NIGHT DREAMER

I'm surprised that there are only 3 ratings for Night Dreamer on Prog Archives, and no written reviews of this album. Judging from what I've read elsewhere on the Internet, Night Dreamer is generally regarded as one of Wayne Shorter's greatest albums. Like my fellow reviewers, I think it's terrific and fully worthy of 4 stars.

Night Dreamer is the only Wayne Shorter-led album I've listened to a lot. Perhaps that gives a clue to Night Dreamer's lack of exposure. The sound of Night Dreamer is post bop/hard bop. It's completely acoustic, and this is in no way jazz fusion. It is excellent music. I think my favorite tracks are "Black Nile" and "Oriental Folk Song". Wayne Shorter is as well known as a jazz composer as an instrumentalist. The fact that he was one of the primary members of Weather Report, and a favorite of Miles Davis, says it all

On Night Dreamer, Shorter played with some of the best jazz musicians of the 1960's. It's all brilliantly played, but I particularly want to draw attention to McCoy Tyner. I'm not a fan of virtuosity for its own sake, and I don't have many favorite musicians. However, I think McCoy Tyner is the best pianist in jazz. His harmonic ideas are all his own, and no one else can combine jaw-dropping skill with melody like Tyner does. The reason that I wouldn't give Night Dreamer more than four stars, is because it lies on the margins of what most fans of this site would listen to. It's still an excellent addition to any music collection. Anyone who likes mainstream jazz will really enjoy this.