Records ore reviewed by Chris Albertson, Mike Bourne, Bill Cole, Alon Heineman , Wayne Jones, Lorry Kort, Joe H. Klee, John Litweiler, John McDonough, Don Morgenstern, Don Nelsen, Doug Ramsey, Lorry Ridley, Harvey Siders, Corel Sloane, and Jim Szontor. Reviews ore signed by the writers. recurRatings ore:***** excellent,**** very good,*** good,** fair , * poor. Most recordings rev iewed ore available for purchase through the down NOt/RECORD CLUB. ( For membership Information see details elsewhere in this Issue or write to REVIEV#S down beat/RECORD CLUB, 222 W. Adams, Chicago, IL 60606) group) and a man equipped with a set of diately followed by a groovy Fender bass ANTHONY BRAXTON chops entitling him to air rights in that interlude and guitarist South's tasteful use FOR ALTO-Oelmark OS 420/421: Dtdicattd zone of the stratosphere inhabited by Cat of electronic devices. to M11/li-i,utrumtnlalisl Jack Gell; To composer Job11 Cagt; To Artist Murra, Vt Pillars; To Anderson, Maynard Ferguson, and a very Th e rhythm moves along throughout, Pianist Ctdl Taylor; Dtdi,aJtd to Ann a11d P tttr few others. and there isn't a weak link in the group. A/Im; D tdicatt d to Sman Axt/rod· To l\1y Fritnd Km11y l\lcKtnny; Dtdi<at ed to ltiulti-imtrumtn• Leading a trumpet section is Chase's Use of multitracking and such is kept at ta/ist Ltroy /tnkins. natural habitat, and the one be has gath­ a minimum (and effective when used), so Personnel: Braxton, alto sax. ered here is first-rate. In full cry, it rivals one gets the impression that this band can Rating: ***** the best ever assembled, in or out of say what it says on record as well (and When the editor la id this album on me, studios. The trumpets give the band its probab ly even better) in person. (Spies he told me that it contains four sides of own special character and color, and their tell me that Van Blair is a fine jazz solo­ unaccompanied alto saxophone solos. How energy output, range, bite and precision ist, for one thing.) revolutionary? Not comp letely. Back in are someth ing else. This is a very well done first album by 1720, J.S. Bach wrote six sonatas for un­ For this aspect, the album can be en­ a group that certainly sho uld make it, if accompanied violin and six suites for un­ joyed by all. If you are a jazz purist, be excitement combined with musicality and accomp anied cello. Still, this recording is forewarned that this is a rock-jazz band­ expert craftsmanship are qualities that ap­ revolutionary, for the saxophone is nor­ in that order of priorities. But these are peal to current audien ces. And it's a must­ mally capable of producing only one note bard times for purists, and even at its hear for students of the trumpet -g radu­ at the time, whereas strings are capable of rockiest, the music is not too far removed ates included. -Morgenstem multiple stops. from that of Rich and Herman, contem­ Anthony Braxton is a living, breath ing porary style. And those who like May­ player whose work, like that of so many nard's high stuff will not be disappointed of the avant garde, if of an extremely by Chase's. BOOKER ERVIN personal nature. By fully exposing his inner The singing, of course, is-fo r this re­ THAT'S IT-B arnaby Z 30560: Moi o; Ura11us; emot ions, Braxton bas left himself vulner­ viewer, and, he would guess, for many of Poi,uiana; Sptak Low; Bo okt r's Bluts ; Boo, able to criticism. Yet it is unfair to express his orientation-an acquired taste. Terry Personnel: Ervin, tenor sax; Horace Parlan , criticism of hone sty. If there are faults piano; George Tucke r, bass; Al Harewood, drums. Richards, who is featured, is at his best Raling: * * * * (and T have not found any with the playin g on Paint It Sad and not bard to take at EXULTATION I-Prestige 7844: l\l ootbt l\foo­ or writing on this album) the listener bas any time, and Van Blair and Piercefield , cht,· Bla ck and Blu t,· T11nt Inf· Ju sJ In Tinn little choice but to overlook them because (short tak,); Just In Tim, ( Ong takt); N, who also sing solo, are pleasant and musi­ La11d's l\fan (sho rt takt ); No Land 's l\fan (lo,ia they are expressions of personal experi­ cal. None of them quite make it when tak,); l\four. ences and feelings which only Braxton him­ Personnel: Frank Strozier, alto sax: Ervin trying to sound black, but there's no get­ tenor sax; Horace Parlan, piano; Butch Warren self can judge properly. ting away from that, I guess, though it bass; Walte r Perkins, drums. For this reason, I debated whether or can be done so much more convincingly Rating: * * * * * not to put any rating on this album. I with emphasis on feeling rather than The loss of Booke r Erv in, as listenini finally arrived at the conclusion that even sound. (This a general comment; these to these albums makes one acutely aware as an expression of nothing more than my particular singers are lesser sinners than was a serious blow to jazz. One of tb1 persona l enjoyment of what I beard, the most.) very few wholly original tenorists to ap albu m deserves a five-star rating. Perhaps it is this orientation that causes pea r in the music of the past decade, b, The dedication s to the pieces are simply me to pick Open Up Wide, the album's was a man totally dedicated to his art that. The full titles .were omitted due to an only instrumental, as my favorite track . one of those rare players who break nev error on the part of the record company, But I prefer to think I like it because it ground without breaking with tradition. which will be rectified on later printings of has the most jazz content and feeling, That's It , recorded in 1961, was Ervin' the sleeve . Chases' kickiest solo, and a good outing third LP of his own, and the first to giv, Bill Quinn's liner notes ask the musical by Port er, a gifted organist I recall from him free rein. Originally on the Candi, question "Who is Anthony Braxton?" The a Howard McGhee album and in person label and long unavailable, it is one o best way to answer it is to dig the se four at Birdland, and from whom I would like three important jazz albums in Barnaby' sides. -Kle e to hear more featured work, though he new Candid reissue series (the other tw, is a fine accompanist, too. are by Charles Mingus and Cecil Taylor ) This piece is by Chase, and be is also At the time, the quartet heard on th CHASE responsible for the music to Invitation to LP was a regular working group, with th CHASE-Epic E 30472: Optn Up Widt· Livin' a Ril-er, a "suite" of the type popular in late George Tucker's bass a tower c 111 Heat ; Hell o Groctrits; Handbags and GJad­ rags; Gtl II On; B oys and Girls Togtlbtr; In• post-Sgt. Pepper-BS&T rock. The story strength. Ervin's gift for writing fres vita/ion to a Rivtr (Tu:o l\fi11ds Mttt; Stay; line-a doomed love affair - is a bit melo• origina l lines is demonstrated in Uram~ Pai11t It Sad; R t/lt<tiom; Rivtr), Personnel: Bill Chase, Alan Ware, trumpet; dramatic, and so, at times, is the music, an appealing ballad; Mojo, a typicall Ted Piercefield, Jerry Van Blair; trumpet, vocal; but there are substant ial ideas at work charging and deceptively "simple" up-ten Phil Porter. keyboards: Angel South. guitar, vocal; D ennis Johnson , bass, vocal; Jay Burrid, here. The opening, Two Minds Meet, gets po piece, and the happy Boo. percussion; Terry Richards, lead vocal. to swing and has fine scoring touches. But the tenorist's strongest playing c Rating: **** There are a variety of moods, and the ad the session comes on Booker's Blues, If you like trumpets -and I'm an old lib Reflections is a tour de force for the masterful re-telling of an age-old story, trumpet freak-Chase will give you good leader, involving tape-and-chop wizardry sermon in music with that special Tex1 kicks. The group rightfully takes its name and a gigantic climax bringing in the accent Booker shared with other grel from leader-lead trumpeter-arranger Bill whole band. The canonic stuff on Stay southwes tern tenormen, and on Speak Loi Chase, well remembe red for his work with sounds for all the world like a segment a stan dard made to order for his mini Woody Herman (big band and small from some Kentonian opus, but is imme- hues and mournful yet elating sound, taki 18 D DOWN BEAT at a sizzling tempo. Booker liked to stretch out, but there was never any waste of notes or space. His music is concentrated, bristling with energy, and a veritable definition of swing. if youever had By the time he recorded Exultation some two years later, his style was fully ma­ tured. The tone has taken on a new brilliance, and there is even more convic­ troublegetting tion and assurance in the playing. This was the first of a remarkable series of albums for Prestige, and the reissue a drumfixed, includes two "short takes" originally is­ sued on 45 rpm only.