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Post by jazzhead on Mar 17, 2021 10:32:35 GMT
"To accompany his label profile in The Wire 444, Brian Morton selects tracks from the archival imprint's back catalogue" www.thewire.co.uk/audio/tracks/unlimited-editions-jazz-in-britainBrian Morton selects six tracks on the website. Looks like there's more in the magazine: "Read more on Jazz In Britain by Brian Morton in The Wire 444. Subscribers can access the article via the digital archive." Currently listening to, The Michael Garrick Septet featuring Joe Harriott - Jones. Brian Morton says this: "The Michael Garrick Septet featuring Joe Harriott “Jones” From ...At Short Notice It’s said that Joe Harriott and Ian Carr, two of the pioneering names in British new jazz, fell out either at or shortly after this gig from University College London. What they might have done together is more than compensated by what they did apart, though Harriott’s life and career were already moving into overtime. That Garrick’s groups were usually harmonious is a tribute to the personality of the leader, who emerged only rather quietly as a composer, too generous a spirit to be a martinet or auteur. This is the septet at their best, combining the nimbleness of a combo with the orchestrated weight of a much bigger band." |
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Post by Doom Girl on Mar 17, 2021 17:54:08 GMT
At 7 cm thick and over 1700 pages, my copy of Cook and Morton’s Penguin Guide to Jazz is a whale of a book. Did they actually listen to all of this music? Considering that Morton is also responsible for the Blackwell Guide to Contemporary Classical Music it’s hard to believe he gives much considered thought to his listening. But to paraphrase Trinidadian cricketer Brian Lara, perhaps he “is a genius. I’m a mere mortal.”
Sad to say the only Joe Harriott now in my collection is his INDO-JAZZ SUITE, a 1966 album on Atlantic. With a jazz quintet – Harriott on alto, Kenny Wheeler, trumpet, Pat Smythe, piano, Coleridge Goode, bass and Allan Ganley, drums – supplemented by three Indian musicians (on sitar, tambura and tabla), violin and flute, this beautifully produced album is still interesting to hear, but truly a child of its time – after all, ‘65 and ‘66 were also the years of RUBBER SOUL and REVOLVER.
I sampled the five pieces chosen by Morton. The first Joe Harriott piece is pleasant enough but the Garrick Septet selection is just not my cup of tea – and with an atrocious sound to boot, I couldn’t bear to listen to the entire thing. “Dragon Hill” by the Ray Russell Quartet had some very nice piano playing on it, but I didn’t much care for the guitarist’s noodling – “British free jazz,” I guess – nor his weak, tinny tone.
Tubby Hayes’ version of “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” was nice straight up jazz, but again the sound was extraordinarily bad –hopefully, these online samples are not a reflection of the albums’ quality? Otherwise, count me out.
My first impression of Matthewson’s “A Love Supreme” was that it was an insult to the title, but this piece somehow grew on me and even at times inexplicably brought to mind the Chambers Brothers' “Time Has Come Today.” I was also tickled to learn that Matthewson was born Rognvald in Lerwick. BBC’s SHETLAND TV show, based on Ann Cleeves’ books set in Lerwick, is one of my favorite mystery shows. But I was also sorry to read that Matthewson died recently, a victim of the virus pandemic. I was not able to take the keening flute sound on the Holdsworth piece and so bailed out early on this track. These selections struck me as “period pieces,” quite reflective of their time and place, interesting to hear once or twice but not much rewarding repeated listening.
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Post by bassman on Mar 18, 2021 12:13:05 GMT
At 7 cm thick and over 1700 pages, my copy of Cook and Morton’s Penguin Guide to Jazz is a whale of a book. Did they actually listen to all of this music? [ ... ] In my estimation, up to one half of their reviews are really to the point, the rest are more or less superficial, and there are some very few instances where they are plain wrong, factually. There are quite a few cases where they changed their minds from the 1994 to the 2004 edition, mostly in favour of the music. By and large, the Guide is still an impressive piece of work which I wouldn't do without. |
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Post by alunsevern on Apr 4, 2021 9:38:41 GMT
I think Cook and Morton’s judgements can sometimes be disagreed with, and of course they had their biases and their sometimes overwhelming enthusiasms, but what they did, endlessly, over the course of millions of words, was write unfailingly elegant, informed and intelligent prose about jazz. The Penguin Guide has given me uncountable hours of reading (and listening) pleasure and I still regard it as one of true treasure chests of jazz.
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Post by Doom Girl on Apr 4, 2021 19:22:22 GMT
I think Cook and Morton’s judgements can sometimes be disagreed with, and of course they had their biases and their sometimes overwhelming enthusiasms, but what they did, endlessly, over the course of millions of words, was write unfailingly elegant, informed and intelligent prose about jazz. The Penguin Guide has given me uncountable hours of reading (and listening) pleasure and I still regard it as one of true treasure chests of jazz. So nice to see your comment here alunsevern I too owe a lot to my gargantuan Penguin Guide. As you say, "one of (the) true treasure chests of jazz." (Hmm, I just saw that the word "gargantuan" is now listed as "obsolete" in many new dictionaries. Oh my) |
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