Michael Ullman
Perhaps “Izipho Zam (My Gifts)” might have become as well known as Pharoah Sanders’s “Karma” — if Impulse! rather than the tiny cooperative label Strata-East had recorded it.
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These Stata-East recordings are the result of a special moment in the history of jazz, when some musicians brilliantly took charge of their own careers. Luckily for us, the music is still strikingly fresh and contemporary.
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I must confess to hearing some of the Buenos Aires recordings on bootleg LPs, though their sound quality pales in comparison to this Resonance release.
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“Blue Bossa in the Bronx” brings us into a jazz club on a good night. It’s unlike any other Kenny Dorham session, which makes it valuable indeed.
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There are unplanned moments in this three LP collection, times when the musicians seem to be waiting to hear what is going to happen next. Something exciting usually does come out of their interactions.
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What is most striking here is Paul Bley’s patience as a pianist, his practice of playing a chord or even a couple of notes and letting them hang in the air as if he were an outside observer, listening to their gradual fading.
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Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass are master jazz guitarists who sound nothing alike.
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The album’s message about the triumph of A.I. is unconvincing, but the music, with its variety of sounds and tempos, its zigzaggy shifts, written and improvised, is totally engrossing.
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On his live recordings, B.B. King displayed his brilliant use of stagecraft and pacing. He was one might call a mastro of manipulation.
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“Cookin’ at the Queens” is an invaluable addition to the legacy of guitarist Emily Remler.
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