Jim Hall Trio - Circles

[Doug B]

I have been listening to the excellent Jim Hall Trio album CIRCLES.

Are there any other albums with the same group of musicians?

Thanks

Doug

[TH]

Don Thompson and Terry Clarke right? The amazing live recordings, Live in Toronto and then the box set of the complete weeklong run at the Bourbon (volume 2-4) also have this group.
It was also Ed Bikert's working group for a long time and there's a wealth of recordings, some on tiny labels and hard to find, under Ed's leadership.

David

[Doug B]

Don Thompson and Terry Clarke right? The amazing live recordings, Live in Toronto and then the box set of the complete weeklong run at the Bourbon (volume 2-4) also have this group.
It was also Ed Bikert's working group for a long time and there's a wealth of recordings, some on tiny labels and hard to find, under Ed's leadership.

David

I guess I didn't word my question right. I meant other albums with this version of the Jim Hall Trio with Hall, Thompson and Clarke.

Thanks

Doug

[TH]

I guess I didn't word my question right. I meant other albums with this version of the Jim Hall Trio with Hall, Thompson and Clarke.

Thanks

Doug

My bad. Hope you find what you're looking for.
David

[grahambop]

I guess I didn't word my question right. I meant other albums with this version of the Jim Hall Trio with Hall, Thompson and Clarke.

Thanks

Doug

Well what you want (if you haven’t already got it) is Jim Hall Live.

Then you want Jim Hall Live vols 2-4 (although this is a bit more pricey).

They are all the same trio: Hall, Thompson, Clarke, and the music is sublime throughout.

[Doug B]

My bad. Hope you find what you're looking for.
David

Thanks anyway for trying.

[Doug B]

Well what you want (if you haven’t already got it) is Jim Hall Live.

Then you want Jim Hall Live vols 2-4 (although this is a bit more pricey).

They are all the same trio: Hall, Thompson, Clarke, and the music is sublime throughout.

Thanks so much Graham! That's the trouble with 7Digital where I buy my .flac files from-they have very little info about the album.

Sublime? It's Jim Hall-what else?

Doug

[Doug B]

Then you want Jim Hall Live vols 2-4 (although this is a bit more pricey).

Sure you don't mean Live at Town Hall Vol. 1 and 2?

[Cunamara]

Terry Clarke played with Jim in other groups as well. He was a very fine jazz drummer. If I recall correctly, there are also some live albums recorded in Japan with Jim, Don Thompson and Terry Clark. I have not heard any of those. These albums were all recorded in the mid-1970s. I think they have held up spectacularly well.

I will put in a plug for what has already been mentioned. The Jim Hall Live! Album is a classic and has been out for many years with this trio. A few years back, on the ArtistShare label, three other CDs worth of recordings were released from that same run of shows in Toronto (Volumes 2-4). Don Thompson had a tape machine on stage and the tapes all came from that source material; apparently he rediscovered it in his basement years after the fact and it was decided to release them. I think this run of shows was one or two weeks and the rapport that they established was remarkable. From the reports I have read, it was a restaurant gig rather than a jazz club gig. Little or no regard was given to the band by the staff; it's not on the recordings, but apparently at some point in the middle of one tune the waitstaff walked in with a birthday cake and sang Happy Birthday to the customer over the band. One of the reasons that I really like these recordings is that they contradict Jim's reputation for being a slow, reflective guitarist. A number of these tunes blaze with aggression and brio. Thompson and Clark really brought something out in him.

Also, if you like those recordings, give a listen to Ed Bickert with Don Thompson and Terry Clark on several albums and also a duo album with Ed and Don. Don and Terry were a superb rhythm section.

[Cunamara]

Sure you don't mean Live at Town Hall Vol. 1 and 2?

These:

Jim Hall - Live Vol. 2-4 (CD, Album) | Discogs

[grahambop]

Sure you don't mean Live at Town Hall Vol. 1 and 2?

No, I meant exactly what I said!

https://www.amazon.com/Jim-Hall-Live.../dp/B072JWX73X

[Doug B]

These:

Jim Hall - Live Vol. 2-4 (CD, Album) | Discogs

Thanks for that! :-)

BTW-The restaurant in Toronto that the Live! volumes came from might have been Bourbon Street.

Cheers

Doug

[Doug B]

No, I meant exactly what I said!

https://www.amazon.com/Jim-Hall-Live.../dp/B072JWX73X

Thanks.

[grahambop]

Thanks for that! :-)

BTW-The restaurant in Toronto that the Live! volumes came from might have been Bourbon Street.

Cheers

Doug

Yes that is where all the Live! volumes were recorded.

[44lombard]

Terry Clarke played with Jim in other groups as well. He was a very fine jazz drummer. If I recall correctly, there are also some live albums recorded in Japan with Jim, Don Thompson and Terry Clark. I have not heard any of those. These albums were all recorded in the mid-1970s. I think they have held up spectacularly well.

There is one live album I'm aware of recorded at a concert hall in Tokyo in 1976 (?), and a studio date recorded with the trio within a day or two of the live date.

Both albums are good, not great, when compared to the Bourbon Street recordings on ("LIve!", and v.2-4). In the concert hall setting, the trio presented more "showpieces" (a long drum solo, a long rhythm guitar workout, the funk-lite arrangement of 'Concerto de Arunjuez'), so the original album only had 2 "straight jazz" pieces (the CD reissue added a third). If you want more of what "Live!" has to offer, the "vol.2-4" is the place to start, and the Japanese live album is more of a postscript.

The Bourbon Street atmosphere was conducive to bringing out the best in the trio, imho (Pat Metheny said as much in the liner notes to v.2-4, so maybe I'm just parroting him). The studio date from Japan ('Jazz Impressions of Japan') seems a little tossed-off to me, or maybe I just don't respond as much to the material, a collection of 5 originals. I think 1-2 might have been improvised in the studio.

To the OP question, while the "Three" album from 1986 has a different rhythm section, it's mostly of a piece with Hall's 1970s trio work.

"All Across the City" from 1989 adds in some keyboards and seems like a transition to the last 20 years of recordings on Telarc and other labels, which mostly left the "trio playing standards" idea behind and focused on concepts and/or original compositions and free improvisations.

[Bbmaj7#5#9]

Terry Clarke played with Jim in other groups as well. He was a very fine jazz drummer. If I recall correctly, there are also some live albums recorded in Japan with Jim, Don Thompson and Terry Clark. I have not heard any of those. These albums were all recorded in the mid-1970s. I think they have held up spectacularly well.

I will put in a plug for what has already been mentioned. The Jim Hall Live! Album is a classic and has been out for many years with this trio. A few years back, on the ArtistShare label, three other CDs worth of recordings were released from that same run of shows in Toronto (Volumes 2-4). Don Thompson had a tape machine on stage and the tapes all came from that source material; apparently he rediscovered it in his basement years after the fact and it was decided to release them. I think this run of shows was one or two weeks and the rapport that they established was remarkable. From the reports I have read, it was a restaurant gig rather than a jazz club gig. Little or no regard was given to the band by the staff; it's not on the recordings, but apparently at some point in the middle of one tune the waitstaff walked in with a birthday cake and sang Happy Birthday to the customer over the band. One of the reasons that I really like these recordings is that they contradict Jim's reputation for being a slow, reflective guitarist. A number of these tunes blaze with aggression and brio. Thompson and Clark really brought something out in him.

Also, if you like those recordings, give a listen to Ed Bickert with Don Thompson and Terry Clark on several albums and also a duo album with Ed and Don. Don and Terry were a superb rhythm section.

Kenny Burrell, Attila Zoller and Jim Hall recorded an album called ”Guitar Genius In Japan” in 1970. The rhythm section consisted of bassist Larry Ridley and drummer Lenny McBrowne. ”Guitar Genius In Japan” was only released in Japan and unfortunately there aren’t much more information about this album, as far as I know. I don’t even know if it’s a studio or live recording.

[jbromusic]

What you want are the Jim Hall "Live" sessions that have been mentioned. The original album is called "Jim Hall Live" and then there was a 3 CD box set from these same string of concerts that was released a few years ago: Jim Hall (Live!), Vol. 2-4 by Jim Hall on iTunes

You also want:

Jim Hall- Live In Tokyo: www.amazon.com/Live-Tokyo-JIM-HALL/dp/B015JT529K


Jim Hall- Jazz Impressions of Japan: www.amazon.com/Jazz-Impressions-Japan-JIM-HALL/dp/B015JT52B8/ref=pd_sbs_15_img_0/135-0263502-0437644?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B015JT52B8&pd_rd_r= 8fd99f9c-419a-453d-aa61-27eb6ce3e17c&pd_rd_w=krNMg&pd_rd_wg=9PnLO&pf_rd_p= 5cfcfe89-300f-47d2-b1ad-a4e27203a02a&pf_rd_r=H51EWN70YNQK8N99RD8B&psc=1&re fRID=H51EWN70YNQK8N99RD8B

[lawson-stone]

On the "Circles" album sometimes I just put "(All of a Sudden) My Heart Sings" on a loop. I just love that tune.

I also can't even describe the genre or style. I tried setting up a Band in a Box track, but couldn't figure out the rhythm. It's layered and rich, and it moves without hurrying. They way it transitions into the "main" section with the ensemble is exciting.

[ronjazz]

Yes, that is a great and subtle double-time samba with the brushes on "My Heart Sings". Fabulous record all around.