Friends- Chick Corea

Friends was released on 1978. This was a very intense year for Corea because he recorded most of his best works as a leader (Secret Agent, The Mad Hatter and Delphi I: Solo Piano Improvisations). Also he released that year the live collaboration with Herbie Hancock (An evening with Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea: In Concert). 

It is in some way a continuity of My Spanish Heart (released 2 years before), because in Friends electric and acoustic sounds coexist. Proof of this is that Corea plays sometimes a Steinway Acoustic Grand Piano and other times a Fender Rhodes; but he puts away his usual synthesizers. 

This fact and the melodic writing of the pieces that compose the album make it unique and basic for the bookshelf of any Corea fan. Musicians playing it have enough freedom to improvise; this denotes Chick's brilliant qualities as a leader. 

The result are hard swing recordings where Eddie Gomez really nails it on the bass providing rich and full sounds (with tremendous solos like the one in "Samba Song"), Farrell performing great flute jams and Gadd supplying constant creativity flows. The song named as the album, "Friends", is the one that best condenses all these features; one of those tunes that can cheer you up at any moment.

An interesting note is that the album cover (so criticised by many jazz aficionados) was designed by Chick himself. I do not know what American people have against the smurfs; I just think that they are funny.

Have a happy listening!

Friends- Chick Corea (open in Spotify)

Personnel:

Chick Corea: piano

Eddie Gomez: contrabajo. 

Steve Gadd: percusión. 

Joe Farrell: flauta. 

The Crossing- Eumir Deodato (2011)

The Crossing, Deodato's last work has been recorded with the collaboration of great artists: Al Jarreau, Billy Cobham, John Tropea, the Italian Novecento, Londonbeat, Airto Moreira and Paco Sery.

The album tracks are combination of funk and smooth Latin bossa. In my opinion, even that Deodato has surrounded itself by Jazz Fusion geniuses like Cobham, Airto or Tropea; the result has been a compilation of maybe too Smooth tunes, but also very lively and some of great quality.

"Double face" is the star track, the one released first as a single. The melody is opened with Jarreau’s usual vocal jams. The chorus (“Double feature/Double creature/That will teach ya… Double do ya/ Double fool ya/Hallelujah”) has been strongly criticized for its simplicity; although it has to be said that it's pretty catchy. Eumir, for its part, dazzles us with his two piano solos, both very rhythmic. It reminds me to that kind of 80’s disco tunes; a song obviously composed to be danced.

Much better is the collaboration with Jarreau and Novecento: “I want you more”. Here, Dora Nicolosi sings with a seductive and warm voice. A perfect melody for driving at night under the street lights...

Another good piece to pay attention in this album is “Summertime” (versioned from the one composed by George Gershwin for the opera Porgy and Bess), where Tropea finally really shows off his guitar skills in a pure Santana style.

The Crossing- Eumir Deodato (Open in Spotify)

Note: Pay attention to the blog tomorrow because I’ll upload this week playlist! Sorry for this six-day gap without posting anything, it has been a busy week. 

Funk da world!

Happy 70th Birthday Celebration Chick!

As you may know, this month of November takes place the 70th anniversary celebration of Chick "the chameleon" Corea in the Blue Note Club (NY). He will perform from the 1st to the 27th with its different bands (Return To Forever, the Elektric Band, a tribute to his Miles Davis days with Jack DeJohnette, in duo with Bobby McFerrin, and more).

Chick is well known for his work during the 70's developing the genre of jazz fusion with its band Return To Forever. In the 1960's, he participated in the birth of this movement as a member of Miles Davis's band (along with other pianists like Herbie Hancock).

Since the 80s he has continued his collaborations with other musicians such as Gary Burton, Herbie Hancock and Keith Jarret. In fact, his playing is in some ways similar to Hancock, but Chick has his own and distinctive style.

For this special occasion I want you to listen to probably my Chick's favorite piece: "Sometime Ago/ La Fiesta".

Return To Forever actual members are Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Frank Gambale and violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. But when they created "Sometime Ago/ La Fiesta" (in 1972) the band was made up by Corea, Clarke, Flora Purim, Joe Farrell and Airto Moreira.

This is one of the best Jazz Fusion compositions; where Flora's sweet and smooth voice fits perfectly with Corea's piano in a kind of telepathic connection. On its part, Farrell is particularly inspired on flute and soprano sax in this hypnotic 23-minute travel. Corea, Clarke and Farrel test their skills responding to one another for long passages. About Airto, besides he is a very talented percussionist, he stays in a more secondary level in this song.

Have a good enjoyment. I am sure my friend Bernard the enjoyer will do so.

Part 1

Part 2

The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions- Miles Davis

"I made six studio dates with this group in four years," he says. "And there were some live recordings that I guess Columbia will release when they think they can make the most money; probably after I'm dead." - Miles Davis.

The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions collects all tracks Davis recorded between August 19, 1969 and February 6, 1970. They are many pieces that have anything to do with the original double album Bitches Brew of 1970 because they were not part of the same sessions of the album recording. Bob Belden, the re-issue producer, said that according to him these songs had similar line-ups to Bitches Brew ones and the same emphasis on keyboards. But it is obvious that it is just another release of the original album plus more songs with the unique aim of selling it once again.

Even after the release of this four-disc box set, Columbia records re-released other two editions of Bitches Brew (both with live sessions and one with a DVD live at Copenhagen). Why all this importance is given to the album?

The reason is that it is one of the jazz history greatest albums. This is because it marked a before and an after in jazz music; a turning point in modern jazz. The compilation not only is the progenitor of the jazz-rock genre, but it was the launch pad for the jazz fusion (which would come nine months later with In a Silent Way). 

Perhaps the biggest innovation is in the rhythm. Miles makes the design of the rhythm section as if it were a rock group; he gives them a central role in the joint activities, offering them time enough for their solos. 

At the same time that he developed his trumpet echo, Davis started working with electric keyboards and electric guitar and added new percussion ingredients. All of these changes where also influence by the artists which he started to listen to and become fan of, that were Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, and Sly Stone.

Lastly but not least, another spirit added to the cocktail of innovation that is Bitches Brew was the idea of stitching together pieces into a new whole. A radical practice that had never been made before in a genre that was characterized by the art of improvising. This is the case of the tracks "Pharaoh’s Dance" and "Bitches Brew" that were not single lengthy jams or compositions, but fragments of them that Teo Macero (producer) and Miles assembled and edited together.

Personnel:

Miles Davis - Trumpet, Vocals

Don Alias - Percussion, Conga, Drums

Khalil Balakrishna - Sitar

Harvey Brooks - Bass, Electric bass

Ron Carter - Bass

Billy Cobham - Drums, Triangle

Chick Corea - Electric piano

Jack DeJohnette - Drums

Steve Grossman - Soprano saxophone

Herbie Hancock - Electric piano

Dave Holland - Bass, Electric bass

Bennie Maupin - Bass clarinet

John McLaughlin - Guitar

Airto Moreira - Berimbau, Cuíca, Percussion

Bihari Sharma - Tabla, Tamboura

Wayne Shorter - Soprano saxophone

Juma Santos (Jim Riley) - Conga, Shaker

Lenny White - Drums

Larry Young - Organ, Celeste, Electric piano

Joe Zawinul - Electric piano

Spotify link: Miles Davis – The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions

Playlist for AJH November

It is a rainy day here in Valencia. Perfect for staying at home, just relaxing listening to music and creating a new playlist.

Frequently, I use to collaborate in making a monthly Spotify playlist for Acid Jazz Hispano, a Spanish site where you can find a lot of information about Acid Jazz and other Jazz genres.

For this month of November I have included great tracks and I hope you will like them. Some of the artists are: Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, George Duke, Marcus Miller, Eumir Deodato, Gil Scott-Heron, Chuck Mangione and Miles Davis.

Just click on this link that will open you the Playlist for AJH November in Spotify.

And if you want to listen to the whole playlist made up by more contributions of other users: Acid Jazz Hispano 2011-11

Enjoy your weekend!

NUYORICAN SOUL- NUYORICAN SOUL (released in 1993)

Nuyorican Soul is a project developed by Little Louie Vega and Kenny Dope Gonzalez (Masters At Work). As a group Nuyorican Soul has only published this album, published by the acid-jazz living legend Gilles Peterson imprint: Talkin' Loud. It is composed by songs that different well-known and fine artists have specially created for this occasion or have covered (such as vocalists Jocelyn Brown and India, vibraphonist Roy Ayers, guitarist George Benson, flutist Dave Valentin, trombonist Eddie Palmieri, percussionist Tito Puente and more).

The pieces that form this avant-garde compilation vary across different music genres: soul, jazz, latin and salsa (even in the album art we can appreciate a cuban cigar-box, designed to represent Vega and Gonzalez caribbean roots). Of course, MAW have remixed and treated all of them with its typical jazz-house touch with the intention of making a group of compositions that mix New York streets rhythms. It's another attempt to fusion jazz with other genres, as in the case of Guru's Jazzmatazz projects (but in this case hip-hop was the genre to fusion with jazz).

"I Am the Black Gold of the Sun" (Rottary Connection cover) is sung by Jocelyn Brown, who proves with this tune that has one of the most powerful soul voices in this time. The song is followed by a prolongation "It’s alright, I feel it!" that has a faster and slightly different rhythm. Another excellent cover included is Bob James' Nautilus (named as MAWtilus), where MAW demonstrates that can do a good remix of a song and still respect the original one.

The soul continues with the classic of the Salsoul Orchestra "Runaway", covered by an impressive India that makes us notice until which point this MAW project is oriented in bringing past melodies into the present time.

To end up this masterpiece we have one of my favorite Mr. Benson's song, "You can do it baby". George starts this almost-nine-minute tune with a warm and soft guitar pluck, followed by a futuristic synthesizer that mixes in the rhythm before Benson starts singing and vocalizing the notes he plays (as he usually does).




Spotify link: Nuyorican Soul – Nuyorican Soul