Clifford Thornton – Pan African Festival (1969)

From the album Ketchaoua by Clifford Thornton , recorded August 18, 1969 in Paris , France. Released on BYG records in 1969.

Clifford Thornton’s only Actuel date as a leader is, like many of the others in this BYG series, an all-star blowing session highly indicative of the times. For some, it will be difficult to tell whether taking credit for composing these pieces is a lost cause. This is some very free music and, save for a handful of scored passages, almost wholly improvised. [source]

Clifford Thornton – Cornet , Conga Drums
Arthur Jones – Alto Saxophone
Archie Shepp – Soprano Saxophone
Grachan Moncur III – Trombone
Beb Guerin – Bass
Dave Burrell – Piano
Sunny Murray – Drums
Earl Freeman – Bass

Don Cherry – Eternal Rhythm (1968) (full album)

Eternal Rhythm is a live jazz album composed by Don Cherry. It was recorded at the Berlin Jazz Festival in 1968. [source]

Tracks: A. Eternal Rhythm Part 1 (17:45) / B. Eternal Rhythm Part 2 (23:37)

Albert Mangelsdorff – Trombone
Eje Thelin – Trombone
Bernt Rosengren – Tenor Saxophone, Oboe, Clarinet, Flute
Sonny Sharrock – Guitar
Karl Berger – Vibraphone, Piano, Gender (Gamelan)
Joachim Kühn – Piano, Prepared Piano
Arild Andersen – Bass
Jacques Thollot – Drums, Saron (gamelan), Gong, Bells, Voice
Don Cherry – Cornet, Gender and Saron (Gamelan), Bengali, Flute in A, Bamboo Flute in C, Metal Flute in B flat, Plastic Flute in C, Haitian Guard, Northern Bells, Voice

Cecil McBee – Flying Out (1982)

Flying Out is the second track on the B-side on the album Flying Out by the jazz bassplayer Cecil McBee, released in 1982 on the label India Navigation.

This is a rather unusual chamber jazz album that finds bassist Cecil McBee interacting with violinist John Blake, cellist David Eyges, cornetist Olu Dara, and drummer Billy Hart. Variety is gained by McBee switching to piano on “Truth — A Path to Peace,” while “Into a Fantasy” is a classical-oriented string trio with violin, cello, and bass and “Blues on the Bottom” is a more conventional blues. The advanced music and the blending of the unusual colors works quite well. [source]

All compositions by Cecil McBee.
First Impression / Truth – A Path To Peace / Into A Fantasy / Flying Out /Blues On The Bottom

John Blake – Violin
Olu Dara – Cornet
David Eyges – Cello
Billy Hart – Drums
Cecil McBee – Bass, Piano

[buy the album here]

Cecil McBee – Into A Fantasy (1982)

Into A Fantasy is the first track on the B-side on the album Flying Out by the jazz bassplayer Cecil McBee, released in 1982 on the label India Navigation.

This is a rather unusual chamber jazz album that finds bassist Cecil McBee interacting with violinist John Blake, cellist David Eyges, cornetist Olu Dara, and drummer Billy Hart. Variety is gained by McBee switching to piano on “Truth — A Path to Peace,” while “Into a Fantasy” is a classical-oriented string trio with violin, cello, and bass and “Blues on the Bottom” is a more conventional blues. The advanced music and the blending of the unusual colors works quite well. [source]

All compositions by Cecil McBee.
First Impression / Truth – A Path To Peace / Into A Fantasy / Flying Out /Blues On The Bottom

John Blake – Violin
Olu Dara – Cornet
David Eyges – Cello
Billy Hart – Drums
Cecil McBee – Bass, Piano

[buy the album here]

Ornette Coleman Quartet – Just for You (1960)

Just for You is the second track on The Art of the Improvisers.

The Art of the Improvisers is an album by the American jazz composer and saxophonist Ornette Coleman featuring tracks recorded between 1959 and 1961 which was first released on the Atlantic label in 1970. [source]

All compositions by Ornette Coleman

A1 The Circle With A Hole In The Middle (4:53)
A2 Just For You (3:48)
A3 The Fifth Of Beethoven (6:35)
A4 The Alchemy Of Scott La Faro (8:48)
B1 Moon Inhabitants (4:28)
B2 The Legend Of Bebop (7:14)
B3 Harlem’s Manhattan (8:10)

Line-up:

Ornette Coleman – Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone
Don Cherry – Cornet, Trumpet
Billy Higgins – Drums (tracks: A1, A2), Ed Blackwell – Drums (tracks: A3 to B3)
Charlie Haden – Bass (A1 to A3, B1, B2), Jimmy Garrison – Bass (tracks: B3), Scott LaFaro – Bass (tracks: A4)

Albert Ayler Quartet- The Hilversum Session (full album) (1964)

The Hilversum Session by Albert Ayler is one of those legendary recordings in free jazz. It was recorded in a Netherlands radio studio in front of a small invited audience, at the end of the Ayler Quartet’s European tour on November 9, 1964. The band — Ayler, Don Cherry, Gary Peacock and Sunny Murray — had been playing Ayler´s tunes for months and were uncanny in their ability to hear one another and improvise together at that point. It was also the last time the group would record together under Ayler´s name as a quartet, and they went out at a peak. The recording itself remained unissued until 1980 when it appeared on an LP on the long-defunct Osmosis label. [source]

All compositions by Albert Ayler except track B1.

A1. Angels (6:50) / A2. C.A.C (4:58) / A3. Ghosts (7:28) / B1. Infant Happiness (Cherry) (6:04) / B2. Spirits (9:10) / B3. No Name (5:40)

Line up:

Gary Peacock – Bass / Don Cherry – Cornet / Sunny Murray – Drums / Albert Ayler – Tenor Saxophone

[Listen to the Trio version of Ghosts here]

Ornette Coleman: The Shape of Jazz To Come (full album) (1959)

The Shape of Jazz to Come was Ornette Colemans debut album for Atlantic Records, which released it in late 1959.

The Shape of Jazz to Come was one of the first avant- garde jazz albums ever recorded. It was recorded in 1959 by Coleman’s piano-less quartet. The album was considered shocking at the time, because it had no recognizable chord structure and included simultaneous improvisation by the performers in a much freer style than previously heard in jazz.

Coleman’s major breakthrough was to leave out chord-playing instruments. Each selection contains a brief melody, much like the tune of a typical jazz song, then several minutes of free improvisation, followed by a repetition of the main theme; while this resembles the conventional head-solo-head structure of bebop, it abandons the use of chord structures. [source]

All compositions by Coleman : A: Lonely Woman 5:02 / “Eventually” – 4:22 / “Peace” – 9:04 B: “Focus on Sanity” – 6:52 / “Congeniality” – 6:48 / “Chronology” – 6:03

Ornette Coleman – Alto Saxophone

Don Cherry – Cornet

Charlie Haden – Double Bass

Billy Higgins – Drums