Record Reviews

JOE HARRIOTT ~ MOVEMENT / HIGH SPIRITS VOCALION 8486 (Barcode: 765387848620) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1963 - 1964 Released: 2012 It´s always a great pleasure to see reissues of legendary albums, which have been unavailable for years, suddenly appear on the market out of the blue, making a dream come true for music lovers, who anxiously hoped for them to be finally available on CD, rather than mortgaging their homes in order to get an insanely expensive fifty years old vinyl. This is certainly true as far as these two albums by the British Jazz saxophonist Joe HarriottFind albums by this artist are concerned. Harriott, born in Jamaica, was one of several West Indian musicians, who arrived on the British scene, like trumpeter Shake KeaneFind albums by this artist, who became his close musical partner and plays on these two albums as well. By the early 1960s Harriott emerged as the most advanced pioneer of the new Jazz explorations, including Free Jazz, one of the first British musicians to embrace the concept of Free Form spontaneity in composition and performance. His absolutely incredible virtuosity as a player allowed him to achieve results unparalleled by any of his peers on the British scene at the time. His quintet included also pianist Pat SmytheFind albums by this artist, bassist Coleridge GoodeFind albums by this artist and drummer Bobby OrrFind albums by this artist, some of the finest British Jazz players at the time. Four members of this quintet (excluding Smythe of course) were also members of the various ensembles led by pianist / composer Michael GarrickFind albums by this artist at the same time. "MovementFind albums with this title", the first of the two albums included here, is a natural follow up to the two albums recorded earlier by Harriott: "Free FormFind albums with this title" and "AbstractFind albums with this title", which were full fledged Free Jazz releases. It includes nine original compositions, seven by Harriott and two by Garrick, which range stylistically between modern mainstream pieces and Free Form pieces, a rather unusual approach. The Free Form pieces are perhaps the most advanced Harriott´s excursions in that direction, but their overall impact of somewhat softened by the more conventional pieces present here. Nevertheless this is a brilliant piece of modern Jazz and an absolute milestone recording of the modern British Jazz legacy of that period. "High SpiritsFind albums with this title" is quite a surprise as it is completely "conventional", with the quintet playing modern Jazz arrangements of the themes composed for the musical show of the same name, which was being staged In UK and USA at the time. Here the listener gets the opportunity to hear Harriott, Keane and Smythe playing perfect solos, showing their respective talents. The overall performance is simply perfect in every possible meaning of the word, clearly showing that by that time European musicians could play Jazz as well as their American contemporaries, if not better. Considering the fact that Harriott´s recorded legacy is relatively limited, this new edition is simply a godsend. Beautifully remastered by Michael J. DuttonFind albums by this artist this reissue offers for the first time ever the stereo mixes of these two albums, never previously released, which is one more reason to grab them immediately without hesitation. Pure musical gold!

CD 2 Remastered Recommend To A Friend

JUSSI LEHTONEN ~ MOVE ON SVART 125 (Barcode: 6430065582786) ~ FINLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2017 This is the third album by Finnish drummer / composer Jussi LehtonenFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quintet setting with saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist, guitarist Teemu ViinikainenFind albums by this artist, pianist Aki RissanenFind albums by this artist and bassist Jori HuhtalaFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine original compositions, all by Lehtonen. The music is all straightforward modern mainstream Jazz, completely within the Jazz convention. The compositions are all well weaved and offer nice melody lines, but tender little intellectual challenge as such and create a déjà vu impression. All the players are excellent performers, who can carry a tune and improvise elegantly, without a hitch. But altogether there is nothing here that any Jazz listener anywhere in the world has not heard before and the entire album lacks the ability to cross beyond the ordinary. Personally for me only the guitar work by Viinikainen offers somewhat more glimmer than the rest of the stuff presented here. Having said all that, this is a perfectly composed and performed Jazz album, which should make many Jazz enthusiasts completely happy. It is simply a bit too much American and too little Finnish for my liking.

Updated: 14/08/2020Posted: 14/08/2020

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend

	MOVE ~ MOVE REPERTOIRE 4690 ~ UK ~ Classic Rock 1st album from 1969 by this great UK band, considered by many as masters of the psychedelic genre. Although Move produced catchy pop tines for singles, the album contains many much more sophisticated tracks and presents the group in the proper historical perspective. Remastered and with bonus tracks.
	CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

	NAZARETH ~ MOVE ME ESSENTIAL 503 ~ UK ~ Classic Rock 1995 album. Nazareth are one of the most consistent hard rock bands on the scene. They managed to survive all the ups and downs of the music business for over 30 years and continue to perform to this day, losing nothing of their hard driven energy and vigor.
	CD 1 Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

ANDY SHEPPARD ~ MOVEMENTS IN COLOUR ECM 2062 (Barcode: 602517950429) ~ UK ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2008 Released: 2009 This is the debut album on the ECMFind albums on this label label by British saxophonist Andy SheppardFind albums by this artist, who has a strong presence on the UK scene since the late 1980s (see his brilliant recordings on the ProvocateurFind albums on this label label) and is internationally known as a member of Carla BleyFind albums by this artist´s band. Sheppard composed all the music on this album, which is lyrical and melodic, but spiced with World Music elements and ambient / electronic effects, creating a unique and very interesting atmosphere. The quintet, which recorded the album comprises of an Anglo-Norwegian lineup, with Sheppard´s old colleague guitarist John ParricelliFind albums by this artist (see also his recordings on Provocateur), percussionist Kuljit BhamraFind albums by this artist, both from the UK of course and Norwegians: guitarist Eivind AarsetFind albums by this artist and bassist extraordinaire Arild AndersenFind albums by this artist. The usage of Indian tabla and percussion instead of regular drums adds a beautifully exotic mood to the music, which is moving and interesting. Recommended!

CD 1 Slipcase Recommend To A Friend

TRAMLINE ~ MOVES OF VEGETABLE CENTURIES REPERTOIRE 1105 (Barcode: 4009910110522) ~ UK ~ Blues-Rock Recorded: 1969 Released: 2008 This is the 2nd and last album by the excellent but little known and short-lived British Blues-Rock band TramlineFind albums by this artist, which included the extraordinary guitarist Mick MoodyFind albums by this artist, who would later become famous as member of such bands as Juicy LucyFind albums by this artist, SnafuFind albums by this artist and WhitesnakeFind albums by this artist. The other band members were vocalist John McCoyFind albums by this artist, bassist Colin HodgkinsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Terry PoppleFind albums by this artist and on this album are supported by a brass section on several tracks. The band, in contrast to most other Blues-Rock outfits at the time, played mainly original material, which was quite excellent. This little gem was completely lost in the vaults for many years and this reissue gives us the opportunity to appreciate it, saving it from oblivion. A classic!

CD 1 Mini-Sleeve Remastered Recommend To A Friend

HIROMI UEHARA ~ MOVE TELARC 33814 ~ JAPAN ~ Jazz Recorded: 2012 Released: 2012 This is the 8th album by the extraordinary Japanese pianist / composer Hiromi UeharaFind albums by this artist, and the 2nd recording with her current trio (called The Trio ProjectFind albums by this artist) with the wonderful veteran American bassist Anthony JacksonFind albums by this artist and the outstanding British drummer Simon PhillipsFind albums by this artist. The album comprises of nine original compositions, all by Hiromi, three of which are combined into a mini-suite. During the last decade since Hiromi first "exploded" on the scene, drawing immediate attention, she managed to produce an extensive body of work of outstanding quality, which has very few, if any, parallels. Immensely gifted as a composer and blessed by virtuosic piano ability, in addition to her personal charm, beauty and above all heavenly smile, she is talent incarnate. Her studio albums, live videos and cooperation projects with other musicians, like Chick CoreaFind albums by this artist, Stanley ClarkeFind albums by this artist and others are all examples of her versatility and limitless abilities. Hiromi´s output with this particular trio is some of her best, which is not surprising considering the level of experience and talent of her rhythm section. Jackson´s electric bass pulsations are funky and wonderfully fill the space between the piano chords, always exactly on time and in tune, beautifully supportive and inventive at once. Phillips, who is a very "busy" and dynamic drummer, suits her quirky music perfectly, seemingly being all over the drum set as if he was an octopus. The unity, perfect match and obvious musical coherence and almost telepathic mutual understanding turn this trio into a "scary" music making machine. Hiromi is often criticized for being "all over the place", both as a composer and a player, but this kind of critique is completely senseless. She can play faster and more accurately than most, and her music is multi-layered, with melodic lines and funky rhythm vamps co-existing logically and harmonically. Therefore one can suspect that most of any criticism towards her is primarily motivated by envy. This trio can be seen and heard playing live on the "Live In MarciacFind albums with this title" DVD, which was recorded a year earlier, performing mostly material from their debut album "VoiceFind albums with this title". Obviously Hiromi fans need no special arguments to grab this one ASAP, those who are still unfamiliar with her wonderful output should not waste any more time ignoring her, just give her a chance and you won´t regret it. Superb stuff!

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

HIROMI UEHARA ~ MOVE – LIVE IN TOKYO TELARC 35561 (Barcode: 888072355613) ~ JAPAN ~ Jazz Recorded: 2013 Released: 2014 This is the fourth DVD by the extraordinary Japanese female pianist / composer Hiromi UeharaFind albums by this artist, and the second outing with her current trio (called The Trio ProjectFind albums by this artist) with the legendary veteran American bassist Anthony JacksonFind albums by this artist and the outstanding British drummer Simon PhillipsFind albums by this artist. The DVD comprises of nine original compositions, all by Hiromi, which are all from her eighth album called "MoveFind albums with this title" (please follow the link to read more about this album), performed here live and in a slightly different order than on the studio album. Seeing Hiromi on stage, which I was fortunate to experience several times already, clearly reaffirms the impression that Hiromi is in a class of her own and that she is blessed by powers of the magnitude of a force of Nature. The moment she steps on the stage the fragile and modest women turns into a Diva with an irresistible personality and overwhelming performing skills, simply stunning her audiences for the entire duration of the concert. She is a complete pianist, able to play in every style and in every genre with the same ease and elegance, regardless if she plays a Classical piece or a Jazz improvisation or a Rocky riff. Of course a DVD is not exactly being there when this DVD was filmed, but it is as close as those who were not fortunate enough to be there in the flesh will ever get. Enjoy every moment of it!

DVD 1 Recommend To A Friend