Record Reviews

RAN BLAKE ~ THE COMPLETE REMASTERED RECORDINGS ON BLACK SAINT & SOUL NOTE CAM JAZZ 1034 (Barcode: 8052405141811) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1981 - 1999 Released: 2015 This superb Box Set collects recordings by the American pianist / composer Ran BlakeFind albums by this artist on the Black SaintFind albums on this label and Soul NoteFind albums on this label labels. It includes seven albums, two of which are solo piano recordings: "Duke DreamsFind albums with this title" and "EpistrophyFind albums with this title", four are duos: "ImprovisationsFind albums with this title" with pianist Jaki ByardFind albums by this artist, "Suffield GothicFind albums with this title" with saxophonist Houston PersonFind albums by this artist, "Unmarked VanFind albums with this title" with drummer / percussionist Tiziano TononiFind albums by this artist and "Indian WinterFind albums with this title" with guitarist David FabrisFind albums by this artist and finally one is a quartet recording: "Short Life Of Barbara MonkFind albums with this title" with saxophonist Ricky FordFind albums by this artist, bassist Ed FelsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Jon HazillaFind albums by this artist. The music includes a mixture of original compositions by Blake and his unique interpretations of Jazz standards. Blake is famous for his innovative and highly personal style, which combines influences form Blues, Gospel, Classical Music and Third Stream. His impressive recorded legacy spans six decades and includes over forty albums as a leader. Most of his work is in small intimate formats, like solo piano and duets and rarely includes also quartets. Blake is also an influential educator. The music is absolutely timeless, offering a good overview of his unique style and is a perfect introduction to his music for Jazz piano enthusiasts not familiar with his work. Blake is one of my favorite piano players, not only because of his superb technique but mostly because of his sensibility, individual touch and superb lyricism. This Box Set offers a wonderful collection of brilliant piano music. 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: 10/05/2020Posted: 10/05/2020

CD 7 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Remastered Recommend To A Friend

STEVE LACY ~ THE COMPLETE REMASTERED RECORDINGS ON BLACK SAINT & SOUL NOTE CAM JAZZ 1033 (Barcode: 8052405141385) ~ USA ~ Avant-Garde Jazz Recorded: 1976 - 1993 Released: 2014 This superb Box Set collects recordings by the American saxophonist / composer Steve LacyFind albums by this artist on the Black SaintFind albums on this label and Soul NoteFind albums on this label labels. It is the second such collection, this time dedicated to quartet, quintet, sextet and octet recordings, following the previous Box Set with solo, duo and trio recordings. It includes nine albums (one a 2CD set): "TricklesFind albums with this title" with trombonist Roswell RuddFind albums by this artist, bassist Kent CarterFind albums by this artist and drummer Beaver HarrisFind albums by this artist, "RevenueFind albums with this title" with saxophonist Steve PottsFind albums by this artist, French bassist Jean-Jacques AvenelFind albums by this artist and drummer John BetschFind albums by this artist, "TroubleFind albums with this title" with Potts, Swiss vocalist / violinist Irene AebiFind albums by this artist, Carter and drummer Oliver JohnsonFind albums by this artist, "RegenerationFind albums with this title" with Rudd, Dutch pianist Misha MingelbergFind albums by this artist, Carter and Dutch drummer Han BenninkFind albums by this artist, "Change Of SeasonFind albums with this title" (*) with trombonist George LewisFind albums by this artist, Mangelberg, Dutch bassist Arjen GorterFind albums by this artist and Bennink, "Dutch MastersFind albums with this title" (*) with Lewis, Mangelberg, Dutch cellist Ernst ReysegerFind albums by this artist and Bennink, "The CondorFind albums with this title" with Potts, Aebi, pianist Bobby FewFind albums by this artist, Avenel and Johnson, "The CryFind albums with this title" (2CD) with Aebi, saxophonist Tina WraseFind albums by this artist, harpsichord player Petia KaufmanFind albums by this artist, accordionist Cathrin PfeiferFind albums by this artist, Avenel and percussionist Daniel GioiaFind albums by this artist and finally "VespersFind albums with this title" with Potts, Aebi, saxophonist Ricky FordFind albums by this artist, French horn player Tom VarnerFind albums by this artist, Few, Avenel and Betsch. Most of the music is by Lacy, except the albums dedicated to the music of other great composers like Thelonious MonkFind albums by this artist and Herbie NicholsFind albums by this artist. Lacy is considered as one of the most influential and prominent American Jazz personalities and a great master of the soprano saxophone. He started his career as a Dixieland player but quickly moved into Bebop and later on Avant-Garde idioms. He was also one of the first American Jazz musicians who discovered European Jazz and understood its importance. He visited Europe in the 1960s and moved to live in Paris in 1970, where he spent his entire life, returning to the US only a couple of years before his death. He left a most impressive recorded legacy of well over a hundred albums. The music is absolutely timeless, and offers a perfect glance at Lacy´s diversity as a composer and player. It is also a unique document of European Jazz, as most of his albums involved European musicians playing side by side with their Americans partners. For serious Jazz connoisseurs this Box Set is a pure delight and an absolute must! The albums marked with (*) were also included in other Box Sets of this series. 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: 15/05/2020Posted: 15/05/2020

CD 10 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Remastered Recommend To A Friend

CHARLES MINGUS ~ CHANGES: THE COMPLETE 1970S ATLANTIC STUDIO RECORDINGS ATLANTIC 603497838363 (Barcode: 603497838363) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1973 - 1978 Released: 2023 This 7CD Box Set combines all the studio recordings made by the great American Jazz bassist / composer / bandleader Charles MingusFind albums by this artist for the AtlanticFind albums on this label label during the last period of his life between 1973 and 1978. These recordings were released on seven albums, which appear here in their remastered versions: “Mingus MovesFind albums with this title”, “Changes OneFind albums with this title”, “Changes TwoFind albums with this title”, “Three Or Four Shades Of BluesFind albums with this title”, “Cumbia & Jazz FusionFind albums with this title”, “Me, Myself An EyeFind albums with this title” and finally “Something Like A BirdFind albums with this title”. All the music on these albums, with a few exceptions, was composed by Mingus. CD1 adds two outtakes and CD5 adds one outtake. The LP version of this Box Set adds an entire LP8 with seven outtakes. The list of participating musicians on these albums looks like the who’s who of the American Jazz scene at the time, with the most notable ones being saxophonists George AdamsFind albums by this artist, George ColemanFind albums by this artist and Ricky FordFind albums by this artist, pianist Don PullenFind albums by this artist, drummer Dannie RichmondFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Jack WalrathFind albums by this artist, guitarists Philip CatherineFind albums by this artist and Larry CoryellFind albums by this artist, and many others. The above albums mark the second period of Mingus recordings for Atlantic. Between 1956 and 1961 he recorded several albums for the label, but he was not under exclusive contract with the label at the time. Those albums can be found in the great Box Set released in 1997, called “Passions Of A Man: The Complete Atlantic Recordings 1956-1961Find albums with this title”. Overall, this Box Sets presents some of the most important American Jazz recordings of all time, preserving the incredible legacy of one of its most important protagonists. Mingus was a great innovator and at the same time a key keeper of the flame, combining the American Jazz tradition with modern trends, unlike most of his contemporaries, who preferred to be stuck in the past. This last period of his life turned out to be also perhaps his most productive and daring, definitely the most mature and aesthetically balanced. All of the music in this Box Set is a Holy Grail of American Jazz, sadly also one of the last displays of its productivity and genius. For Jazz lovers, who don’t own all these albums separately, this Box Set is an absolute must, but those who already have all this material in their collections, it adds almost nothing new, except for neat packaging and remastered sound quality.

Updated: 11/01/2024Posted: 11/01/2024

CD 7 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend