{"id":558,"date":"2011-07-18T05:20:02","date_gmt":"2011-07-18T10:20:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=558"},"modified":"2011-07-18T05:20:02","modified_gmt":"2011-07-18T10:20:02","slug":"album-review-concords-latest-definitive-collections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2011\/07\/18\/album-review-concords-latest-definitive-collections\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: Concord\u2019s Latest \u201cDefinitive\u201d Collections"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Concord is at it again, but this time with a bit of a twist. Drawing upon the increasingly deep catalogs under their control, the label has compiled several entries in the Definitive<\/em> series. The work of artists for labels now associated with Concord have been collected to showcased with an aim toward providing comprehensive introductions and\/or overviews to the work of Dave Brubeck<\/strong><\/a>, Albert King<\/a><\/strong>, John Coltrane<\/strong>, Thelonious Monk<\/strong><\/a>, and Sonny Rollins<\/strong><\/a>. Now in 2011, three more of these two-set compilations are being released.<\/p>\n

The Riverside and Fantasy-era work of jazz pianist Bill Evans<\/strong> is a popular focus of Concord\u2019s attention; several of his albums have been reissued with bonus track, including Waltz for Debby<\/em><\/a> and his collaboration <\/a>with Cannonball Adderley<\/strong>. The Definitive Bill Evans on Riverside and Fantasy<\/em> takes a look at Evans\u2019 work during the periods 1956-63 and 1973-77. (During the interim Evans recorded for Verve.)<\/p>\n

Across twenty-five tracks, the genius of Evans\u2019 influential style is on exhibit. Whether it\u2019s an original composition such as the 1958 solo \u201cPeace Piece\u201d or an Evans reinterpretation of a standard (say, \u201cAutumn Leaves\u201d from 1959 with the acclaimed trio that included bassist Scott LaFaro<\/strong> and drummer Paul Motian<\/strong>), this is among the best that piano-centric jazz has on offer. Even on the pianist\u2019s more abstract work, his ineffable sense of melody shines through.<\/p>\n

Reliably informative liner notes from Doug Ramsey<\/strong> are enhanced by color reproductions of relevant album covers from Evans\u2019 work, and track information is detailed (a hallmark of Concord reissues). For the Evans novitiate, The Definitive Bill Evans on Riverside and Fantasy<\/em> is a solid entry point, one that will likely lead to further purchases. Luckily, the folks at Concord are ready to help the jazz consumer with that.<\/p>\n

Miles Davis<\/strong> is a slightly tougher cat to pin down. The nature of his work changed wildly as he pushed forward and sideways in his musical explorations. The Definitive Miles Davis on Prestige<\/em> centers on a relatively short timeframe: 1951-56. Davis was prolific during that five-year period, releasing more than a dozen album under his own name, not to mention working as sideman on a half dozen releases by other artists. So distilling a definitive collection down to two-plus hours of music across a pair of CDs is no easy task.<\/p>\n

But again Concord does an admirable job. A giant in the jazz world, Davis\u2019 stature is such that many of the selection here are obvious ones. A high proportion of the tracks on this set are taken form his Quartet<\/em> and Quintet<\/em> albums. As is the case on the Evans set discussed above, the Miles collection includes a sampling of both original works and interpretations of others\u2019 music. Highlights are (of course) myriad, but two standouts among many are \u201c\u2019Round Midnight\u201d from 1956 with the Modern Jazz Giants<\/strong> and \u201cMy Funny Valentine\u201d from the Quintet. (Both tracks were cut in the studio on the same day \u2013 October 26, 1956 \u2013 but ended up on different LPs. The lineup differs only in the addition of tenor saxophonist Coltrane on the former.)<\/p>\n

With a roster of players that includes Art Blakey<\/strong>, Coltrane, Milt Jackson<\/strong>, Philly Joe Jones<\/strong>, Monk, Max Roach<\/strong> and Sonny Rollins<\/strong> (among many others) this is a can\u2019t-go-wrong collection. The sound is impeccable, the music is blowing, and Ashley Kahn<\/strong>\u2019s liner notes provide enough details for the aficionado, balanced with enough overview for the listener less well-versed in Miles Davis.<\/p>\n

Most of the Concord Definitive<\/em> collections up to this point have focused on artists who did most of their (Concord-relevant) work in the 50s; the Albert King set of Stax material covered a later period, and part of the Brubeck set covered some 80s output. So here’s the aforementioned twist: with The Definitive Chick Corea on Stretch and Concord<\/em>, the label \u2013 for the first time in its Definitive<\/em> series \u2013 addresses the work of a more (chronologically) modern jazz artist.<\/p>\n

While pianist Chick Corea<\/strong> had been recording from some years, he started his own label (Stretch) in 1980. The title track from his Stretch debut Tap Step<\/em> is the earliest track here. It showcases one of Corea\u2019s many talents: the ability to incorporate modern keyboard (electric pianos, clavinets and synthesizers) into modern jazz. That he does so without moving in the dreaded lite-jazz direction is a signpost of his talent. Built mostly around one chord, \u201cTap Steps\u201d weaves an exciting series of melodies around that chord.<\/p>\n

The list of players on the Corea collection is a who\u2019s-who of modern jazz post 1980. A few names on hand include Micheal Brecker<\/strong>, Stanley Clarke<\/strong>, B\u00e9la Fleck<\/strong>, Steve Gadd<\/strong>, Airto Moreira<\/strong> and Pat Metheny<\/strong>. Nearly all of the tracks selected for the set are Corea original compositions, but some ace covers make the cut as well. A live solo version of \u201cIt Could Happen to You\u201d shows that Corea doesn\u2019t need electronics to make his musical points. A live piano duet with Hiromi<\/strong>, the Lennon\/McCartney<\/strong> \u201cFool on the Hill\u201d is nearly unrecognizable as a Beatles<\/strong> song for the full first of its seven minutes, but it\u2019s an intriguing reinvention of the classic song nonetheless. Those less disposed to what detractors of some jazz might term \u201cnoodling\u201d may be less inclined toward Corea\u2019s acoustic piano work, finding his electronic exploration more compelling. But as with all of Concord\u2019s Definitive<\/em> sets, The Definitive Chick Corea on Stretch and Concord<\/em> is a good introduction to the artist\u2019s work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Concord is at it again, but this time with a bit of a twist. Drawing upon the increasingly deep catalogs under their control, the label has compiled several entries in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[312,509,573,1482],"class_list":["post-558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-review","tag-bill-evans","tag-chick-corea","tag-concord-jazz","tag-miles-davis","cat-65-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=558"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}