Jazz Appreciation — Carla Bley, 84 and CountingHaving done sound for Carla Bley’s first tours
Jazz Appreciation — Carla Bley, 84 and CountingHaving done sound for Carla Bley’s first tours in the 70s, I came to admire her unique approach over a sweep of time. Carla’s a most singular composer, where Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington, and Don Cherry can collide with Gilbert & Sullivan or Pink Floyd. Best listened to over several albums across decades, Carla’s latest set of three albums of trios, with longtime collaborators Steve Swallow (electric bass) and Andy Sheppard (tenor saxophone) “are not a casual sequence…[providing] a refreshing reminder of her greatness,” says Steve Ellman in The Arts Fuse. "Some people seem to think that admiring Bley and listening raptly to her recordings are guilty pleasures. She is not a flashy pianist. She likes to be funny in a puckish, not-at-all-jazzy way. Her bands have, at times, been like traveling vaudeville troupes. She is not afraid of schmaltz, although she often adds lemon juice to it. “She is not Serious, as in “self-important.” But she is very serious, as in “true to an artistic vision.”"She is one of the greatest living jazz composers. She is not the only one, especially in these days of talent aplenty, but she is too often overshadowed, and that is something of a shame. "She stands apart.”Fred Seibert Read from The Arts Fuse… Follow: Mosaic Records Facebook Tumblr Twitter -- source link
#carla bley#composers#steve swallow#andy sheppard#todays jazz#thelonious monk#duke ellington#don cherry#gilbert sullivan#pink floyd#fred seibert