Oliver Nelson: Sound Pieces

[Late]

There's a thread here dedicated to Nelson's work on Prestige, but I couldn't find one that discussed this album.

I've had this on compact disc since it was first reissued in the early 90's. I always go hot and cold on it, but yesterday it really clicked for me. Nelson plays soprano throughout, and his intonation is near-perfect, which in a way isn't surprising given Nelson's meticulousness. His solo on "The Shadow of Your Smile" is really something else. Longer than most Nelson solos, and not openly reliant on his "patterns for jazz" as much as other solos of his from the period. It's really inventive. And his sound is so flute-like in the upper register—I wonder what Steve Lacy or Coltrane thought. (Is Nelson playing an Otto Link? I think so.)

What do you think of this record? Both the orchestra side and the quartet side. Does the rhythm section (Steve Kuhn, Ron Carter, Grady Tate) gel? 

[clifford_thornton]

I have never heard this record, though I've seen it around. Might give it a try one day.

[jlhoots]

Haven't listened in a good while. Mixed feelings when I did listen to it.