Montreal-born, American-based pianist Paul Bley has, since the early 50's, "…shared the stage with the most formidable musicians of the time" - Ornette Coleman, Albert Ayler, Charlie Mingus, Jimmy Giuffre, Sonny Rollins. From the 60's, his own groups have included a changing array of avant-garde players - Charlie Haden, Peter Ind, Steve Swallow, Barry Altshul, and Paul Motian. In almost half a century, he has recorded prolifically, featured on more than 400 discs. Yet, he remains somewhat of an enigmatic figure, eclectic in his tastes, content to pursue experimental predilections, eschewing the limelight.

All compositions on the solo piano album "Basics" are Bley originals, except "Monk's Mood", a convoluted reworking of the familiar melodic lines. There are few precedents to his technique, which seems to be distinctively intuitive. A disciplined improviser, he works a strong left hand against sparse right hand figures, extracting shards of melody from a lyrical core "Love Lost", incorporating unpredictable rhythm changes "Speed Kills", injecting allusions to recognizable tunes "Told You So", establishing a balanced tension between abstraction and lyricism "Lucky", probing the intricacies of a piece with minimalistic precision "Chet". As the accompanying notes proclaim, Bley is "Independent in his expression…a true original…". Highly recommended listening!

In a broader context, with sax man Evan Parker and bassist Barre Phillips, Bley is no less a master of "fluid improvisation" (notes), yet adjusts readily to the chemistry of the group. The 12 Variations, recorded live at the Monastery of Sankt Gerold; emerge as an organic unity of three players who, nevertheless, maintain their own distinctive voices. The coalescence of piano, sax, and bass dissolves and reforms in a series of loose, textural segments, sinewy and often abrasive "No 1/No 2", giving way to a meditative arco bass "No 3" and rapid saxophone arpeggios "No 4", re-establishing a plaintive aura of mystery collectively with "No 5". These changing patterns, produce throughout a sense of spaciousness and inexhaustible freedom highlighted by the explorative passages of individual players "Variations 6/7/9/10". The gifts of such talented musicians bear repeated listening. JS

Justin Time JUST 154-2 ECM 1609

For over a quartet of a century, Bradley's was the playing venue in New York City for most of the leading jazz pianists; shortly after this recording was made, the Greenwich Village piano bar was gone. This session with Kenny Barron (1996), a frequent performer there, takes on somewhat historic proportions, as he was one of the last to grace its Baldwin grand piano. Barron, bassist Ray Drummond, and drummer Ben Riley treat the audience to extended performances of all five selections, opening with Barron's playful Tatum-like runs punctuated by bass and drum breaks to the mid-twenties hit "Everybody Loves My Baby", followed by the boppish flight of Miles Davis' "Solar", tempered by the lyric beauty of "Blue Moon" and the romantic strains of James Williams' "Alter Ego", concluded with the improvisational interplay of each player on Eddie Heywood's classic "Canadian Sunset". Sit back and enjoy! JS

Gitanes 549 099-2

In the spirit of the 17th-18th century English coffee houses that blended coffee with topical conversation and live entertainment, Starbucks in Seattle presents its first public recording session with the Ray Brown trio, featuring the veteran bassist with pianist Geoff Keezer and drummer Karriem Riggins. Book ended by the blues, a lively "Up There" and a more traditionally-tempoed "Starbucks Blues", the threesome displays a collectivity of intent as well as showcasing their individual talents - Keezer's funky handling of "When I Fall in Love", his Caribbean-flavoured stylings to "Brown Bossa", his rubato shift with "This House is Empty Now"/"I Should Care"; Riggins' enthusiastic drumming on the bop standard "Our Delight" or swinging partnership with Keezer to "Lester Leaps In"; Brown's assured pulse throughout, and an exotic arco rendition of Juan Tizol's "Caravan". As the liner notes observe, "Jazz bonds this room into a musical community….", which is, of course, what this ambience demands. JS

Telarc CD-83502

Pianist/Composer Dave Brubeck needs no introduction to music fans everywhere. From West Coast Cool in the 50's to pioneering jazz with symphony orchestras, or world tours and a myriad of international awards, he has probably done more than anyone to popularize jazz as a viable art form. Many of his own compositions are recognized as standard jazz repertoire. On the occasion of his 80th birthday, Telarc releases here a double CD set, two discs live from a 1998 UK tour and Washington D. C. 1995 respectively.. They are not out-takes from previously issued collections but companion albums. The Quartet of Brubeck - piano, Bobby Militello - alto, Randy Jones - drums, Jack Six - bass (USA)/Alec Dankworth (UK) on bass, offers some new fare for the Brubeck discography - "Cherokee", "What Will I Tell My Heart", "Margie", "Be Natural Blues", "On the Sunny Side of the Street". Two refreshingly different versions of the anticipated "Take Five" reveal that the number is destined to be reworked many times for enthusiastic audiences. JS

Telarc 2CD-83400

Fantasy Inc. continues to release on CD those hard-to-find LP issues from the 50's on such labels as New Jazz, Riverside, or Prestige. This emerging treasure-trove of music from that period captures many musicians in the early stages of their development, some blossoming only briefly before being absorbed into the broader context of reliable jazz sidemen.

Guitarist Mundell Lowe eventually balanced his musical endeavours between playing jazz publicly and writing music for film and TV, as well as teaching the techniques of the guitar to aspiring young musicians. Never a flamboyant player, he deliberately set out on this recording date (1957) to make an album "…that would be a hard-driving swinger all the way" (liner). The presence of altoist Gene Quill and pianist Billy Taylor provided Lowe with just the right latitude for contrasting voices to carry the rhythmical freedom he was looking for, notably on such numbers as "Blues Before Freud" and "Love Me or Leave Me".

With the unique combination of a rhythm section fronted by trombone, alto sax, and 2 French horns, one might well expect an improvisational new textural experience in jazz. The fact that there are no standard ballad numbers enhances that anticipation. Nominal leaders are Curtis Fuller -trombone and Hampton Hawes -piano, on this 1957 session, the former a J. J. Johnson-inspired player with a fluid, velvety tone, the latter a West Coaster with a boppish yet blues-tinged approach. The interplay of the four horns, especially on the robustly swinging "Ronnie's Tune" and with solid exchanges on David Amram's "Five Spot", makes this an unusual but pleasing listening outing.

One caveat to note: playing time for each disc runs 38 minutes. The purchase price should be commensurate with that shortcoming. JS

Riverside OJC 1940-2
New Jazz OJC 1942-2

Sony has launched a reissue series of previously released jazz/swing LP's (Columbia) tapping selectively into its extensive library of music dating chiefly from the late 20's to the 40's - three decades of material showcasing the cream of the prominent personalities/players who mirrored the tastes and shaped the musical styles of that period - all repackaged in CD format for the benefit of the serious collector and novitiate alike. The bundle of CD's before me is representative of what is already available.

Two double CD sets include the Bix Beiderbecke Story (C2K 91503) and Duke Ellington Presents Ivie Anderson (C2K 91500). The former re-releases 43 selections from 1927-28, recordings made with Frankie Trumbauer, The Chicago Loopers, The Broadway Bellhops, and various Bix aggregations, as well as 3 numbers by Lou Raderman's Orchestra (March 3, 1928) that have dubious Bixian connections, but are interesting for their "sound-like" Bix solos by an unidentified cornetist. The latter presents an excellent compendium of Ivie Anderson vocals that became as much an integral part of the Ellington sound from that period (1932-40), as did the saxes of Carney or Hodges.

Single CD reissues restore a host of musicians whose presence is a necessity in every jazz collection. Guitar genius Charlie Christian (CK40846), featured with the Benny Goodman small groups (1939-41), was a seminal exponent of the electric guitar, and, even in a tragically brief musical career, had a profound effect on later guitarists such as Barney Kessel and Jim Hall. The Goodman orchestra (1939-41), with clarinetist leader swinging his band to an international reputation, is well-documented on Benny Goodman & Helen Forrest (CK 91493) with the fine vocalist, overshadowed at times by the omnipresent Goodman, epitomizing what it meant to give vitality and meaning to a popular song. Attention is also to piano players, with two distinctive giants of the instrument singled out on James P. Johnson (CK 91498 and Art Tatum (CK 64690). Johnson's definitive stride technique is documented as early as 1921-23, highlighted again in the late 20's, and concluded here with solos and in an orchestra; context (1939), including a vocal accompaniment by blues singer Anna Robinson. Tatum's style, virtually a synthesis of everything that had preceded him, is a masterful study in subtle harmony and uncompromising versatility captured in diverse sessions from 1933 to 1949. Teddy Wilson's All Stars, Volume 1 (CK 91495) is really one-half of an original 2 LP set (1935-37), with Wilson's delicately swinging piano leading the way for such stalwart support from sax men Ben Webster and Chu Berry, trumpeters Roy Eldridge and Cootie Williams, the rhythmic drive of Gene Krupa, Cozy Cole, or Walter Page. Vocalist Billie Holiday graces six of the sixteen selections. Lastly, there is the distinctive voice of the Hi-de-ho leader, Cab Calloway (CK 91496) ever-urging the members of his various bands (1935-47) - Doc Cheatham, Dizzy Gillespie, Tyree Glenn, Ike Quebec, Hilton Jefferson, et al - to histrionic heights.

With superior sound, and generally including original liner notes and disco graphical information, these reissues are offered at "a great price" I'm told, and should have immediate appeal. There are other discs in the series perhaps already available at your favourite record outlet. JS

CAT #

Reedman Branford Marsalis deploys both alto and soprano saxes in this programme of all-French music drawn from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. With its lighter textures and looser sense of form, it is readily attuned to the improvisational freedom, harmonies and rhythms common to jazz. The fact that there is no conductor for the orchestral accompaniment invites unscheduled reactions to the subtleties of the sax explorations by Marsalis. Ranging from the gently evocative Satie's " Gymnopdie N0. 3", the melodically melancholy Ravel's "Pavane pour une infante defunte", the light and lively Debussy's "Golliwogg's Cake-walk", to the lengthier "La Creation du monde" by Milhaud, with its spontaneity and shifting dance-like rhythms, or Ibert's "Concertino da camera for alto saxophone and orchestra", a virtuosic piece rich in mood and tempi swings, the repertoire gives Marsalis a musical palette upon which to display his considerable talents. Not a jazz recording per se, but one to bridge the gap between polarized boundaries. JS

Sony Classical SK 89251