egroj world: Warne Marsh • Jazz of Two Cities

Thursday, April 18, 2024

Warne Marsh • Jazz of Two Cities

With Ted Brown (ts), Ronnie Ball (p), Ben Tucker (b) & Jeff Morton, plus special guest Art Pepper (as).
29 tracks recorded on October 1956-March 1957 recorded at Radio Recorders, Hollwood, CA + unreleased session for "Stars of Jazz".

Warne Marsh (October 26, 1927 - Decemeber 17. 1987) became one of the pre-eminent saxophonists of the Tristano-inspired Cool School, along with Lee Konitz. He was often recorded in the company of other Cool School musicians, and remained one of the most faithful to the Tristano philosophy of improvisation. His distinctively sombre, grainy tone (which set Marsh apart from other Lester Young-influenced saxophonists); uncannily fluent use of the high register; and rhythmically subtle lines are immediately recognizable. He has been called by Anthony Braxton "the greatest vertical improviser" and described by the British critic Alun Morgan as "one of the greatest improvisers our music has ever known". He famously died onstage at the Los Angeles club Donte's in 1987, in the middle of playing "Out of Nowhere". Though he remains something of a cult figure among jazz fans and musicians, his influence has grown since his death; younger players such as Mark Turner have increasingly been borrowing from his music as a way of counterbalancing the pervasive influence of John Coltrane. Marsh's discography remains somewhat scattered and elusive, as much of it was done for small labels, but more and more of his work has been issued on compact disc in recent years...
https://www.jazzmessengers.com/en/1018/warne-marsh/jazz-of-two-cities

"These tracks date from the time Marsh spent back in his hometown - well, Los Angeles - from February 1956 to November 1957, leading a quintet that was something of a Tristano student reunion.

Disc one reprises the material that once appeared on the Imperial and Kapp labels, and there are some very familiar characteristics: improbably tricky themes deriving from familiar harmonic territory - Ball, Brown and Marsh all contribute - propelling the improvisation into fascinating demonstrations of agility. Marsh and Brown are never exactly competitive, but clearly stimulate each other intensely; at times they wrap around themselves almost organically, prodded on by Ball's perfectly-judged piano work.

Yet there's also a wider aspect to it; the two tenors give the front line a somewhat heavier character than you might expect from the experience of Marsh and Konitz: bassist Tucker gets to feature on his own "Ben Blew" and Jeff Morton gets to play with the sticks, which he never did with Lennie. By the time "I Never Knew" comes along, with its drum-breaks, stop-time bounces and Condon Gang coda, there's a distinct feeling that school's out.

Disc two introduces Art Pepper into the mix: nine tracks - "Aretha" through "Arrival" - feature him. Originally on a Vanguard LP, it was in fact Brown's date, came out under his name, Marsh no more than a bystander and adviver. A further move away from Tritano's influence, less convolution, though the two noted above, by Ball, and Marsh's "Long Gone", set up more thematic obstacle-courses. Pepper copes well, sometimes superbly, and also makes you realise why Konitz fitted so easily into his chair in the Kenton band.

The final 15 minutes is back into the Marsh-Brown configuration, and is taken from a TV show of the period. Bobby Troup does the talking, and shows an understanding of the music. A good, though inevitably brief, version of "Background Music", plus two minutes of improvising on "Pop Goes The Weasel". Really.

These sessions mark the start of Marsh's career as leader and organiser, and as such fill an important gap in his history."
Jack Cooke -Jazz Review

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Con Ted Brown (ts), Ronnie Ball (p), Ben Tucker (b) y Jeff Morton, más el invitado especial Art Pepper (as).
29 temas grabados en octubre de 1956-marzo de 1957 grabados en Radio Recorders, Hollwood , CA + sesión inédita para "Stars of Jazz".

Warne Marsh (26 de octubre de 1927 - 17 de diciembre de 1927). 1987) se convirtió en uno de los saxofonistas preeminentes de la Cool School inspirada en Tristano, junto con Lee Konitz. A menudo se grababa en compañía de otros músicos geniales de la Escuela, y seguía siendo uno de los más fieles a la filosofía Tristano de la improvisación. Su tono distintivamente sombrío y granulado( que distingue a Marsh de otros saxofonistas influenciados por Lester Young); uso asombrosamente fluido del registro agudo; y líneas rítmicamente sutiles son inmediatamente reconocibles. Anthony Braxton lo ha llamado "el mejor improvisador vertical" y el crítico británico Alun Morgan lo describió como "uno de los mejores improvisadores que nuestra música haya conocido". Murió en el escenario del club Donte's de Los Ángeles en 1987, en medio de tocar "Out of Nowhere". Aunque sigue siendo una figura de culto entre los fanáticos y músicos del jazz, su influencia ha crecido desde su muerte; músicos más jóvenes como Mark Turner han tomado prestado cada vez más de su música como una forma de contrarrestar la influencia generalizada de John Coltrane. La discografía de Marsh sigue siendo algo dispersa y esquiva, ya que gran parte de ella se hizo para sellos pequeños, pero cada vez más de su trabajo se ha publicado en disco compacto en los últimos años...
https://www.jazzmessengers.com/en/1018/warne-marsh/jazz-of-two-cities

Tracks:
CD 1:
01. Smog Eyes
02. Ear Conditioning
03. Lover Man
04. Quintessence
05. Jazz of Two Cities
06. Dixie's Dilemma
07. These are the Lights I Love
08. I Never Knew
09. Ben Blew
10. Time's Up
11. Earful
12. Black Jack
13. Jazz of Two Cities (Alternate Take)
14. I Never Knew (Alternate Take)

Tracks #1-4, Recorded October 3, 1956
Tracks #5-8,13,14, Recorded at Master Records, Hollywood, on October 11, 1956
Tracks #9-12, Recorded at Radio Records, Hollywood, October 24, 1956

CD 2:
01. Aretha
02. Long Gone
03. Once We Were Young
04. Foolin' Myself
05. Avalon
06. On a Slow Boat to China
07. Crazy She Calls Me
08. Broadway
09. Arrival
10. Au Privave
11. Ad Libido
12. Bobby Troup discusses Warne's Music
13. These are the Things I Love
14. Background Music
15. Bop Goes the Leesel

Tracks #1-9, Recorded at Radio Recorders, Hollywood, on December 21, 1956
Tracks #10-15, Recorded at ABC Studios, Hollywood, March 11, 1957

Recorded: 1957
Label: Fresh Sound Records