Next up in the LP listening project:

• Compost – This album, also sometimes known as Take Off Your Body, is fascinating.  The band is Compost, a jazz-rock band from 1971.  But wait, there’s more!  It’s Jack DeJohnette’s band, you know, from the Keith Jarrett Trio and some Miles Davis records, and about a billion other albums.  But wait, there’s more!  Jack is an amazing drummer, and on this record he’s the keyboard player.  So, who has dazzling enough to fill Jack’s shoes on the drums?  Rakalam Bob Moses, of course.  Harold Vick and Juma Santos are really great on this too.  I love this album.  Moses sounds like Moses throughout, but especially his playing at the end of “Inflation Blues.”
• Con Brio – A band?  Debut album (as a leader) by Jerry Bergonzi?  Hard to say.  This band is Bergonzi, Bruce Gertz, Mick Goodrick and Jeff Williams, and they are spectacular.  I love hearing Jerry and Mick – I mean, all of them, but especially Jerry and Mick.  Jerry is a former teacher, current and probably forever point of light, and a major inspiration.  Mick is also a magnificent person, fearless musician, and astonishing presence.  Big blessings here for my universe, knowing both of them.  In fact, I just hung out with Mick from Hemenway Street all the way to Mass Ave.  Bruce sounds amazing on both electric and double bass (nice “Joshua” quote, Bruce!), and Jeff Williams is definitely one of the masters.  I love this album.

And now for the Chick Corea portion of our show:

• Song of Singing – This trio date with Dave Holland (on “bass fiddle”!) and Barry Altschul is from the Circle time period.  Circle was a “free”-ish group that starred this trio, with Anthony Braxton, as well.  It’s not my favorite period in Chick’s playing and writing, but it is a really great record.
• A.R.C. – Same trio as Song of Singing.  What makes this record so interesting is “Nefertiti,” the great Wayne Shorter composition.  They fragment the tune a bit more on Song of Singing (also starring “Nefertiti”), with this version being a bit more straight ahead.
• Piano Improvisations, Vol. 1 – The sad truth about my ears is that I just don’t really like solo piano records that much.  I had a friend – a drummer – who didn’t have a single album in his vast collection that was without a drummer.  I sort of feel the same way here, wishing there was a bass player.
• Piano Improvisations, Vol. 2 – Same deal as Vol. 1, although I do like the Monk tunes.
• Return to Forever – This is the first record by RTF, and is more about Brazilian music than the more Prog Rock style of Romantic Warrior.  I love this album, and Stanley Clarke is my hero.
• The Leprechaun – A great solo album, with interesting compositions and arrangements, and much to be said for Chick’s creative use of synthesizers.  I love Steve Gadd, Anthony Jackson and Eddie Gomez on this record.
• My Spanish Heart – This is a long-standing favorite of mine.  I love the variety of compositional styles, orchestrational approaches, and the ferocious playing.  I am often surprised by how much I like Gayle Moran’s voice on this record, especially on”Love Castle.”  “Day Danse” is positively shredding.  And, of course, you can’t miss the hit on this one, “Armando’s Rhumba,” which isn’t really a rhumba, but it’s so awesome that the “not a rhumba” bit doesn’t matter.
• Three Quartets – I first heard this in 1993, when a Greek pianist named Alex Orfonos asked me to play on his Chick Corea tribute concert at Berklee.  I have a cassette copy of that in the basement, and what’s fantastic about it is how great the drummer sounds – it was Antonio Sanchez.  I was really not up for all the Eddie Gomez and Stanley Clarke we were playing…heck, I’m still not totally up for that – those guys are invincible.  But it was a wonderful learning experience, and one of my favorite things to come from that gig was this record.  Three Quartets is truly amazing.  I’m partial to “Quartet No. 1.”
• Trio Music – A nice end to the Chick listening festival.  Don’t get me wrong, I have tons of CDs, but remember that this is an LP-only project.  Trio Music is the follow up to Chick’s Now He Sings, Now He Sobs record, from 1968.  This record is the same trio, Roy Haynes and Miroslav Vitous, from 1981.  They are both great records, although I confess that I’m only just now starting to like Now He Sings,…  On Trio Music, they spend one LP playing free, and doing a marvelous job of that, by the way.  Exceptional dedication to motivic development keeps the listener engaged.  And on the second LP, they play Monk tunes, and fantastically.  Nice record.

Ok, moving on to the next batch…

Enjoy, R.