Record Reviews

MICHAEL GARRICK ~ THE HEART IS A LOTUS VOCALION 8400 (Barcode: 765387840020) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1970 Released: 2005 Pianist / composer Michael GarrickFind albums by this artist has been an icon of British Jazz for the last five decades. His exquisite touch on the keyboards, deep lyricism and unparalleled inventiveness as a composer characterize his entire legacy over time, which has very little rivalry or precedence. This album presents Garrick leading a sextet (Garrick – piano and harpsichord, Ian CarrFind albums by this artist – trumpet, Art ThemenFind albums by this artist – flute, clarinet and sax, Dave GreenFind albums by this artist – bass, Trevor TomkinsFind albums by this artist – drums and the divine Norma WinstoneFind albums by this artist – vocals) and on several tracks the ensemble is expanded to a nonet with the edition of Don RendellFind albums by this artist – sax, Jim PhilipFind albums by this artist – flute, clarinet and sax and Coleridge GoodeFind albums by this artist on second bass. Norma’s vocal parts – both when singing lyrics and improvising, using her voice as an instrument – are absolutely stunning and completely innovative. Her presence brings the music to another dimension, adding colors and enhancing the overall effect tremendously. She would become a permanent member of Garrick’s group for a while and their recordings together are some of the best moments of the British Jazz of that period. As usual, Garrick wrote all the music and this time also the lyrics used here. His formal education was after all English Literature, and hence his sensitivity to language and poetry and his writing abilities are no surprise. Beautifully melodic and yet constantly challenging, this is a superb album, which sound today every bit as great as it did at the time it was recorded. A must!

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