Cecil Taylor Music

This is a pretty decent compilation of early Cecil Taylor recordings from 1955-1961. The CD was put out as a part of Sarabandas' "Giants of Jazz" series (they've released similar collections by other artists such as Eric Dolphy, Coltrane, and Ornette Coleman) and now appears to be out of print. The collection includes 5 songs taken from Jazz Advance, 2 from NY City R&B, and 2 from The World of Cecil Taylor for a total of more than 70 minutes of music. The personnel from each of these Cecil albums varies, with solo (on You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To), trio, and horn ensembles featuring Steve Lacy and/or Archie Shepp on saxophones (on Charge 'Em Blues, Air, Port of Call, and Things Ain't What They Used to Be).

This is the only "Greatest Hits" albums by Cecil Taylor that I've ever seen and as such offers a unique sampling of early Cecil -- from a period in which he was still, for the most part, firmly rooted to bebop principles and even playing 5-minute standards. It is fun to hear Cecil deconstruct tunes like You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To, knowing that in just a few more years he would abandon melodies altogether. The album is therefore a good starting point for those uninitiated to (or unsold on) Cecil's music, since on the tracks included here he had not yet departed into his characteristic lengthy free-form explorations.

On the other hand, Jazz Advance is such a masterpiece recording, it really should be owned as a standalone album rather than listening to it in abbreviated form on this collection. Fans of the ensemble work with Archie Shepp could likewise get any of the albums from the NYC dates such as Air, Cell Walk for Celeste, Jumpin' Pumpkins, NY City R&B, the World of Cecil Taylor, or better yet, The Complete Candid Recordings of Cecil Taylor and Buell Neidlinger. The music from these two eras (1955 for Jazz Advance and 1960-61 for the NYC stuff) is different enough that it warrants separation.

There is therefore no reason to seek out this album or pay more than $10 for it, but it's a decent mix tape of Cecil capturing his early development during the 'dishwasher' years.

"3 Phasis" is a through-composed work, more avant-classical than jazz, recorded at the last of the four sessions that also yielded "The Cecil Taylor Unit" for New World records, NW-201. The line-up for this recording consists of alto saxophonist Jimmy Lyons, trumpeter Raphé Malik, violinist Ramsey Ameen, bassist Sirone, and drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson. The linernotes, written by Gary Giddens, detail how the work came about: originally a 30 minute suite, the sixth take (released here) grew into a 57-minute piano concerto as the producer watched the clock. The work starts with a plaintive wail as the horns and bowed strings play the first dirge-like melody. Other melodies and themes are introduced by the piano and the work grows into a typical-Taylor maelstrom. At the 30-minute mark the band falls into a staggering march and Jimmy Lyons cuts loose on alto. Sometimes violent, sometimes elegant, the work explores various combinations of instruments in duos, trios, and of course, solo piano. After nearly an hour of fireworks the music ends quietly, with solo piano and a final rattle of percussion. And like all Cecil Taylor recordings, this one's for Cecil Taylor fans only.

Richard Heard has a rich tenor voice that makes you want to hear more. The only problem with the cd is that it ended. I can't wait for him to put out another.

What a tremendous talent! Richard Heard (accompanied on the piano by Pamela Howland) is certain to be one of the premier up-and-coming tenors of recent times. This album of African-American art songs and spirituals should be purchased for the quality of the music as well as its historic preservation value. Be sure to contact Richard Heard (Wake Forest University) and commend him on this album and give him the impetus to record another!

this is from August 20, 1976 Moosham Castle,open air festival in Austria someplace, Two Parts here the first 44'22 and Part Two a mere 31'53. Part One I though built too fast, wonderful middle register ideas, sputtering out,gently coaxing the temporalities of things, condensed, compacted spaces, sapces with un-freedom yet free to be a voice, his music are fragments of declamations, shards of speaking, we don't need his Words to hear his music, his Words are a distraction sometimes, from what he has to say with the piano.Not even 10 minutes into Part One and he begins his meta-ripplings up and down the keys, landed always one the bottom, I like the use of octaves here in the first ten minutes, bluesy thoughts yet abandoned afraid to go beyond, great timbre of the piano a Boesendorfer Grand, it has more a bass constitution than other piano, I think somewaht darker. this holds the bass ideas quite poerful stuff, like it anchors the rest down all that rippling(s). . . ,and he lands on Fifths Chords, a like a stopping point for Cecil never really stops.The Words here in the CD Jacket has some nice things to say, that the musician is the process, he'she creates by doing, and doing all the time incessantly,filling up the air above the mountains. . . Part Two is more serious,weighted even more an octave idea,alone lonely piano but then like INDENT builds foments,scats,projects,bellows within the basso regions,there are more reflective thoughts here, like asking questions no one can answer, like what's my music going to be now and now-then. . . I like when he lands at the middle register after the bass on a major second, the bass idea always returns, again it weighgs things down, allowing the flights-ripplings to get OFF, the octaves almost sound out of tune within the context of what is being played here,like our ears get accustom acclimitizes to cluster, fistfulls of notes, when a pure octave sounds, it sounds unusual, Weird is not the Word, perhaps like octaves are the "Other" like tones from another globe within another context I guess. We get down again in Part Two to usual fair violent scourings but he holds this down keeps a lid on the register,more clusters than Part One. should we always say Cecil Solo is better than all else, even though the drummers and bass players he has had stay with him, and foment re-create what he is doing.Come One Listen! There is great clarity as well in the recording, enough to know this is a Boesendorfer piano Grand.