Record Reviews

ENRICO RAVA ~ THE COMPLETE REMASTERED RECORDINGS ON BLACK SAINT & SOUL NOTE CAM JAZZ 1002 (Barcode: 8024709111326) ~ ITALY ~ Jazz Recorded: 1972 - 1994 Released: 2010 This superb Box Set collects all the albums recorded by the legendary Italian trumpeter / composer Enrico RavaFind albums by this artist on the twin Italian independent labels: Black SaintFind albums on this label and Soul NoteFind albums on this label. Rava needs no introduction to any serious Jazz connoisseur; suffice to say that from the early days of the European Jazz he was always there on the frontier lines, expanding the genre and breaking new ground tirelessly. Over the years he played with the greatest Jazz players from all over the world and served as a teacher to generations of young Italian and other European Jazz musicians. His virtuosic playing and excellent compositions are always a source of great musical joy. Rava is often compared to his Polish soul brother trumpeter / composer Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist and their both share the incredible European sensitivity and sense of melody, which set them apart from their American counterparts. The musicians playing on these five albums include: saxophonist Pietro TonoloFind albums by this artist, pianist Franco D`AndreaFind albums by this artist, bassist Giovanni TommasoFind albums by this artist, drummer Tony OxleyFind albums by this artist, pianist John TaylorFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Gianluigi TroveriFind albums by this artist and many others. Remastered, mini-sleeved, and with a great bargain price – this Box Set an absolute must for any serious Jazz collector. Side Note The Italian independent record label Black SaintFind albums on this label was founded by the music critic / author / producer Giacomo PellicciottiFind albums by this artist in 1975. It was taken over by the producer Giovanni BonandriniFind albums by this artist in 1978 and a year later (1979) a sister label, called Soul NoteFind albums on this label, was established. The twin labels were run by Giovanni and later his son Flavio BonandriniFind albums by this artist, until they were sold in 2008 to the Italian KEPACH Music Group, which already owned the CAM JazzFind albums on this label label, and which also bought another Italian independent record label Dischi Della QuerciaFind albums on this label. The mission of the Black Saint / Soul Note labels was to record and document the Free Jazz / Improvised Music / Avant-Garde scene, mostly from the US but also from Europe, which continued between mid 1970s and late 1990s and produced a staggering collection of almost 550 albums recorded by world's most important Jazz innovators active at the time, providing an opportunity to American (mostly Afro-American) musicians, who would have never managed to make these recordings at home, ridden by racism, alienation and closed-mindedness. Without these two labels most of this fantastic human creativity would have been never documented. However, the Black Saint / Soul Note Box Sets produced under the CAM JazzFind albums on this label moniker are an archetypal example of how good intentions turn sour. Although these new editions often bring back to life some of the best music ever made on this planet, which in many cases has been lost in the tides of time and was unavailable on the market for ages, they suffer from an unforgivable disregard to the essence of cultural values and general sloppiness, contrary to human decency, which requires us to treat our cultural legacy with respect and loyalty. These Box Sets have no booklet which presents researched historical background and exact discographical information of the albums included, and most importantly an overview of the music and its meaning and contribution to the Jazz Art form. Although the original LP sleeves are reproduced, the information is in most cases too small to be readable at all. In short the fact that these Box Sets are meant to be inexpensive, does not mean that they have to be cheap!

Updated: 03/07/2020Posted:

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