Miles Davis In Europe

Miles Davis (trumpet)

Live In Europe 1967 (Columbia/Legacy; 2011)

Herbie Hancock (piano)

Wayne Shorter (sax)

Ron Carter (bass)

Tony Williams (drums)

For many jazz fans we own a gazillion Miles Davis live albums (official and unofficial). But every once in awhile I like to mention a few that are must haves. Live In Europe 1967 is definitely one of them. This is a boxed set of a series of unofficial recordings (aka bootlegs) that have been on the market for years. I own two of the three included in the box already but on this first legitimate release we get a little clearer sound quality.

The really cool thing about this is that while there is a plethora of live albums involving Miles' electric period and a few with Coltrane, this quintet doesn't always get recognized despite the legendary names it includes. The quintet features a scintillating Wayne Shorter who had only recently joined the group after the short tint of fellow great George Coleman, on sax. This is the same quintet that recorded E.S.P., Miles Smiles, Sorcerer and Nefertiti. All albums that would lead up to Flies Of Kilimanjaro and of course In A Silent Way.

This was a fertile and prolific period for Miles and each of his band members. There are some fierce renditions of "All Blues" and "Footprints" where Wayne Shorter and Tony Williams are in blistering form. These were true "young lions" quickly becoming the benchmark for jazz to come. Miles sounds happy and inspired by his companions. His playing is crisp and sharp and at times free flowing. These tunes played on this date don't completely shed light on what would come only a few years later but you do get a sense of Miles thinking more about the freedom of space for his members to create within. "Masqualero" played at each of the three nights in this box is intense and has an aggression that pulls the listener in with each note. Shorter, Hancock and Miles drill you into a meditative mood with great ease.

The dates recorded here find a group that was in fine form and played with exquisite speed and beauty. And while some may ask, why do I need to buy another Miles record? Well the short answer is, because its Miles silly. But seriously, Live In Europe 1967 really did deserve an official treatment and release. The accompanying DVD of live footage also adds to how great this quintet was. And surprisingly the box is reasonably priced making it affordable for collectors and those wanted to investigate a different side of Miles live. You can also check out some of JazzWraps other thoughts on great Miles Davis live albums here.

John Esposito: Orisha

John Esposito (piano; b. 1953)

Orisha (Sun Jump Records; 2010)

Ira Coleman (bass)

Peter O'Brien (drums)

It looks like tradition is running wild at JazzWrap this week.

New York native, John Esposito has been on the scene for over three decades. He has worked with a variety of jazz artists including Dave Douglas, Ryan Kisor, Dave Holland and Sam Rivers among others. He has a style that is relaxed but also complexed. There is a beautiful side to his compositions that reminds me of the craftier moments of Bill Charlap or Blue Note era Herbie Hancock.

He has played in a variety of contexts but the two albums that have always drawn my attention are his trio dates. The latest, Orisha (Sun Jump Records) is a wonderful collection of originals (unlike the previous release Down Blue Marlin Road, which heavily featured standards and originals) that are joyous and jumpin'.

While Esposito is the leader on this date, this is definitely a group affair. On "Myanmar" the trio move through uptempo and midtempo without hesitation. It's a lovely introspective listen that is emotional effective.

"Fly" written and performed by drummer, Peter O'Brien, while short is nicely and fiercely delivered and moves quickly into "Stygian Bright", a multi-patterned piece with some nice chordal changes by Esposito. "Personal Blues" while based on a blues structure doesn't move in a blues fashion. This is a fast paced number that delivers a night club feel that you are bound to find intoxicating.

Orisha is a stellar collection of high spirited originals performed by a trio that while not playing regularly, demonstrates years of experience of which they all hold, rolled up into just over an hour of marvelous listening.

Herbie Hancock: The Piano

Herbie Hancock (piano; b. 194)
The Piano (Columbia; 1979)

Recorded in 1978 and originally only released in Japan, The Piano (Columbia/Legacy Recordings), is one of Herbie Hancock's most introspective albums ever as well as one of the few solo piano recordings he has done.

It was finally released in the U.S. in 2004. The Piano showcases two intimate settings for Hancock, one being a set of standards most popularized by Miles Davis, including "On Green Dolphin Street" and "Someday My Prince Will Come." The second half of the disc includes four Hancock originals which were essentially spontaneous. Combined, this recording gives many listeners (new and seasoned Herbie Hancock fans) a great "fly on the wall" experience into the mind of one the greatest pianist since Bill Evans.

A true masterpiece from a musician who is rarely heard in a solo setting, The Piano is also a wonderful and essential CD to have in your collection. Herbie Hancock is an artist who has had way more high points than lows. The Piano is a traditional standards session that sets Hancock high and above many of others during that time period and is still relevant today.

Fusion Week: OM

This week JazzWrap will take a look at some of the important (sometimes forgotten) groups that have helped shape and expand jazz fusion, prog and jazz rock over the last 40 years.

OM (group; 1972 - disbanded 1982)
A Retrospective (ECM Records)

Urs Leimgruber (sax, flutes, percussion)
Christy Doran (guitars, synthesizer)
Bobby Burri (bass)
Fredy Studer (drums)

OM were a quartet from Sweden who gained wide recognition after a blistering performance at the 1974 Montreaux Jazz Festival. They were quickly signed to ECM Records and recorded a four fantastic albums for the labels Japanese imprint JAPO. They freely admit that they started as a rock band trying to get jazz. While they did this with what looks like great ease.

Inspired and influenced by the string of electric jazz of time (Headhunters, Bitches Brew, Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra), OM set out to combine their jazz inspirations with their desire the capture the essence of what Hendrix had left in his wake of musicians--a sense of structure within a whirlwind of ideas. This combination of jazz and rock was also fueled by the one more large and legendary figure--John Coltrane, and the album for which the band derived its name, OM (Impulse Records; 1965). OM was one of Coltrane's more spiritual and deeply textured pieces. It's no wonder that this album would have a profound importance on the groups development.

They were a band that even in the beginning with their first album, Kirikuki (ECM/JAPO; 1976) were exploring both rock idioms with sparse rhythmic/ambient patterns that would later evolve on their final album Cerberus.

OM's four albums are extremely hard to find. And if memory serves these are not on CD either (someone please feel free to correct me on that one). But we are lucky that just a few years ago, ECM Records released Retrospective, a stellar collection spanning material from all four of their Japanese only albums. Retrospective features some great tracks like the rugged and raucous "Rautionaha", the delightfully introspective "Dreaming Of People." the funky almost Abercrombie-esque "Earworm" and the Bitches Brew-Headhunter filled free-jazz-funk-out of "Holly" and "Lips" These tracks as well as the rest of the album make for the premier on one of the truly under discussed bands of the '70s fusion era.

Retrospective isn't available to purchase physically in the US but you can get on iTunes (globally too) for download. OM were not a hard hitting force like some many of their American counterparts but they left a brief time capsule that everyone should definitely experience. Rich and highly involved stuff.

Fusion Week: Nucleus

This week JazzWrap will take a look at some of the important (sometimes forgotten) groups that have helped shape and expand jazz fusion, prog and jazz rock over the last 40 years.

Nucleus (group; formed 1969 - disbanded 1983)

Original Lineup: Ian Carr (trumpet) Chris Speeding (guitar) Brian Smith (sax) Karl Jenkins (electric piano) John Marshall (drums) Jeff Clyne (bass)

Formed surprising around the same time as prog legends King Crimson, Nucleus utilized jazz as their platform for experimentation. Guided by the deft hand of Ian Carr on trumpet, Nucleus would quickly catapult into the public eye through a series of live show culminating at the Montreaux Jazz Festival 1970. Nucleus started as Sextet and will evolve to various sizes over the course of two decades plus. The group would features such future jazz luminaries as Kenny Wheeler (trumpet), Chris Speeding (guitar), Alan Holdsworth (guitar), Tony Levin (drums), Norma Winstone (vocals) among others.

Nucleus could be called one of the British reactions to Miles Davis' series of electric fusion records from 69 - 71 (In A Silent Way, Flies de Kilamajaro, Bitches Brew and Jack Johnson). The mystical, ethereal approach Miles had captured on the aforementioned records seemed to have had some effect of Ian Carr and his fellow band members.

Don't think that Nucleus were just some Joe Zawinul, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Dave Holland, Tony Williams clones. NO! Nucleus took things one step further by fusing and stretching the idea of jazz and rock into a melodic journey with some funky yet highly improvised stops along the way. The music was first and foremost a jazz sextet that beautifully synced up well together. They also had a level of psychedelic brilliance that outside of what was going on in Germany (e.g. Can, Kraftwerk, Neu, Amon Duul) and America (Miles, Headhunters, Mahavishnu, Weather Report) at the time, was completely different in the UK. Also of note, some members would later join the other important British jazz rock band Soft Machine.

Nucleus released its first two albums, Elastic Rock (Vertigo; 1970) and We'll Talk About it Later (Vertigo; 1970) to monumental raves. The blistering work by Speeding on guitar, magical intoxication of Jenkins on keyboards and Carr's mastery on trumpet pull you kicking and screaming into the soundscape they have just constructed. Songs like "Elastic Rock," "1916," "We'll Talk About It Later" and the bombastically funky "Song for a Bearded Lady" are excellent statements of the early era of the band. Definite must listens for fans of Miles Davis, Can, Mahavishnu, et al.

Nucleus would record another 8 albums over the next two decades with various lineups. All of which are quite good and tend to get a little more funky as guitars and keyboards started to dominate the outings. Their is an extremely (and I mean extremely) great but hard to find compilation of their first six album for Vertigo called Direct Hits, that is well worth checking out. I don't have one but I would love a copy if anyone has one (yes, I'm begging).

Recently, there has been a series of live CDs spanning almost each configuration of the bands existence. Obviously the bulk of them cover the 70 - 71 lineup but each is still worth taking a listen. If you can't find these at record stores. I have seen them available for download at Amazon and iTunes. My personal favourites are Hemispheres: Live In Europe 1970/71 (Hux Records). It's got excellent sound quality and features and awesome version of "...Bearded Lady" and a Miles/Hancock scattered funk of "Snakeships Dream".

The other favourite is UK Tour '76 (MLP) is another soundboard recording and features a much later lineup dominated by keyboardist, Geoff Castle, guitarist, Ken Shaw and saxophonist, Bob Bertles, whom all stir up some nice fierce funk throughout this date. UK Tour '76 was recorded at what would be the end of Nucleus as a group (recorded during the tour for their final album Alleycat) as Ian Carr would also assume the Nucleus name more as a solo artist with guest musicians.

Nucleus never wanted to be compared to Miles' bands but fortunately or unfortunately they are. But that should not lessen the opportunity for you to check them out. Nucleus hold a strong place in the development of jazz fusion during the 70s and its important the story is continually told.

Bruce Barth

Bruce Barth (piano; b. 1955)

Very accomplished yet unassuming Bruce Barth has developed out a reflective post bop style that is bold as it is subtle. You really get this feeling more when you see him live. Bruce Barth is technically brilliant and highly effective with his compositions and interpretations. I have enjoyed his music for years now. Bruce Barth is one of those under-rated musicians of his generation. If someone doesn't tell you about him or you don't stumble across a live show in your city you may never know about him.

I first discovered him at a live show at the now legendary Smoke Jazz Club in New York City about seven years ago (maybe) not actually realizing years later that I actually met him once with Terence Blanchard as he was the primary piano player in Terrance's band during the early nineties (he also performed on a number soundtracks that Terence scored including Malcolm X). Bruce Barth has recorded 10 albums (and one DVD) as leader. All are quite rewarding and possibly owe a good deal to Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and than Thelonious Monk and Duke Ellington (although Monk composition appear on quite a few albums).

In addition to working in Terrance Blanchard's band, Barth has also worked with Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Redman, Tony Bennett, Karrin Allyson and Roy Hargrove to name a few. The years of work in Blanchard's group serve Barth well on his first few recordings including Morning Call (Enja), his second album as leader. This is highlighted by a great sextet including Leon Parker (drums), Steve Wilson (sax), Scott Wendholt (trumpet) and Larry Grenadier (bass). Morning Call is awash of Barth originals that show sophistication and beauty that I fell in love with after one listen.

Another standout album for me is the 2002 recording, Live At The Village Vanguard (MaxJazz) which is solid live recording (and the most widely available) mixed with spirited originals and elegant standards. A romantic yet smokin' live session that makes you feel like you're right there in the audience. It jumps, grooves and floats that you almost forget that its only a trio performing on the date.

Bruce Barth's latest album, Home (We'll Always Swing Music) is a live album with longtime colaborator Steve Wilson on saxophone. Home is an intimate performance and you can immediately tell that the two musicians have played with each other for years (since 1987). They are performing in front of just over 60 people at the home of a jazz supporter of the organization We'll Always Swing. Harmonically it might be two instruments but their interplay is so beautiful it sounds like one person. Barth again has written most of material for this evening including the compelling "The Ways Of The West" and rigorous "Blues Interruptus" which highlight Barth's considerable strengths as composer. There are only two standards played during this date, "All Through The Night" and "Sweet And Lovely". Both magnificently done and played with a loose combination of adventure and poetry. Home serves as an nice and long overdue follow up to Live At The Village Vanguard but I'm glad it's arrived.

I have a feeling many of you may not have heard Bruce Barth so I'm hoping I've convinced some of you that he is worth a listen. A good amount of his albums are available for download so that might be the best way to find him. He doesn't tour that often but if you should lookout for his name on the bill at your local jazz club. When he does show up--go. You won't regret it.

Celebrating Freddie Hubbard

Freddie Hubbard (trumpet; b. 1938 - d. 2008)

This week would have been Freddie Hubbard's 72nd birthday (April 7th). Yes, I probably should have written this early but things happen...

Freddie Hubbard was one fiercest hard bop players around. As some may know he was heavily influenced by the great Clifford Brown and Miles Davis and Louis Armstrong. But Hubbard would develop his own voice very quickly and would become a major influence on a new generation of trumpeters today (Ryan Kisor, Nicholas Payton, Roy Hargrove, et el.).

Freddie Hubbard performed with a host of legendary jazz musicians including John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman and Herbie Hancock to name just a few. Hubbard's style was robust, exuberant and well rounded; much more so than many of his contemporaries. When he played you knew it. I was lucky enough to see one of his last concerts and while he had definitely lost allot of his chops--due to a serious lip infection/injury during the 90s--you could still feel the powerful and energy in his performance. Freddie Hubbard like many of the legends of the '50s and '60s hard bop era played in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers before branching out on his own to record some stellar work for Blue Note Records.

Freddie Hubbard's first album, Open Sesame (Blue Note; 1960) is must have for any fan of jazz. It features some fantastic phrasing from Hubbard but also incredible performances from fellow greats McCoy Tyner (piano), Sam Jones (bass), Clifford Jarvis (drums) and the highly under-rated Tina Brooks (sax) who wrote two wonderful tracks, "Open Sesame" and "Gypsy Blue". Hubbard contributed the lovely closing piece "Hub's Nub which features some exciting solo work that for me is staggering ever time I listen to it.

You could say the Blue Note years saw Hubbard at his peak--you might be wrong. In the 70's Hubbard signed with the CTI/Epic Records after a brief unsuccessful period with Atlantic Records in the late 60s. The albums he produced for CTI would become some of his most commercially successful of his career.

One of the critics and my favourites is Red Clay (CTI; 1970) is a double-edged sword. It can easily be seen as a response to the direction jazz was going in after Miles Davis' Bitches Brew and even some of the work of contemporary Donald Byrd with the collision of funk, soul and jazz. It can also been seen as the trumpeter really taking to the new sub-genre and making it his own in one session.

There's a host of killer performances on this album including the interplay between Joe Henderson (sax) and Hubbard. The album also featured a who's who of jazz greats: Herbie Hancock (piano), Stanley Turrentine (sax), Johnny Smith (organ), George Benson (guitar), Ron Carter (bass), Lenny White, Billy Cobham (drums) and Airto Moreira (percussion)--all I have to say is wow! The album is obviously highlighted by the funky almost psychedelic blues of the title track but you can solid mixture of his crisp Blue Note playing in an updated more rhythmic arena. This isn't completely a funk record by "funk/soul" standards. It's an album built on the soul of the musician with some terrific grooves laid in by his friends.

While the 80s were sporadic for recording and the injury to his lip finally took its toll on the legend, Freddie Hubbard's final two albums still show he could play in with the young cats. The albums, New Colours (Hip Bop) and On The Real Side (Four Quarters) both feature Hubbard running through some previously recorded material but with the help of a new generation which included Kenny Garrett and Javon Jackson (sax) Steve Davis (trombone), Joe Chambers (drums) and Russell Malone (guitar) among others. These two album are not essential in the canon of Freddie Hubbard but they are well worth listening to after you've experience some of his others.

His love of the trumpet and playing never die and it always should right up to his final days. Freddie Hubbard was a remarkable musician with a catalog that stands up against many of the other legends in jazz and should not be overlooked. Happy Birthday Freddie.

Miles Davis: After Bitches Brew

Miles Davis (trumpet)

Big Fun (Columbia, 1969)

The Miles Davis cannon is showered with influential and astonishing albums, Bitches Brew being one of them. But after you've listened to Bitches Brew and you experience the "world" music vibe Miles was trying to capture, where do you go next? He would make slew of incredible live album featuring all new material during the '70s. One album that I've always felt was overlooked is entitled Big Fun (Columbia; 1969). Big Fun is awash of electric fusion but also Indian raga and hypnotic modal structures.

Big Fun actually took 4 years to complete. Miles had recorded almost every track with a different ensemble of musicians (including Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, Billy Cobham on drums and the wonderful sitar and tambra work from Khalil Balakrishna. Balakrishna's trance-like work is evident on the opening track "Great Expectations". This really does set the tone for the proceedings. Another standout for me the duel between Chick Corea and Joe Zawinul both on electric piano (right and left channel (or speaker) respectively) on the lovely "Recollection". There's also some funky movements with "Ife" mainly provided by piano work of Lonnie Smith and Harold Williams but some infectious drum/percussion work from Al Foster, Billy Hart and Jame 'Mtume" Forman.

Big Fun is a massive cross section of styles that really only Miles could orchestra among so many musician over 4 different sessions. It's a jaw dropping experience to hear this recorded after Bitches Brew and seeing contrast the movements. There not radically different, just the emphasis is placed--jam sessions with short bits of structure--but only Miles knows that. The majority of the tracks on Big Fun were technically recorded during other sessions which is why some jazz fans may know some of the tracks from boxed sets (Bitches Brew and On The Corner) but make no mistake this is an album that Miles had in mind and its a beautiful mixture of styles that you should definitely listen to after Bitches Brew. If you have it already let us know your thoughts.

Friedrich Gulda: The Complete Musician

Friedrich Gulda (piano, composer; b. 1930 - d. 2000)

Friedrich Gulda is probably more well known in classical circles for his amazing and unparalleled interpretations of Beethoven and Mozart material (definitely check out his legendary performances for Decca, Phillips and Deutche Gramophone) but he was also an accomplished jazz musician as well. I'm not going to say he was in the same arena with a Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock or Chick Corea (whom he work with in the '80s) but he did make both jazz and classical audiences stand up and take notice of how the two genres lead and challenge the musical order or things. Throughout his classical career, Friedrich Gulda would record both studio and live jazz albums.

His classical recordings are things of beauty and for those who may be afraid of classical, Gulda might the best and most wonderful way to bring you into the fold. There are a few other pianists who could do better Mozart and Bach concertos but Gulda for me is the most inviting and heartfelt. His ability to shift back and forth through both the classical and jazz realms cause a great deal of distress among both sides of the purist aisle, resulting in the nickname, "Terrorist Pianist". Funny but thoroughly unwarranted. His jazz albums are a much more intense bebop affair. He has performed with a host of musicians, including J.J. Johnson, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Dizzy Gillespie and Joe Zawinul.

One personal favourite of mine is Live At Birdland (Ermitage). Live At Birdland was recorded in '56 and is roughly the start of Gulda's jazz excursions (after his brief encounter with Dizzy a few years earlier). Gulda's playing is light and playful, almost in a Bud Powell fashion but with full command of this excellent sextet as they fire through a number of standards including "A Night In Tunisia" and "Bernies Tune." It is stark contrast to the crystalline performances of Beethoven, Mozart and Bach that was known about up to this point. A man of extreme eclecticism, Friedrich Gulda was one that never wanted to be pigeonholed, as can be seen in his performance at Birdland. If you are really interested, I would definitely recommend downloading Friedrich Gulda Live At Birdland and any of his Beethoven recordings. These will give the strong overview of Friedrich Gulda as the complete musician.

Jazz Soundtracks — Part 8

Portions of the following are excerpts from the book Film and Television Scores, 1950-1979 (McFarland, 2008) by Kristopher Spencer, founder of Scorebaby.com.

Another couple of jazz legends who cut soundtracks during the ’60s and ’70s are Herbie Hancock and J.J. Johnson.

On Blow Up (’66) — Michelangelo Antonioni’s existential crime film about a hip London fashion photographer who thinks he’s witnessed a murder — Hancock draws upon his hard bop and rare groove chops. The results aren’t particularly cinematic — one could easily be fooled into thinking this is one of Hancock’s Blue Note recordings from the same period — but they are kicky nonetheless. One of the best tracks is the bouncy “Bring Down the Birds,” which dance pop group Dee-lite sampled for their early ’90s hit “Groove is in the Heart.” The soundtrack also features “Stroll On” by The Yardbirds, who appear in a riveting club scene.

By the time Hancock scored Death Wish (’74), he’d already moved on to fusion. For this Charles Bronson vigilante flick, Hancock creates a mood of sophisticated yet funky suspense. The densely arranged and tension-mounting main theme is worth the price of admission alone. On “Do a Thing” and “Paint Her Mouth,” he opts for more minimalistic arrangements to more disturbing effect. The centerpiece of Death Wish is the 9-minute “Suite Revenge,” which explores stylistic cues from atonal symphonic, as well as African tribal drumming and Hancock’s penchant for synth sounds. Hancock’s score for Death Wish, while not as immediately accessible as the groovier Blow Up, is an intriguing, richly detailed crime score every bit as gritty as the movie.

One of the best soundtracks of ’72 and of the blaxploitation era is Across 110th Street, featuring music by legendary jazz trombonist J.J. Johnson and songs performed by Bobby Womack & Peace. Hit-maker Womack’s theme song boasts a memorable hook, a sweeping arrangement and a lyrical message that doesn’t pull punches about organized crime and the drug epidemic. Womack also contributes a tender ballad (“If You Don’t Want My Love”), an up-tempo pop number (“Quicksand”), a bit of hard funky rock (“Do It Right”) and raucous feel good soul (“Hang On In There”). Johnson performs instrumental versions of most songs, but his contribution is most noticeable on “Harlem Clavinette,” which raised the bar on cinematic funk with its pulsating rhythm and bubbly mix of brass, wah guitar, clavinet keyboard, percussion and electronics. J.J. Johnson also contributed excellent soundtracks for Cleopatra Jones, Trouble Man (with Marvin Gaye) and Willie Dynamite.

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