BFT #129 Reveal

[felser]

1 – Gary Bartz- “Perihelion and Aphelion “ from ‘Another Earth’ Milestone Records 1968

Bartz in a quartet with Stanley Cowell, Reggie Workman, and Freddie Waits. Charles Tolliver joins in on the side-long title track. Paired with ‘Libra’ in an essential CD reissue. Bartz was very adventurous during that wonderful period.

2 – Juju –“ Nia: Complete the Circle” from ‘Chapter 2: Nia’ Strata-East Records 1974

The first two Juju albums were gems in the Strata-East catalog. Plunky Nkabinde was a visionary and a strong player. He continued to do very satisfying work into the early 80’s. I saw this group live at the Ethical Society in Philly shortly after ‘African Rhythms’ was released, and they were fabulous.

3 – Freddie Hubbard – “Aries” from ‘The Body & The Soul’ Impulse Records 1963.

Magical reworking of the piece he had recorded earlier on Blue Note. Wonderful arrangement by Wayne Shorter.

4 – Carlos Garnett – “Chana” from ‘Journey To Enlightenment’ Muse Records 1974

Very much of a time and place, as can be seen by the album cover. Garnett was a major talent with broad abilities ranging from post-bop with Andrew Hill to a stint with the Jazz Messengers to his own recordings, which had prominent vocals and R&B leanings in a very spiritual bent. Wish he had been on a label better funded than Muse, as his records often sounded a little under-rehearsed to me, but had brilliance about them.

5 – Eric Kloss – “Love Will Find a Way” from ‘Essence’ 1973 Muse Records

Our friends at Dusty Groove may describe this track as “a righteous burner”. Kloss, Hannibal Marvin Peterson, Mickey Tucker, Buster Williams, and a drummer named Ron Krasinski. This album criminally has never been reissued on CD.

6 – Norman Connors – “Mother of the Future” from ‘Slewfoot’ 1975 Buddah Records

Classic anthem by Carlos Garnett with strong tenor work by him. Jean Carn on vocals, Hubert Eaves on keys, Michael Henderson on bass (I love the electric bass on this, though Thom sounded off against it). Very embarrassing album cover 40 years on.

7 – Azar Lawrence - title cut from “Bridge Into The New Age” 1974 Prestige Records

Lawrence was in his early 20’s when he recorded this beautiful cut. The all-star cast includes Jean Carn and Woody Shaw, as well as lost vibist Woody Murray.

8 – Sergio Mendes – “Empty Faces” from ‘Crystal Illusions’ 1969 A&M Records

Lani Hall doing what Lani Hall did best. Milton Nascimento masterpiece with words by Hall. This album went to #33 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, and has held up well, as have all the Brasil ’66 albums.

9 – Nate Morgan – “U.G.M.A.A.ger” from ‘Retribution, Reparation’ 1984 Nimbus West Records

Morgan, a too-little known monster of a composer/pianist from L.A., passed away recently. He was only 60. Played with Rufus for awhile prior to Hawk Wolinski, and recorded some awesome material on Nimbus West in the 80’s.

10 - Babatunde Lea – “Prince of Peace” from ‘Umbo Weti: A Tribute to Leon Thomas’. 2009 Motema

Featuring L.A. local legend Dwight Trible on vocals, Lea on drums, Gary Brown on bass, and, most interestingly, Patrice “Forget Me Nots” Rushen on piano and Ernie Watts on tenor. Rushen put out two very promising advanced jazz albums on Prestige when she was 19-20 years old before turning to R&B to make a living. She sounds great here, as does Watts, who shows he can play anything well.

11 – Terry Callier – ”Dancing Girl” from ‘What Color is Love’ 1973 Chess Records

Callier suffered from not fitting neatly into a musical category (similar to Nina Simone and early Gil Scott-Heron in that regard), but whatever kind of music this is, it’s breathtaking. Charles Stepney should be immortalized just for his arranging on this song and Callier’s “Alley-Wind Song” alone. Callier became a legend in the U.K. 25 years later thanks to the championing of Beth Orton, another very fascinating musician on her first few albums.

Edited January 1, 2015 by felser

[Hot Ptah]

Thank you for a great Blindfold Test, John. I am going to get the Carlos Garnett album as soon as possible! So much really good stuff here, right up my listening alley!

[felser]

Thank you for a great Blindfold Test, John. I am going to get the Carlos Garnett album as soon as possible! So much really good stuff here, right up my listening alley!

Dusty Groove is the spot to get it. 'Black Love' and 'Let This Melody Ring On' also well worthwhile.

edit: Actually, Amazon Marketplace now has these a good bit cheaper then Da Bastids do.

Edited January 3, 2015 by felser

[Hot Ptah]

Thanks for that advice!

[mjazzg]

Really enjoyed this BFT. I'll be tracking down the Azar Lawrence and the Nate Morgan for starters with eyes out for some others along the way

I said on the discussion thread that the Callier was just an unexpected delight to hear here.The album "What Color is Love" is a masterpiece but not his only one. Certainly his recording with Orton gave him wider exposure but the real championing was done earlier by DJs on the London scene which ended up with Callier visiting here for gigs at which point the Orton connection comes into play I think

[felser]

Really enjoyed this BFT. I'll be tracking down the Azar Lawrence and the Nate Morgan for starters with eyes out for some others along the way

I said on the discussion thread that the Callier was just an unexpected delight to hear here.The album "What Color is Love" is a masterpiece but not his only one. Certainly his recording with Orton gave him wider exposure but the real championing was done earlier by DJs on the London scene which ended up with Callier visiting here for gigs at which point the Orton connection comes into play I think

Thanks for the info on Callier. Tragically, he remains obscure in the USA. Looking him up in allmusic just now, I discovered he passed away two years ago. I didn't even know that.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Ah, so the singer on #6 is Jean Carn - no wonder I didn't like her much; I've never heard anything of hers I DID like.

MG

[His Boy Elroy]

Felser, thanks for putting together this test and including me on the distribution list. I apologize for not weighing in on the discussion. I did listen to all the tunes, but somehow life got the best of me in December, and before I knew it, January was upon us. I appreciate the emphasis, in particular, on the ‘70’s. I was a kid in the ‘70’s, long before I learned about jazz, and largely missed out on the entire decade. When I eventually got into jazz, I started, like a lot of people, with the hard bop of the ‘50’s, and found myself buying into the commonly-held notion among jazz purists that the ‘70’s were something of a jazz wasteland. I eventually realized this was bullshit, but it took a while, and I’m still sort of catching up with a lot of went down in that decade. Like others, I particularly enjoyed that Terry Callier cut. Killer. Anyway, thanks again

[felser]

Felser, thanks for putting together this test and including me on the distribution list. I apologize for not weighing in on the discussion. I did listen to all the tunes, but somehow life got the best of me in December, and before I knew it, January was upon us. I appreciate the emphasis, in particular, on the ‘70’s. I was a kid in the ‘70’s, long before I learned about jazz, and largely missed out on the entire decade. When I eventually got into jazz, I started, like a lot of people, with the hard bop of the ‘50’s, and found myself buying into the commonly-held notion among jazz purists that the ‘70’s were something of a jazz wasteland. I eventually realized this was bullshit, but it took a while, and I’m still sort of catching up with a lot of went down in that decade. Like others, I particularly enjoyed that Terry Callier cut. Killer. Anyway, thanks again

Thanks. Yeah, the 70's were anything but a wasteland. There was some commercialized dross, but also a whole lot of utter brilliance. Just need to look the right places.

[Hot Ptah]

I think the 1970s were the single best decade for jazz, with hundreds of excellent, exciting albums. Many artists of earlier generations were still active and vital.

[felser]

Uniique and wonderful decade for sure. I also love the 50's and 60's as decades for jazz. Wouldn't want to have to choose one of them, the way I can easily choose the 60's for rock. To me, the dropoff from the 70's to the 80's in jazz is depressing, though explainable on a macro level (seeking the next Wynton).

Edited January 12, 2015 by felser

[Hot Ptah]

I agree that the dropoff from the 1970s to the 1980s was dramatic and unwelcome to me at the time.