Tag: Bill Evans

Title: Bill Evans – Explorations (1961) [Japanese Limited SHM-SACD 2011]
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

When this album was recorded in February of 1961, it had been more than year since the Portrait in Jazz was issued, the disc that won the critics over. By the time of this issue, Evans had released four albums in six years, a pace unheard of during that time. Most musicians were issuing two, three, and even four records a year during the same era. Many speculate on Evans’ personal problems at the time, but the truth of the matter lies in the recordings themselves, and Explorations proves that the artist was worth waiting for no matter what else was going on out there. Evans, with Paul Motian and Scott LaFaro, was onto something as a trio, exploring the undersides of melodic and rhythmic constructions that had never been considered by most. For one thing, Evans resurrects a number of tunes that had been considered hopelessly played out, and literally reinvents them — “How Deep Is the Ocean” and “Sweet and Lovely.” His harmonic richness that extends the melodic and color palette of these numbers literally revived them from obscurity and brought them back into the canon. He also introduced “Haunted Heart” into the jazz repertoire, with a wonderfully impressionistic melodic structure, offered space, and depth by the understatement of Motian and extension by LaFaro’s canny use of intervals. Also noteworthy is Miles Davis’ “Nardis,” which Evans first played on a Cannonball Adderley set a couple of years before. The rhythmic workout by the Motian and LaFaro places Evans’ own playing in a new context, with shorter lines, chopping up the meter, and a series of arpeggios that open the ground for revelatory solo in counterpoint by LaFaro. Explorations is an extraordinary example of the reach and breadth of this trio at its peak.

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Title: Bill Evans – Bill Evans At The Montreux Festival (1968) [Japanese Reissue 2004]
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Casino De Montreux, Montreux, Switzerland on June 15, 1968. Originally released on Verve (8762). Includes liner notes by Gene Lees. Digitally remastered by Dennis Drake (Polygram Studios) & Gert Van Hoeyen (Polygram Sound Lab, Baarn, The Netherlands). A unique Japanese SACD remaster of the American musician’s 1968 release as part of the ‘Verve 60th Anniversary Supreme Sound Edition’ series; DSD digitally remastered by Seigen Ono. Centre label of the original LP faithfully reproduced on the CD.

At the Montreux Jazz Festival, marks the beginning of stylistic changes for the legendary pianist. Only 1 year earlier, his At Town Hall release found his approach generally more introspective & brooding. In contrast, this set is more lively, playful, & experimental. Much of this is down to the active & intense drumming of Jack DeJohnette, who had joined the trio only a short time before this concert was recorded; longtime bandmate Eddie Gomez is also featured on this album. His energetic soloing adds veracity to tunes such as “Embraceable You” & “A Sleeping Bee.” DeJohnette, too, is given several opportunities to display his drumming skills. His lengthy solo on “Nardis” displays his technical prowess & 4-way coordination; such acumen would later cause jazz fans & critics alike to hail DeJohnette as 1 of the world’s premier jazz drummers. Evans, famous for a soft-spoken pianistic touch, seems driven to new vistas on this album. He experiments more with harmonic dissonance & striking rhythmical contrasts, making this his most extroverted playing since his freshman release, New Jazz Conceptions. This is part of Verve’s Master Edition series.

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