Free Jazz.............?

[ES125er]

Originally Posted by exarctly

Please people who like free and avante garde. I really recommend the work of the Vandermark 5 and the Chicago Underground trio (or quartet or duo...though be warned, there is a lot of use of electronics).
Vandermark's compositions are really cool, and his understanding if the history of avante garde is deep.

Worth noting: Jeb Bishop (the V5's trombone player) plays some great guitar parts on some Vandermark 5 tracks.

[TruthHertz]

There's another thread here on Pat Metheny. Of course he's known as a melodic player on harmonically structured pieces, but when he was in Miami as a student, he was known as a formidable free player. He used to play with Jaco, and he had a group Kaleidoscope that was a free improv band. Makes you think about how much that contributed to his ability to create such well structured solos over tonal material.
David

[exarctly]

Described below.
Wayne Shorter Footrpints live
Jean Michel Pilc Trio Live at Sweet Basil's volumes one and two
Paul Bley Ramblin and Closer

Another record that I do not want to say is or is not free but is a great jazz record is Wayne Shorter's Footprints live with Danilo Perez, Pattituci, and Brian Blade. I love the freedom these guys play with. I kind of wish more jazz sounded similar in theory to this.

Jean Michel-Pilc had a piano trio that used to exist that took standards, and honestly they either were re-harming them on the spot but being very wild and musical with their interpretation that I thought was way more about the structure of the tune than the chord changes. That is, they would often be in the form measure wise but they were more improvising off the shape of the tune structure wise than harmony wise was Jean Michel-Pilc trio.
There was form so it was not free, but they had a lot of freedom. Live at Sweet Basil's volume 1 and 2 are really cool recordings. And some of you may be fans of the drumming style of Ari Hoenig who plays a lot in NY now but I first hear of him in this French trio. Around or just after the turn of the century.

And Paul Bley back in the late 60's had some really good free playing type trios. I really hear something special in this music.

A lot of what I hear in Pat's tonal playing is random bursts of inside outside playing. A lot of side stepping stuff with cool pentatonic shapes. He is really good at blending the inside outside thing, but makes it all sound like it makes sense.

[exarctly]

I would love to hear someone discuss the MD second Quintet. I am curious to know how they wove in and out of form. I know they were not a free group (Miles made some good fusiony free music of course the next decade) but sometimes I think they are willing to let themselves break free from the form harmonically and even structurally. But I have never studied it in depth. Any good links or threads about their approach?

[Vihar]

Originally Posted by exarctly

He is really good at blending the inside outside thing, but makes it all sound like it makes sense.

Well, I would think it's because it does make sense in the end. As Mattymel said in another thread, as long as there's a release, it worked.

[nakim55]

Check out James Emery with the "String Trio of New York." He plays some really great electric guitar on drummer Thurman Barker's "Voyage" & "Time Factor" CD's. James also has a lot of great CD's under his own name. I hung out with James & he could play along with ANY Bud Powell or Bird solo, note for note, from memory, at tempo, right along with the LP (this was in 1979, no CD's then, or any transcriptions, James learned this all by ear). James was also a Monk fanatic, and could play all of Monk's solos and explain any chord voicing Monk did in detail. Despite his expertise in the tradition, James had his own style put together, which did not sound like any of those guys. A true master, who has been sadly overlooked. By the way, he can play as "FREE" as anybody, or as "inside" as anybody.

[TruthHertz]

Originally Posted by nakim55

Check out James Emery

Absolutely! The string trio recordings with Billy Bang are some of my absolute favourites. They really swing and they're very free and tight at the same time. As far as I've known he's always played an acoustic Jimmy D'Aquisto on all the recordings I've heard, really a chamber instrument played in a way that brings out the best in that guitar. The Spectral Domains recording shows a range of playing with a jazz chamber ensemble, and one of the best readings of Monk's Trinkle Tinkle out there.
Thanks for reminding me of his work.
David

[nakim55]

Actually the bassist with the String Trio of New York (John Lindberg) is from my home town of Marshall, Michigan. John took drum lessons from me before he switched to string bass in 1975. In 1979 I lived in NYC and got to watch the String Trio rehearse all the material for their first LP at John's east side apartment. It was musicianship & creativity at the highest level. James was playing a classical nylon string at the time. He used a Epiphone (I think a red "Crestwood"- not sure if that is the exact model name/ spelling) & polytone back then for his electric playing. Yea, Billy Bang is my favorite edition of that group. I have a cassette tape of them jamming with Dewey Johnson (trumpeter on Coltrane's ascension LP), that those LP's don't even touch. They were on FIRE!

[TruthHertz]

Free and chamber jazz for the whole family. Yeah it really is just that.
Here's proof, even the baby seems to like it!:

YouTube Video

James' solo begins about 3:30 but it's all worth checking out.
David

[nakim55]

I actually think the best representation is the "Live in Erie" video on you tube. & for his electric playing check out "smoke detector" under james emery on you tube. Another side note, Bill Laswell from "Last Exit" is from Albion, Michigan (where I was born), which is 12 miles east of Marshall, Michigan. I never heard Laswell play any Be-Bop, but he sure did play a lot of FUNK in the black clubs on Austin Ave.

[TruthHertz]

Last Exit!! Love the Cassette '87 recordings. Sharrock and Ronald Shannon Jackson. ' saw Ronald Shannon Jackson with Power Tools and my ears are still ringing.
Thanks for the recommendations. I'll check it out.
David

[paynow]

Originally Posted by nakim55

I actually think the best representation is the "Live in Erie" video on you tube. & for his electric playing check out "smoke detector" under james emery on you tube. Another side note, Bill Laswell from "Last Exit" is from Albion, Michigan (where I was born), which is 12 miles east of Marshall, Michigan. I never heard Laswell play any Be-Bop, but he sure did play a lot of FUNK in the black clubs on Austin Ave.

YouTube Video

YouTube Video

[nakim55]

Thanks for putting the videos up of James Emery!! I appreciate it.

[paynow]

Originally Posted by nakim55

Thanks for putting the videos up of James Emery!! I appreciate it.

You're welcome.