Record Review: Jean-Luc Ponty: Electric Connection
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Loose Wig and Lamplighter are the good hard-driving manner. The beat is standout big band sides. The former fea rock-style, and the performance has a tures a rich-toned sax section chopping certain vitality, especially in Lewis' breaks. away at a riff, answered by the unison The record opens and closes with If purr of the trombones. Cat Anderson You've Got It, although the second ver takes a few whacks in the first bridge, sion appears to be some sort of frag showing that he was a high note special mented take. It has neither beginning nor ist of the first order before joining Elling end; just a fade-in, fade-out 2: 18 of ton. Lamplighter has a small group feel heavy, driving chords. and draws much of its strength from a Enjoyable listening in the pop bag rather light, supple rhythm section and some than jazz. -McDonough superb trombone and sax voicings near the end. Mike Mainieri Overtime and Bag are more uptempo JOURNEY THRU AN ELECTRIC TUBE but far from the unrestrained bedlam Solid State 18049: It's All Becoming Clear Now· The Wind; Comiecticut Air; We' II Speak Abov; which seems to have earned Hampton the the Roar; The Bush; I'll Sing You Softly of My indifference of some critics. Bag has Karl Life; Yes, I'm tbe One; Allow Your Mind to IVa11der. George in a straight-from-the-shoulder 16 Personnel: Jeremy Steig, flute; Mainieri, vibra bars of trumpet. Illinois Jacquet also has harp; Warren Bernhardt, piano, organ; Jo~ Beck Sam Brown, guitars; Hal Gaylor, bass; Chuck 16 bars; his only solo appearance in the Rainey, electric bass; Donald MacDonald, drums; LP. Arnett Cobb takes a fine chorus in Sally Waring, vocals. Overtime, a relaxed but driving solo con Rating: * * * ½ trasting favorably to the big-toned, dirty, Mainieri has evidently put a lot of !ow-down growls he dishes up on Flying thought into this album: his arrangements Glen Campbell Home. are clever, tastefully conceived, and fuse The previously unissued septet sides jazz and rock subtly; his songs (he had a plays strongly suggest the Benny Goodman Sex hand in writing all except Wind) are har tet days, especially Royal Family, a 32- monically and melodically attractive; his OVATION ROUNDBACKS bar riff figure in the best Goodman tradi solos and accompaniments reflect an abun tion. Marshall Royal's clarinet has a dant musical skill, always applied with deft exclusively roughhewn, rugged sound, suggesting Ed touch and admirable restraint. mond Hall more than Goodman, but it When his various talents and those of Tune in and catch Glen with his works well. Irving Ashby's electric guitar the other musicians ( especially that of Roundback guitars on "The Glen is strongly reminiscent of many of Charlie Steig, who's a wonderful player) come to Christian's tricks, such a-s descending runs gether and approach their full potentials, Campbell Goodtime Hour," in eighths or harmonic extensions on as in Roar, the result is superb; but when Wednesday evenings on the chords. He proves himself a fine musician, all are under wraps, as on most of the CBS-TV network. Here's what he although a bit clumsy when compared to other performances, the effect is pleasant Christian. (Coincidentally, the date of this but unmemorable. On the other hand, says about them: first septet session, March 2, 1942, was the when little restraint is shown, as on the "Once I wouldn't have believed the day Christian died.) seemingly endless Allow Your Mind, the The format of the two 1945 septet sound of my Ovation Roundbacks was music is so internally disconnected that it sides is about the same. Doub/in' is possible. Ifs a full, honest sound that is meaningless. nudged gently along by a shuffle rhythm Somewhere there is a middle path for projects faster and farther. The rounded and features some very graceful and Mainieri. -DeMicheal back does make a difference you can swinging guitar by Billy Mackel. Ribs is hear. And to me it sounds mighty good. in the same mold. Both exhibit Hamp in I'm glad Ovation was bold enough to his best, most relaxed form. The sound is Jean-Luc Ponty ---------- question traditional methods and find a MORE THAN MEETS THE EAR-World refreshing. As virtually the entire LP, it's Pacific Jazz 20134: With a Lillie Help from my better way to make guitars." all music and no fireworks. As for Hamp Friends; 3 + 2=1; California; Gimme Lillie I Sign; Pata Pata; Pebble Beach Walk; Pacific ton, his vibes architecture was and still Drove; Fort Ord Canon, is peerless. -McDonough Personnel: Carmell Jones, trumpet; Leo Wright, I alto saxophone, flute; Ponty, violin; George Gruntz, piano, arranger; Guy Pedersen, bass: Daniel Humair, drums. RamseyANOTHER Lewis VOYAGE-Cadet -----------• LPS 827: If Rating: * * * * Stop in at your Ovation dealer's You've Got It, Flaunt It; Wanderin' Rose; How ELECTRIC CONNECTION-World Pacific , Beautiful Is Sf,ring; Do You Wanna; My Cherie Jazz 20156: Summit Soul; Hyf10mode del Sol; and try a Roundback for yourself. Amour; Black and Bold; Opus No. 5; Uhuru; Scarborough Fair/Canticle; The Name of the Cecile; If You've Got It, Flaunt It. Game; The Loner; Waltz for Clara; Forget; Mail coupon today for his name Personnel: Lewis. piano, electric piano; Cleve Eil(hty-One. land Eaton, bass; Phil Upchurch, guitar (tracks Personnel: Paul Hubinon, Tony Rusch, Larry · and addres~. 2, 5, 6); Maurice White, drums, Kalimba. McGuire, William Peterson. trumpet; Thurman ~ Rating:**½ Green, Frank Strong, Mike Wimberly, trombone; ... ., Bud Shank, Tony Ortega, Richard Aplan, reeds; " _________------- - Here is another Ramsey Lewis LP in George Duke, piano; Wilbert Longmire, guitar; ~ the pop-soul groove. Although his playing Bob West, bass; Paul Humphrey, drums; Ger- , aid Wilson, arranger, ! db fl A'l'HtN in recent years has held diminishing in Rating: * * * ½ INS'l'l~ll,\\tiN'l'S terest for the jazz listener, he has de These are the first U.S. releases by the 1 Division of KAMANCorporation veloped a considerable mass following, immensly gifted young French violinist. New Hartford, Connecticut 06057 with which this session should go down The first album was recorded in Europe, well. the second in California, but the first has · i Send more information about the Ovation The tempos vary from . the surging more musical sunshine. Perhaps this is ii Roundbacks Glen Campbell plays, with the thump of If You've Got It to the moody because Ponty was stimulated by the pres- l name and address of my nearest dealer. ramblings of Rose or Cecile. All selec ence of soloists of the caliber of American i 1 tions are pleasant enough with several expatriates Jones and Wright and put at Jr, Name ______________ _ (Opus, Bold, and Rose) offering a varied ease by his friends in the rhythm section; H, Address ____________ _ spectrum of rhythm and tone colors with perhaps it is because the program is more 1ri in the respective performances. City _______________ _ varied and the small-band framework more I\ Do What You Wanna is played by State ________ Zip ________ _ relaxed-whatever the cause I find Ear 1111 Lewis on the electric piano, which here charming and Electric a bit 'monotonous, ~ sounds remarkably like a guitar, in a while hastening to add that it cannot be r. 20 0 DOWN BEAT .-.:.-""'.. faulted in terms of musicianship and in . Ponty is brilliant on Pacific, an interest tegrity. mg contrapuntal piece also featuring Gruntz. Ponty is brilliant on both albums. He T_he pianist is at his best on Canon, where is an instrumentalist of the first rank, his _solo is very intelligently constructed. equipped with virtuoso technique and He 1s somewhat lacking in swing, however. gifted with a musical brain to match and The contemporary pop material is well t· control it. His ear is fabulous, and he handled. In fact, this group's approach appears to be a natural jazz player-he should be a model for the idiom-mixing so discovered. and embraced the music when fashionable these days. Here, the freedom he was already an established classicist, of jazz is retained within the rhythmic and from all indications, it was a love framework of rock/soul, and the little match. touches of humor are neither arch nor ~-ffrift:~.- He plays his instrument amplified. His heavy-handed. tone is somewhat dry and nasal, but pleas Humair's superb drumming should not \4~~llII .• ' . antly so, and fits his ideas and expression be overlooked, and it is interesting to note -KING ·. / I, ' perfectly. (This unity of sound and content that Ponty's attack on Help is not unlike is the hallmark of all great jazzmen.) His that of Stuff Smith. \' i stops-and the way he puts them to work One hopes that Ponty will firmly estab Vincent J. Aha to de- -are masterly, and he gets a great variety lish himself on the U.S. jazz scene. He has of tonal effects from the violin. There are much to offer. -Morgenstem m ands the French moments when his sound and phrasing evoke a saxophone, and his bowing is Classical Sound. King astonishingly clean and agile. To top it off, Buddy Rich Marigaux Saxophones he has natural swing, and his phrasing is BUDDY AND SOUL-World Pacific Jazz ST 20158: Soul Lady; Lo,·e and Peace; Hello I Lo,•e never stilted. You; Greensleeves; Soul Kitcben,· Comin' Home . maximum projec you have not yet made Ponty's ac Baby; Tbe Mea11i11g of tbe Blues; Rutb; St. If Petei-sburg Race: IV011derbag.