • Dizzy Reece? Yes. This ain't the Dizzy Reece from Blues in Trinity any more. Harmonically advanced enough at this time to go head-to-head with Woody Shaw, it's a joy to hear his work on this session, and I'm glad Hill chose two trumpet players for this recording. • Malcolm Addey should be the default Connoisseur remaster engineer. • Good God, some of these compositions ("Noon Tide") and arrangements ("The Brown Queen") are beautiful. This session will be one to return to again and again. I can only predict that when it eventually goes out-of-print, it will be in heavy demand. • I can't fathom any other unreleased Andrew Hill Blue Note sessions being this engaging. I'm not hearing the relative stasis in the rhythm section as mentioned above. Lenny White? I'm not really familiar with his work, but he's cookin' it and servin' it up here — certainly a la Tony Williams. I would have to agree that I'd prefer to hear Richard Davis — or perhaps Ronnie Boykins — instead of Carter here, but Carter's bass is recorded well for this session, and that's always nice to hear. Sometimes I think that Carter's relative sophistication as a performer gets in the way of what might be called a "positive aggression" as an accompanist and time (or no time) keeper. Nonetheless, it's useless to split hairs, and Carter certainly isn't remiss or mundane on this date. • Brother Ah on French horn!

"Descriptions for everything we've never heard. We're Dusty Groove!"

Fully.

Dig. Skipped over your posting of this the first time around.

Right Now Charles Tolliver: trumpet Gary Bartz: alto saxophone Herbie Hancock: piano Ron Carter: bass Joe Chambers: drums recorded 1968 (Notice Max in the corner of the album cover!)

Damn, I'm salivating! Anyone know of an online vendor that carries this title on compact disc? p.s. I have Ghetto Music on its way, and have already netted one of the Max's (the Impulse! title). I've never picked up A New Perspective, and now seems the perfect time. It seems like it's taken me forever to fully appreciate an album with voices, but now I'm hearing it! I'll have to look for that Morgan album with Harper, too. Thanks all. p.p.s. Has anyone else been struck by how, on Andrew Hill's Lift Every Voice, Carlos Garnett sounds amazingly close to Wayne Shorter at times (timbre, not articulation), and Bennie Maupin sounds amazingly close to Joe Henderson at times (timbre and articulation)? Strangeness.

OK, the answer to the first question is: yes! This album is (or was) out on compact disc. Not sure if it's OOP, however, though it looks like it is.

I don't yet have this album, and have just begun looking for it, but so far online searches have come up empty. (Maybe I'm not looking hard enough.) A few questions: • Was this ever on compact disc? • If so, is it out-of-print? • What do you think of this album? I've been having a lovefest with Andrew Hill's Lift Every Voice lately, and so have been searching out more horns with voices albums. And on that note — if any of you have any recommendations along these lines (horns + voices), please chime in! Thanks!

Swut Ime tokkin boug: • Jimmy Giuffre/Paul Bley/Steve Swallow: Emphasis, Stuttgart 1961 • Jimmy Giuffre/Paul Bley/Steve Swallow: Flight, Bremen 1961

I'm actually glad to see this series taking a pause on Mobley. While I would like to see an RVG of Hi Voltage, I appreciate that this series is branching out some. The big screw up (*), of course, is RVG-ing The Night of the Cookers instead of Here to Stay, which may very well be Freddie's finest moment on Blue Note. * I wonder if Sam Rivers will ever get the RVG treatment? Now that Andrew Hill will have a title in this series other than Point of Departure, we can all start crossing our fingers for Contours. Can't we?

Impossible, I actually like Ghost of Electricity a bit more than What Comes Before, but both are fine albums. The latter album is more subdued (or possibly more "serene") than the former, but nevertheless without its own form of tension. If you have the Junk Genius disc already and like it, you probably won't have any problems with What Comes Before. If you don't dig the Junk Genius disc, there's still a possibility that you'll like What Comes Before. Hope that helps some! Late

Up for review, and to see if we can pin down a possible album list for the Curtis Amy Mosaic Select. I wonder if this one will see November release. I hope so!

Just saw that these individual hat titles are seeing reissue as a double-disc set on hatOLOGY. For those who don't already have this music, these concerts are a must-hear. If you like the 1961 set on ECM, you will love these sides.

I'm just now exploring these labels, and I was wondering if anyone had any reviews and/or impressions ... Thanks for posting your thoughts! (Edited to update the image ...)

I really enjoy this label, largely because of its diverse offerings. There's just about something for everyone. Here are some recommendations I'd make: • Mark Feldman: Music for Violin Alone — Beautiful, and often intense, playing from Feldman. • Guy Klucevsek: Stolen Moments — One of my favorites on this label ... except for the one vocal track (which isn't actually bad; I just feel it disrupts the program). If you like Dave Douglas's Charms of the Night Sky, you'll want to get this one. • Mark Dresser: Banquet — Where else can you hear a composition for clarinet, cello, and tuba? This might be considered a "classical" disc, but there's also room for improvisation, so ... forget genres like a good listener should! • Ben Goldgerg: What Comes Before — The all-time favorite album of our old friend Nathan (from BNBB days). A moody album comprised of clarinet, guitar, and drums. Though it may take some patience to "get" (at least it did for me), this is definitely one to try out. • John Zorn: The String Quartets — Do you like Elliott Carter? Do you like Beethoven? Do you like cartoon music? If your answer is yes to the proceeding, you may very well like this disc. It comes complete with a Mothers-Approved cover. I'll also second (or third) the recommendations for the Tim Sparks discs. His first disc on Tzadik is a beauty. And ... one more recommendation, which isn't on Tzadik, but could be: • Assif Tsahar: The Hollow World (Hopscotch) — Do you like Ascension? If you do, no further questions. You'll want to pick this one up eventually.