Jazz Record Albums

Aim here is to list some good jazz rock albums by artists not as yet included in the archives, but importantly recently recieved and played.>

 

Scott Henderson: Tore Down House (Warner). Decided to get myself a legit version. Scott Henderson's guitarwork is storming on a variety of jazz rock, blues and blues-soul numbers. Thelma Houston gives a belting performance as guest vocalist. Stand out track: I Hate You - beautifully nasty lyrics.

Virgil Donati: Just Add Water (http://www.virgildonati.com/).  Jazz rock improv jam by the Planet X's Aussie drummer VD (before he joined Derek Sherinian), and Scott Henderson in incredible form

Nicholas D'Amato's Royal Society: Nullius In Verba (Buckyball Records). Wayne Krantz guests on guitar and in excellent form - in fact a good introduction to the oft forgotten NYC based guitarist (also check out Krantz's mid 90's recording Two Drink Minimum, which should be available on Enja Records).

Patto - self titled first album. I was intrigued to read in original liner notes of the album, that Patto thought of themselves as playing jazz but (then in 1971), as a band set up to play rock intruments. Olly Hassell playing vibes (as he had previously with Timebox) gives that feel, but there are several instrumental breaks, that are deliberately set out to give a solo which is jazz. I suppose thinking around, I could come up with several other bands  who would play straight rock for the verse and chorus of a song, but then go off at a tangent and play a solo which was free and jazzier than heard elsewhere: Skid Row - check out Gary Moore's guitarwork on Love Story (ex. 34 Hours), John Wilson guitarwork with the rest of Stud  (the rhythm section being the remainder of Taste when Rory Gallagher left), Igginbottom with Holdsworth.

 

Comments to this "phenomenon" of jazz in an otherwise rock setting in the early 70's is most welcomed.

Check out Dreams, their self titled debut is some awesome jazz rock from 1970 I think. It features the Brecker brothers on horns, John Abercrombie on guitar and Billy Cobham on drums. Think a jammier and well, better version of Blood, Sweat & Tears. Highly recommended.

Also, I think that the first 2 or 3 Chicago albums would fall into this catagory. I would also list those (especially 2) as highly recommended.

Pekka Pojhola is listed on this site and his records are great jazz rock as well.



Edited by Nipsey88

Also check out the solo albums of Simon Phillips.

I'm a sucker for Pat Metheny stuff. One Quiet Night and As Falls Wichita So Falls Wichita Falls (with Lyle Mays) are probably top of my Pat list.

I can't let this post go, however, without mentioning George Benson's Breezin'. What an incredibly superb album. "This Masquerade" is one of my all time fave tracks of ANY genre! Benson is such an incredible guitar player, and its a shame that he's more "known" among the general public for his late '70's disco-type chart stuff like Gimme The Night. Pick up some early Benson, pour yourself a malt whisky, turn down the lights, listen and enjoy. 

Norm Cash wrote: It's just dawned on me that a friend of mine just gave me a copy of an album by a band called Ides Of March, who he descibes as being very similar to early Chicago. I haven't had the chance to listen to it yet. Anyone heard of them?

 

Yep - had a hit in US in early 70's called Vehicle - i picked their first album up from a dumper bin  in Lancaster PA on my first US visit. Less jazz oriented than the early Chicago albums but still a decent bit of brass rock, apart from some dodgy covers (Eleanor Rigby????). Several bands jumped on the brass rock band wagon in the early 70's: Heaven a Welsh band, somewhat spoilt by a vocalist who made Chris Farlowe sound like a castrati (double LP available on a single CD nowadays), Satisfaction an English band who had been on the UK scene for a decade as Mike Cotton Trad Jazz Band (one LP on Decca, never released on CD). Apart from Chicago and BST, superior brass rockers worth tracking down include If (first  four albums - perhaps the most jazz-based of these brass rock groups), Chase (named after their leader and previously a jazz trumpeter in some big jazz bands). More recently (i.e. mid 90's) the Canadian band Glueleg have  come out with heavy brass rock, e.g. Heroic Doses, which contains a nice version of Red.

BaldFriede wrote: Also check out the solo albums of Simon Phillips.

 

Have you heard S. Phillips (also Gary Husband) guesting on Ray Russell's new album Goodbye Svengali (Cuneiform Records) - great live track at the end of the album?

 

 

 

 

Neil Ardley-Kaleidoscope of Rainbows

I have yet to hear any of Ardley's other albums, but man, this is one of the best albums I own.  British Jazz/Jazz-Rock at its finest!!!

How about JOHN SCOFIELD. He has some incredible Jazz/
Funnk fusion albums "Loud Jazz", "Blue Matter", "Up All Night", "A Go Go."
One of my favorite artists and my favorite guitarist.

Edited by FragileDT

FragileDT wrote: How about JOHN SCOFIELD. He has some incredible Jazz/ Funk fusion albums "Loud Jazz", "Blue Matter", "Up All Night", "A Go Go." One of my favorite artists and my favorite guitarist.

 

Very much agree, especially that period after his time with Miles Davis. Some nice work more recently with MMW on A GoGo, and I strongly recommend checking an album by one of leaders of the Norwegian nu.fusion movement Bugge Wesseltoft (with his New Conception of Jazz group). Scofield guests on a long track on Wesseltoft's Live album - and it seems Scofield has always played with the New Conceptions because of the way he intergrates..... Scofield crops up elsewhere - I liked his work the late 80's/early 90's Mike Gibbs' big band album. Recently found a copy of the John Scofield Trio Live EnRoute, which I'm spending some time trying to get into, perhaps because Scofield (like a lot of former jazz rockers) is trying out more mainstream jazz. Never got into the Metheny/Scofield I Can See You House album, which seems to support Allan Holdsworth's argument that on many a duo album, these superstars seem to inhibit each other, so the sparks fail to fly. Indeed to reflect the strength of his feelings here, you'll only find Holdsworth paired once with another guitarist and playing in real time - however, when you check out  Brother on the recently issued double by Jon Hiseman's Tempest, Olly Hassell and Holdsworth do push it other hard, the resulting friction making the sparks come.