4 Heaven knows what Universal is up to these days. Under the patina of respectability afforded by its "heritage" signings (Wayne Shorter, Shirley Horn, Michael Brecker, etc), the company's real marketing push is on crossover sales, meaning jazz albums with the potential to sell in other markets: Diana Krall, Jamie Cullum, Lizz Wright and so on. This, perhaps unsurprisingly, tends to dilute the basic product, as on Munia/The Tale (Verve) by bassist Richard Bona, which is more world music with jazz flavoring than jazz with world flavoring. The album opens with "Bonatology," an a capella multitracking of Bona's eerie castrato-sounding falsetto in heavenly host mode that makes you feel as if you've pushed open the wrong door during a tour of the Sistine chapel. "Painting a Wish" initially sounds as if it's a composition by some obscure Brazilian composer with Kenny Garrett's soprano sax sounding very much like Branford Marsalis in Romances for Saxophone mode, but things gradually loosen up-though not enough to get excited about. The right world buttons are pushed on "Kalabancoro" with guest Salif Keita's vocal helped on its way by female glee-club riffing away in the background. Elsewhere, Bona's take on world music is light and airy and is full of nice melodic touches (he is, after all, a fabulous musician), and indeed Munia/The Tale is pleasant Club Med chill-out music. But even the broadest, most open minded, inclusive, egalitarian definition of what jazz might be will have difficulty in swallowing this one. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 false 14503 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Heaven knows what Universal is up to these days. Under the patina of respectability afforded by its "heritage" signings (Wayne Shorter, Shirley Horn, Michael Brecker, etc), the company's real marketing push is on crossover sales, meaning jazz albums with the potential to sell in other markets: Diana Krall, Jamie Cullum, Lizz Wright and so on. This, perhaps unsurprisingly, tends to dilute the basic product, as on Munia/The Tale (Verve) by bassist Richard Bona, which is more world music with jazz flavoring than jazz with world flavoring. The album opens with "Bonatology," an a capella multitracking of Bona's eerie castrato-sounding falsetto in heavenly host mode that makes you feel as if you've pushed open the wrong door during a tour of the Sistine chapel. "Painting a Wish" initially sounds as if it's a composition by some obscure Brazilian composer with Kenny Garrett's soprano sax sounding very much like Branford Marsalis in Romances for Saxophone mode, but things gradually loosen up-though not enough to get excited about. The right world buttons are pushed on "Kalabancoro" with guest Salif Keita's vocal helped on its way by female glee-club riffing away in the background. Elsewhere, Bona's take on world music is light and airy and is full of nice melodic touches (he is, after all, a fabulous musician), and indeed Munia/The Tale is pleasant Club Med chill-out music. But even the broadest, most open minded, inclusive, egalitarian definition of what jazz might be will have difficulty in swallowing this one.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Curlew has been around since 1979, and its recorded legacy, if nothing else, reveals that being persistently iconoclastic is not easy. Mercury (Cuneiform) is the band's ninth album and quite possibly its best. Curlew's music has awkward edges, and Dean Granros' raw guitar explores the tensions between jazz and rock. The group's wide-ranging eclecticism (avant-garde flourishes and ambient soirees) offers many possibilities that are teased out and examined in numbers like "Funny Money" and "Late Date/There Is." The extreme indigestibility of "Leaven," over a diving backbeat, with overdriven guitar and lumpy rock rhythms, is typical of the band's approach and is the musical equivalent of jumping into the cold plunge pool after a sauna. You don't want to do it too often, but when you do, it gives you a greater appreciation of the everyday. Featuring saxophonist George Cartwright, whose edgy sound is central to Curlew's musical personality, the band's idiosyncratic take may be something of an acquired taste, but it's one well worth acquiring. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14504 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Curlew has been around since 1979, and its recorded legacy, if nothing else, reveals that being persistently iconoclastic is not easy. Mercury (Cuneiform) is the band's ninth album and quite possibly its best. Curlew's music has awkward edges, and Dean Granros' raw guitar explores the tensions between jazz and rock. The group's wide-ranging eclecticism (avant-garde flourishes and ambient soirees) offers many possibilities that are teased out and examined in numbers like "Funny Money" and "Late Date/There Is." The extreme indigestibility of "Leaven," over a diving backbeat, with overdriven guitar and lumpy rock rhythms, is typical of the band's approach and is the musical equivalent of jumping into the cold plunge pool after a sauna. You don't want to do it too often, but when you do, it gives you a greater appreciation of the everyday. Featuring saxophonist George Cartwright, whose edgy sound is central to Curlew's musical personality, the band's idiosyncratic take may be something of an acquired taste, but it's one well worth acquiring.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 In Cahoots has been around for a while now and comprises a collection of unique personalities associated with the British experimental rock scene of the '70s such as guitarist Phil Miller (Matching Mole, Hatfield & the North) and saxophonist Elton Dean (Soft Machine). All That (Cuneiform) is In Cahoots' eighth album, and it features the band's engaging blend of jazz improvisation and rock rhythms. You get the feeling that Phil Miller is a closet Black Sabbath fan and that he, bassist Fred Baker and drummer Mark Fletcher-but for admirable self-control-are on the verge of jumping headlong into some parallel heavy-metal universe. On extended compositions like "Black Cat" and "Sleight of Hand" they nevertheless settle into comfortable grooves featuring Jim Dvorak (Brotherhood of Breath, John Stevens) on trumpet and Dean's singular soprano playing. In fact Dean's playing is the perfect antidote to the tendency of fusion to overcomplicate; he has a knack for making his contributions count, much like he did years ago with Soft Machine. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14505 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

In Cahoots has been around for a while now and comprises a collection of unique personalities associated with the British experimental rock scene of the '70s such as guitarist Phil Miller (Matching Mole, Hatfield & the North) and saxophonist Elton Dean (Soft Machine). All That (Cuneiform) is In Cahoots' eighth album, and it features the band's engaging blend of jazz improvisation and rock rhythms. You get the feeling that Phil Miller is a closet Black Sabbath fan and that he, bassist Fred Baker and drummer Mark Fletcher-but for admirable self-control-are on the verge of jumping headlong into some parallel heavy-metal universe. On extended compositions like "Black Cat" and "Sleight of Hand" they nevertheless settle into comfortable grooves featuring Jim Dvorak (Brotherhood of Breath, John Stevens) on trumpet and Dean's singular soprano playing. In fact Dean's playing is the perfect antidote to the tendency of fusion to overcomplicate; he has a knack for making his contributions count, much like he did years ago with Soft Machine.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Shades of the '70s are again apparent on CAB4 (Favored Nations), an album of well-executed, if delightfully superficial, electric jazz. Full of spectacular flourishes and ballsy solos, it has Brian Auger (of Trinity fame) on keyboards, drummer Dennis Chambers, bassist Bunny Brunel and guitarist Tommy MacAlpine. While Auger and MacAlpine have their own following in rock, their power and intensity serves notice on how limp fusion can often be as the band goes into those places acoustic jazz cannot. Perhaps this is the appeal of the music, as so much jazz today sounds as if the Beatles never happened and acoustic jazz is becoming so self-referential it is beginning to go around in circles. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14506 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Shades of the '70s are again apparent on CAB4 (Favored Nations), an album of well-executed, if delightfully superficial, electric jazz. Full of spectacular flourishes and ballsy solos, it has Brian Auger (of Trinity fame) on keyboards, drummer Dennis Chambers, bassist Bunny Brunel and guitarist Tommy MacAlpine. While Auger and MacAlpine have their own following in rock, their power and intensity serves notice on how limp fusion can often be as the band goes into those places acoustic jazz cannot. Perhaps this is the appeal of the music, as so much jazz today sounds as if the Beatles never happened and acoustic jazz is becoming so self-referential it is beginning to go around in circles.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Children on the Corner is a band of musicians associated with Miles Davis' electric period including Michael Henderson, Ndugu Chancler, Sonny Fortune, Badal Roy, Barry Finnerty plus keyboard player Michael Wolff (the only non-Miles man, though he's notched up road time with Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Airto and Cal Tjader). Rebirth (Sonance) is a live date that opens with Joe Zawinul's "Directions" and is an edgy brew that never really settles. The album is not served well by its poor mix. The audio balance between the rhythm-section players is particularly bad, which doesn't help an album that sets out to capture the spirit of classic Miles albums like Bitches Brew and On the Corner, and the soloists are pulled far too forward in the mix for comfort. Fortune's keening alto solo and Wolff's B3 solo that follows on "Directions," for example, need to be centered within the matrix of sound, not outside it. Wolff's keyboard playing is more glossy than gutsy, yet the concept of the band is good, even if the recording quality leaves plenty to be desired. It shows electric jazz has developed its own conventions, and like acoustic bebop, electric jazz is becoming circumscribed by style with electric jazz "tradition" of electric-era Miles and Tony Williams Lifetime spiced with a little Mahavishnu-inspired chops being the standards. Once again jazz's heritage is tending to overwhelm the present. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14507 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Children on the Corner is a band of musicians associated with Miles Davis' electric period including Michael Henderson, Ndugu Chancler, Sonny Fortune, Badal Roy, Barry Finnerty plus keyboard player Michael Wolff (the only non-Miles man, though he's notched up road time with Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Airto and Cal Tjader). Rebirth (Sonance) is a live date that opens with Joe Zawinul's "Directions" and is an edgy brew that never really settles. The album is not served well by its poor mix. The audio balance between the rhythm-section players is particularly bad, which doesn't help an album that sets out to capture the spirit of classic Miles albums like Bitches Brew and On the Corner, and the soloists are pulled far too forward in the mix for comfort. Fortune's keening alto solo and Wolff's B3 solo that follows on "Directions," for example, need to be centered within the matrix of sound, not outside it. Wolff's keyboard playing is more glossy than gutsy, yet the concept of the band is good, even if the recording quality leaves plenty to be desired. It shows electric jazz has developed its own conventions, and like acoustic bebop, electric jazz is becoming circumscribed by style with electric jazz "tradition" of electric-era Miles and Tony Williams Lifetime spiced with a little Mahavishnu-inspired chops being the standards. Once again jazz's heritage is tending to overwhelm the present.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Incredibly, All Night Wrong (Favored Nations) is Allan Holdsworth's first "official" live album, made at the Roppongi Pit Inn in Japan in May 2002, with two longtime collaborators, former Zappa drummer Chad Wackerman and bassist Jimmy Johnson. Holdsworth's guitar improvisations are about as complex as they get without flying over your head completely. Holdsworth, as is well known, is a guitarist's guitarist who doesn't consider himself a jazz player yet whose music can barely be called rock. Virtually cliche-free, Holdsworth isn't someone you can categorize; listen to "Alphrazallan" for evidence of this. His uncompromising music doesn't come to you; you have to go to it. Holdsworth's intensely focused, fearsomely long solos make their point by cramming more notes into the square inch than you might think is humanly possible, such as on "Funnels," and with Wackerman's fill-every-crack drumming, it can make for exhausting listening. Usually at one dynamic level, it's like being trapped in a conversation where you can't get a word in edgeways. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14508 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Incredibly, All Night Wrong (Favored Nations) is Allan Holdsworth's first "official" live album, made at the Roppongi Pit Inn in Japan in May 2002, with two longtime collaborators, former Zappa drummer Chad Wackerman and bassist Jimmy Johnson. Holdsworth's guitar improvisations are about as complex as they get without flying over your head completely. Holdsworth, as is well known, is a guitarist's guitarist who doesn't consider himself a jazz player yet whose music can barely be called rock. Virtually cliche-free, Holdsworth isn't someone you can categorize; listen to "Alphrazallan" for evidence of this. His uncompromising music doesn't come to you; you have to go to it. Holdsworth's intensely focused, fearsomely long solos make their point by cramming more notes into the square inch than you might think is humanly possible, such as on "Funnels," and with Wackerman's fill-every-crack drumming, it can make for exhausting listening. Usually at one dynamic level, it's like being trapped in a conversation where you can't get a word in edgeways.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Greg Howe's Extraction (Tone Center) is fusion with a capital F, but not the sort that has had the blood sucked out of it. Instead it brings some of the adventurous spirit inherent in the original jazz-rock concept. It's an album of often-complicated heads followed by plenty of solo space, and it has chops written all over it. This sort of music absolutely depends on the personality of the participants to make it work, and each musician here has a commanding skill of his instrument. Guitarist Howe is something of a prodigy discovered by Eddie Van Halen and has toured with Michael Jackson; Victor Wooten is a bass virtuoso currently with Bela Fleck; and in-demand drummer Dennis Chambers, currently with Santana, underpins the album with his complex yet funky grooves such as on "Tease" where Howe's solo on a pedal point is effective yet highly lyrical. The standout track is "Crack It Way Open," with Howe in head-banging form and revealing what an accomplished guitarist he is. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14509 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Greg Howe's Extraction (Tone Center) is fusion with a capital F, but not the sort that has had the blood sucked out of it. Instead it brings some of the adventurous spirit inherent in the original jazz-rock concept. It's an album of often-complicated heads followed by plenty of solo space, and it has chops written all over it. This sort of music absolutely depends on the personality of the participants to make it work, and each musician here has a commanding skill of his instrument. Guitarist Howe is something of a prodigy discovered by Eddie Van Halen and has toured with Michael Jackson; Victor Wooten is a bass virtuoso currently with Bela Fleck; and in-demand drummer Dennis Chambers, currently with Santana, underpins the album with his complex yet funky grooves such as on "Tease" where Howe's solo on a pedal point is effective yet highly lyrical. The standout track is "Crack It Way Open," with Howe in head-banging form and revealing what an accomplished guitarist he is.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Guitarist Willie Oteri doesn't resort to Greg Howe's flash but he does evoke the feel of the early jazz-rock sessions by the likes of Miles Davis and Tony Williams Lifetime on Sprial Out (DIW). Ephraim Owens has the Miles role and effectively fixes the musical landscape circa 1971. Initially Oteri offers a more languid approach that creates mood, something rather lacking among this column's selection of CDs, with their in-yer-face anxiety to please. In many ways this album gets closer to the spirit of Miles Davis than the album by Children on the Corner, and like so many of the albums here suggest we are not so much in a brave new world, but the old one, only better understood. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14510 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Guitarist Willie Oteri doesn't resort to Greg Howe's flash but he does evoke the feel of the early jazz-rock sessions by the likes of Miles Davis and Tony Williams Lifetime on Sprial Out (DIW). Ephraim Owens has the Miles role and effectively fixes the musical landscape circa 1971. Initially Oteri offers a more languid approach that creates mood, something rather lacking among this column's selection of CDs, with their in-yer-face anxiety to please. In many ways this album gets closer to the spirit of Miles Davis than the album by Children on the Corner, and like so many of the albums here suggest we are not so much in a brave new world, but the old one, only better understood.

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 Portrait of Jaco: The Early Years 1968-1978 (Holiday Park) is a valuable and fascinating documentary of the master bassist's early years. It begins with the earliest known recording of Jaco Pastorius playing drums, the instrument on which he began his career, and includes fascinating fly-on-the-wall tracks like his first experimental home recording playing bass as a 17-year-old. Throughout the first CD there's some priceless early Jaco (known in his early days as Jocko), with interview snippets from the man himself, his teachers, Ira Sullivan and others who bore witness to his blossoming talent. The second disc has Jaco performing with his longtime associate Peter Graves and his band at the Florida night club Bachelor's III, the demo Jaco played for Joe Zawinul before joining Weather Report and interviews with Joni Mitchell, Zawinul and Pat Metheny-the latter especially invaluable. The result is essential listening (and reading; the liner notes are also good) and shows that the bassist did not just arrive from out of the blue in 1976 with his sensational debut album on Columbia. It was a result of hard-earned experience and years of relentless effort in his quest to be the "world's greatest bass player." This album, more than any other shows how he succeeded in his quest. Among the many highlights is a live version of "Bright Size Life" that alone is worth the price of admission, and Herbie Hancock's insightful and sincere overview of Jaco's life. (Available only through cdbaby.com.) true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14511 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

Portrait of Jaco: The Early Years 1968-1978 (Holiday Park) is a valuable and fascinating documentary of the master bassist's early years. It begins with the earliest known recording of Jaco Pastorius playing drums, the instrument on which he began his career, and includes fascinating fly-on-the-wall tracks like his first experimental home recording playing bass as a 17-year-old. Throughout the first CD there's some priceless early Jaco (known in his early days as Jocko), with interview snippets from the man himself, his teachers, Ira Sullivan and others who bore witness to his blossoming talent. The second disc has Jaco performing with his longtime associate Peter Graves and his band at the Florida night club Bachelor's III, the demo Jaco played for Joe Zawinul before joining Weather Report and interviews with Joni Mitchell, Zawinul and Pat Metheny-the latter especially invaluable. The result is essential listening (and reading; the liner notes are also good) and shows that the bassist did not just arrive from out of the blue in 1976 with his sensational debut album on Columbia. It was a result of hard-earned experience and years of relentless effort in his quest to be the "world's greatest bass player." This album, more than any other shows how he succeeded in his quest. Among the many highlights is a live version of "Bright Size Life" that alone is worth the price of admission, and Herbie Hancock's insightful and sincere overview of Jaco's life. (Available only through cdbaby.com.)

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 The ubiquitous Dennis Chambers makes another appearance on Front Page (Sunnyside), a trio date with the French guitar virtuoso Bireli Lagrene and bassist Dominique Di Piazza. One of the most astonishing guitar players in the tradition of the late Django Reinhardt, Lagrene has always felt a bit typecast in this role-probably with good reason since he made his record debut at the age of 13 with Routes to Django (Antilles). Consequently he occasionally steps out of character, once even embarking on an ill-fated European tour with Jaco Pastorius. On Front Page he projects the distinct feeling of an after-hours session having a little off-duty fun "doing fusion." From the opening "The First Step" there is warmth and humanity in his playing that is immediately apparent even at the fastest tempi. Playing astonishingly complex runs is second nature to him (Try "Dinello" to see what I mean), and even his throwaway lines on the title track are a delight, yet he is unafraid to make a simple statement. His playing on "The Eyes of Jesus Christ," for example, betrays a distinct Johnny Smith feel-or was it that Smith listened to Django? Either way, Lagrene suggests a musician who has a hankering to forge a career away from the Django style, but can't somehow bring himself to cut the umbilical to his heritage (listen to "Valbonne Song" to hear the stylistic quandary this poses for him). But to hear him at his best is something special; try the recent Gypsy Project (Dreyfus), where there's no doubting you're listening to a master musician at ease with his surroundings. true 191 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14512 78 200403 true 0 78 2004-03-01T00:00:00-05:00

The ubiquitous Dennis Chambers makes another appearance on Front Page (Sunnyside), a trio date with the French guitar virtuoso Bireli Lagrene and bassist Dominique Di Piazza. One of the most astonishing guitar players in the tradition of the late Django Reinhardt, Lagrene has always felt a bit typecast in this role-probably with good reason since he made his record debut at the age of 13 with Routes to Django (Antilles). Consequently he occasionally steps out of character, once even embarking on an ill-fated European tour with Jaco Pastorius. On Front Page he projects the distinct feeling of an after-hours session having a little off-duty fun "doing fusion." From the opening "The First Step" there is warmth and humanity in his playing that is immediately apparent even at the fastest tempi. Playing astonishingly complex runs is second nature to him (Try "Dinello" to see what I mean), and even his throwaway lines on the title track are a delight, yet he is unafraid to make a simple statement. His playing on "The Eyes of Jesus Christ," for example, betrays a distinct Johnny Smith feel-or was it that Smith listened to Django? Either way, Lagrene suggests a musician who has a hankering to forge a career away from the Django style, but can't somehow bring himself to cut the umbilical to his heritage (listen to "Valbonne Song" to hear the stylistic quandary this poses for him). But to hear him at his best is something special; try the recent Gypsy Project (Dreyfus), where there's no doubting you're listening...

2009-03-02T00:23:38-05:00

4 I rarely ever play my copy of Carlos Santana's pop masterpiece Supernatural. I am proudly an old Santana guy. Label me a "Black Magic Woman," "Evil Ways" and "Tell Me Are You Tired" type. Columbia must have heard me whining about Carlos' rise to pop superstardom as the label has just remastered and rereleased four of his older records: Caravanserai, Love Devotion Surrender, Welcome and Moonflower (Columbia/Legacy). These albums are all special individual achievements, and they feature pure Carlos Santana in all his glory, full of experimentation. Some of this forages into the world of jazz fusion, but much of the music here is simply the kind of eclectic sounds Carlos Santana has perfected his entire career-what I like to call music of the Americas. It is all here: screaming solos, passionate vocals, sacred rhythms, the blues, the Spanish tinge, rock 'n' roll and Afro-Latin beats. Yet Carlos Santana is in a different sphere on each album, taking extraordinary chances each time out. The largely instrumental Caravanserai, from 1972, is the first album from the guitarist after he dissolved his band from the popular albums Santana, Abraxas and Santana III, and he wasn't looking back. Joining up with keyboardist Tom Coster, Santana was seeking the outer reaches of the soul with songs like "Just in Time to See the Sun" and "All the Love of the Universe." The album mixes rock, jazz and salsa with tracks such as "Eternal Caravan of Reincarnation," "Stone Flower" and "La Fuente del Ritmo," but you can tell that Santana is itching to stretch out and stay there for a while. Also recorded in 1972, Love Devotion Surrender does go out, basking in the magnificence of John Coltrane. Santana brings along his friend and fellow guitarist Mahavishnu John McLaughlin as well as drummers Billy Cobham and Jan Hammer (yes, him), percussionists Armando Peraza and James Mingo Lewis and organist Larry Young, among others. Daringly, on the leadoff track, Santana and his crew try to find their collective voice on Trane's "A Love Supreme." It is a bold reading of the most classic of jazz spirituals. On "Naima," another Coltrane classic, the easy connection between jazz and bossa nova is as clear as ever. Luckily, there are two takes of this track, and this rather interesting interpretation of one of Trane's greatest compositions is equally pleasing both times. Meanwhile, "Let Us Go Into the House of the Lord" is screamingly intense, with McLaughlin sounding particularly taken by the spirit (this album was influenced by the guitarists' studies with Indian guru Sri Chinmoy, which is reflected in the other song titles: "The Life Devine" and "Meditation"). Welcome, recorded in 1973, is probably the album with the closest links to pure fusion, and it includes takes on Coltrane's "Welcome" and McLaughlin's "Flame-Sky." It also includes the song "Love, Devotion, and Surrender," which reflects the spirit of America's peace-and-love period. The guitarist added singer Leon Thomas, who brought out the band's blues side, and expanded Santana to an octet. Groups like Earth Wind & Fire pushed a similar sound at the time with broad, feel-good harmonies, heavy percussion and, most important, a concern for humanity. "Mother Africa" and "Samba de Sausalito" are the best pieces here, where the percussion assumes the lead-as it frequently does in Santana's world. Finally, there is 1977's Moonflower where you will receive the familiar Carlos Santana. Moonflower comprises tracks recorded live in London, such as "Black Magic Woman," "Europa" and "Carnaval" (one of those little-known numbers full of energy that is perfect for concerts) along with some studio cuts, including a cover of the Zombies' "She's Not There" that became one of the band's last major hits before several songs from Supernatural swept across the charts. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 false 14058 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

I rarely ever play my copy of Carlos Santana's pop masterpiece Supernatural. I am proudly an old Santana guy. Label me a "Black Magic Woman," "Evil Ways" and "Tell Me Are You Tired" type. Columbia must have heard me whining about Carlos' rise to pop superstardom as the label has just remastered and rereleased four of his older records: Caravanserai, Love Devotion Surrender, Welcome and Moonflower (Columbia/Legacy). These albums are all special individual achievements, and they feature pure Carlos Santana in all his glory, full of experimentation. Some of this forages into the world of jazz fusion, but much of the music here is simply the kind of eclectic sounds Carlos Santana has perfected his entire career-what I like to call music of the Americas. It is all here: screaming solos, passionate vocals, sacred rhythms, the blues, the Spanish tinge, rock 'n' roll and Afro-Latin beats. Yet Carlos Santana is in a different sphere on each album, taking extraordinary chances each time out. The largely instrumental Caravanserai, from 1972, is the first album from the guitarist after he dissolved his band from the popular albums Santana, Abraxas and Santana III, and he wasn't looking back. Joining up with keyboardist Tom Coster, Santana was seeking the outer reaches of the soul with songs like "Just in Time to See the Sun" and "All the Love of the Universe." The album mixes rock, jazz and salsa with tracks such as "Eternal Caravan of Reincarnation," "Stone Flower" and "La Fuente del Ritmo," but you can tell that Santana is...

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00

4 The Grateful Dead's legendary leader Jerry Garcia has always been considered a very good guitarist with versatility to match. And on Hooteroll? (Evolver), a 1971 collaboration with keyboardist Howard Wales, Garcia has plenty of moments to demonstrate that he was more than just a rock 'n' roller. Wales, who played with the Dead on their 1970 album American Beauty, is not to be undervalued either. His organ work is especially notable wherever it is showcased on Hooteroll? The classic Grateful Dead sound can be detected on the margins, but for the most part this record is Garcia and Wales' more-than-able stab at improvisational music. And they do well, despite the album's occasionally sparse sound. Beginning with "Morning in Marin," a rocking number with feverish drum patterns, it's clear right away that the music here is about time and place, and it drives home the point that this album is about something different, something more experimental and challenging. The spacey and soft "Da Birg Song" follows, and Deadheads will likely take to this track. It suggests that common theme found in the music of the late '60s and early '70s: escape. Wales' keyboards carry the tune well while Garcia plays behind his partner with mandolin-like guitar work. However, best of all is the work of flutist and saxophonist Martin Fierro. Time and again, Fierro's solos are pure and honest. At the end of this transitory musical experience, Garcia and Wales offer an appropriate finality to their tale with "Evening in Marin." The day is over, the band is tired, and the slowing-down sounds of Garcia and Wales are etched into your memory like a well-earned road trip. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14062 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

The Grateful Dead's legendary leader Jerry Garcia has always been considered a very good guitarist with versatility to match. And on Hooteroll? (Evolver), a 1971 collaboration with keyboardist Howard Wales, Garcia has plenty of moments to demonstrate that he was more than just a rock 'n' roller. Wales, who played with the Dead on their 1970 album American Beauty, is not to be undervalued either. His organ work is especially notable wherever it is showcased on Hooteroll? The classic Grateful Dead sound can be detected on the margins, but for the most part this record is Garcia and Wales' more-than-able stab at improvisational music. And they do well, despite the album's occasionally sparse sound. Beginning with "Morning in Marin," a rocking number with feverish drum patterns, it's clear right away that the music here is about time and place, and it drives home the point that this album is about something different, something more experimental and challenging. The spacey and soft "Da Birg Song" follows, and Deadheads will likely take to this track. It suggests that common theme found in the music of the late '60s and early '70s: escape. Wales' keyboards carry the tune well while Garcia plays behind his partner with mandolin-like guitar work. However, best of all is the work of flutist and saxophonist Martin Fierro. Time and again, Fierro's solos are pure and honest. At the end of this transitory musical experience, Garcia and Wales offer an appropriate finality to their tale with "Evening in Marin." The day is over, the band...

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00

4 Soul Serenade (Columbia) by the Derek Trucks Band is one of the best albums I have heard this year. It won't matter how this album is classified, either, because it has it all. For those who liked Allman Brothers guitarist Trucks on his eponymous band's major-label debut, 2002's Joyful Noise, will find this CD to be even more impressive. Soul Serenade was actually recorded three years ago, before Joyful Noise, but is being released only now. It's been worth the wait because the Derek Trucks Band is hitting on all cylinders from start to finish. The album begins with covers from two musical music legends-King Curtis and Bob Marley. Trucks uses "Soul Serenade" by Curtis and "Rasta Man Chant" by Marley to deliver one of the more exhilarating musical moments of the year. Trucks' guitar-sling and the fine work of his band show that the difference between the rock-steady beat of Jamaican reggae and Afro-American soul is so slight that it hardly matters. The next track, "Bock to Bock," is even better. Bassist Todd Smallie and drummer Yonrico Scott set the table for the band to deliver a powerful yet subtle swinging blues number. Trucks is on the case with his ax, and his band stays tight and focused at all times, letting the guitarist roam where he needs. The magic of this album doesn't end there although the first two songs will leave you awestruck. The Derek Trucks Band then pumps the soul classic "Drown in My Own Tears," with Gregg Allman providing a heavy, blues-drenched vocal, which is followed by a tricky version of Mongo Santamaria's "Afro Blue." By this point you will have no doubt about the importance of Derek Trucks and his band. They defy category. They challenge those preconceived conclusions that often muzzle music, and they will leave you wondering why this album had been held up for so long. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14063 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

Soul Serenade (Columbia) by the Derek Trucks Band is one of the best albums I have heard this year. It won't matter how this album is classified, either, because it has it all. For those who liked Allman Brothers guitarist Trucks on his eponymous band's major-label debut, 2002's Joyful Noise, will find this CD to be even more impressive. Soul Serenade was actually recorded three years ago, before Joyful Noise, but is being released only now. It's been worth the wait because the Derek Trucks Band is hitting on all cylinders from start to finish. The album begins with covers from two musical music legends-King Curtis and Bob Marley. Trucks uses "Soul Serenade" by Curtis and "Rasta Man Chant" by Marley to deliver one of the more exhilarating musical moments of the year. Trucks' guitar-sling and the fine work of his band show that the difference between the rock-steady beat of Jamaican reggae and Afro-American soul is so slight that it hardly matters. The next track, "Bock to Bock," is even better. Bassist Todd Smallie and drummer Yonrico Scott set the table for the band to deliver a powerful yet subtle swinging blues number. Trucks is on the case with his ax, and his band stays tight and focused at all times, letting the guitarist roam where he needs. The magic of this album doesn't end there although the first two songs will leave you awestruck. The Derek Trucks Band then pumps the soul classic "Drown in My Own Tears," with Gregg Allman providing a heavy,...

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00

4 Keyboardist Jan Hammer recorded an album in 1975 called The First Seven Days (Columbia/Legacy). Like Duke Ellington's sacred concerts and John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, it was musician as preacher or philosopher. The First Seven Days has been lying dormant in Columbia's vaults for almost 30 years waiting to be reissued in whole (some parts have been released on other Hammer albums). Hammer, most famous for his soundtrack to the television show Miami Vice, doesn't exactly write spiritual compositions … la Trane and Duke. Hammer even admits in the liner notes that for him the first seven days are "scientific" and "biblical" and that the two "do meet in certain points." With Hammer, duality is inherent: His music is dominated by his mastery of piano and keyboards that became in vogue during the rise of fusion (electric piano, Moog synthesizer, etc.). It makes it hard to label his music just spiritual. However, by the "Fourth Day-Plants and Trees," Hammer is in gear with his version of God's handiwork. This is the Old Testament fusion. It only sets up the best portion of the album-"The Animals," "Sixth Day-The People" and "The Seventh Day"-where he returns to mostly familiar sounds, linear music patterns and highly emotional content. Violinist Steve Kindler and percussionist David Earle Johnson join Hammer as the action on Earth gets real-and aesthetically gorgeous. Kindler's violin interspersed with Hammer's piano work on "Sixth Day" is perfect for the communication of these moods. Hammer is not overbearing either. Like "The Creation" itself, The First Seven Days is essential stuff. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14064 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

Keyboardist Jan Hammer recorded an album in 1975 called The First Seven Days (Columbia/Legacy). Like Duke Ellington's sacred concerts and John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, it was musician as preacher or philosopher. The First Seven Days has been lying dormant in Columbia's vaults for almost 30 years waiting to be reissued in whole (some parts have been released on other Hammer albums). Hammer, most famous for his soundtrack to the television show Miami Vice, doesn't exactly write spiritual compositions … la Trane and Duke. Hammer even admits in the liner notes that for him the first seven days are "scientific" and "biblical" and that the two "do meet in certain points." With Hammer, duality is inherent: His music is dominated by his mastery of piano and keyboards that became in vogue during the rise of fusion (electric piano, Moog synthesizer, etc.). It makes it hard to label his music just spiritual. However, by the "Fourth Day-Plants and Trees," Hammer is in gear with his version of God's handiwork. This is the Old Testament fusion. It only sets up the best portion of the album-"The Animals," "Sixth Day-The People" and "The Seventh Day"-where he returns to mostly familiar sounds, linear music patterns and highly emotional content. Violinist Steve Kindler and percussionist David Earle Johnson join Hammer as the action on Earth gets real-and aesthetically gorgeous. Kindler's violin interspersed with Hammer's piano work on "Sixth Day" is perfect for the communication of these moods. Hammer is not overbearing either. Like "The Creation" itself, The First Seven Days is...

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00

4 What do you call an album recorded at a studio in North Hollywood, California called the Cave? Bassist J.K. Kleutgens and guitarist Antti Kotikoski naturally call their album Cave Men (J2K). Tenor and soprano saxophonist Steve Tavaglione and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta join them in the Cave, and the quartet sounds purposeful and energetic throughout the recording. Cave Men embraces the high energy of rock and the creative, improvisational spirit of jazz music from the beginning to end. Traditionalists will likely hate this album because of its exploration of modern sound texture; the open-minded will love it for precisely the same reason. It is powerful, well-composed, melodic music that aims to please the listener and not someone's agenda. On "Make No Mistake," one of the best tunes, Tavaglione's soprano sax is crisp and electrified; it sounds more like an electronic keyboard. There is a high interest in the melody because the band wants to present good songs that are remembered and respected. "Country" is another song that grows on you due to the fine guitar work by Kotikoski and Tavaglione's sax play. On "Sanctuary" the two hook up again for a fabulous call-and-response sequence. It doesn't matter who wins their sonic war either; the creative choice, like so many other moments on this album, accomplishes its purposeful goal. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14065 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

What do you call an album recorded at a studio in North Hollywood, California called the Cave? Bassist J.K. Kleutgens and guitarist Antti Kotikoski naturally call their album Cave Men (J2K). Tenor and soprano saxophonist Steve Tavaglione and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta join them in the Cave, and the quartet sounds purposeful and energetic throughout the recording. Cave Men embraces the high energy of rock and the creative, improvisational spirit of jazz music from the beginning to end. Traditionalists will likely hate this album because of its exploration of modern sound texture; the open-minded will love it for precisely the same reason. It is powerful, well-composed, melodic music that aims to please the listener and not someone's agenda. On "Make No Mistake," one of the best tunes, Tavaglione's soprano sax is crisp and electrified; it sounds more like an electronic keyboard. There is a high interest in the melody because the band wants to present good songs that are remembered and respected. "Country" is another song that grows on you due to the fine guitar work by Kotikoski and Tavaglione's sax play. On "Sanctuary" the two hook up again for a fabulous call-and-response sequence. It doesn't matter who wins their sonic war either; the creative choice, like so many other moments on this album, accomplishes its purposeful goal.

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00

4 Soft Works features ex-members of the legendary jazz-rock group Soft Machine, including bassist Hugh Hopper, saxophonist Elton Dean and drummer John Marshall along with frequent guest Machine guitarist Allan Holdsworth. Dean dominates the group's first offering, Abracadabra (Tone Center), but that is not a problem. Dean is many different saxophone players rolled into one: John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders-did I hear some Charlie Rouse in there? The long compositions give him the chance to stretch out and find his sweet spots. The Hopper-composed "First Trane" is a perfect example: Dean hangs back behind the groove like he is inside a club waiting for the crowd to gather. He plays slowly, and as Trane might have said, he wants to get it all in. In the process, Dean creates musical hypnotism. The melody isn't as important as the moments where he dives recklessly into the unknown. Another Hopper tune, "Elsewhere," is more compelling narrative. The band lets him have the space, and Dean chases the spirit of Sanders through familiar places, where the squeaky sacred sounds seem daunting and daring. I personally got lost in Dean's funk-influenced "Willie's Knee," where the entire band is in high gear. Hip-hop DJs will sample this one. And Dean provides the coda, a rousing, surprisingly funky sax solo that drives home the point again that the unknown is what a jazz musician savors each night out. true 211 2007-06-07T14:05:44-04:00 14066 73 200310 true 0 78 2003-10-01T00:00:00-04:00

Soft Works features ex-members of the legendary jazz-rock group Soft Machine, including bassist Hugh Hopper, saxophonist Elton Dean and drummer John Marshall along with frequent guest Machine guitarist Allan Holdsworth. Dean dominates the group's first offering, Abracadabra (Tone Center), but that is not a problem. Dean is many different saxophone players rolled into one: John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders-did I hear some Charlie Rouse in there? The long compositions give him the chance to stretch out and find his sweet spots. The Hopper-composed "First Trane" is a perfect example: Dean hangs back behind the groove like he is inside a club waiting for the crowd to gather. He plays slowly, and as Trane might have said, he wants to get it all in. In the process, Dean creates musical hypnotism. The melody isn't as important as the moments where he dives recklessly into the unknown. Another Hopper tune, "Elsewhere," is more compelling narrative. The band lets him have the space, and Dean chases the spirit of Sanders through familiar places, where the squeaky sacred sounds seem daunting and daring. I personally got lost in Dean's funk-influenced "Willie's Knee," where the entire band is in high gear. Hip-hop DJs will sample this one. And Dean provides the coda, a rousing, surprisingly funky sax solo that drives home the point again that the unknown is what a jazz musician savors each night out.

2009-03-02T00:23:26-05:00