Barney Wilen Inside Nitty=gritty (1993 2016) Sacd

Swedish trombonist Eje Thelin and French tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen were two of the top European jazz musicians for several decades before their deaths in the 1990s. They first joined forces briefly in Thelin's quartet in 1963. Based in bop and earlier forms of jazz, Thelin and Wilen were open to freer improvising and music from other countries. In 1966 they joined forces, and two sessions are included on the 1966 With Barney Wilen CD. The first one features a quintet with pianist Lars Sjösten, bassist Erik Lundborg, and drummer Rune Carlsson that is joined by eight brass, bass clarinet, and flute for four inventive Thelin originals. While those performances are excellent, it is the other five numbers (which include second versions of a pair of Thelin's tunes plus "It Could Happen to You" and "Dear Old Stockholm") that are of greatest interest.

Tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen was not quite 21 years old at the time of this meeting with Milt Jackson, Percy Heath, and Kenny Clarke, three veterans of the Modern Jazz Quartet. But the young man is surprising mature and confident throughout the session, interpreting several of Django Reinhardt's compositions, along with a few by his French contemporaries and a pair of his own works. What's surprising about this session is the rare opportunity to hear Jackson exclusively as a pianist, as his playing is a bit more reserved than on vibes. The leader digs into his rhythm section's element with his original "B.B.B. (Bag's Barney Blues)," giving them a full chorus before making a convincing statement himself…

This 1959 concert in Paris by Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers has been sporadically available on various labels, but this reissue in Verve's Jazz in Paris series is the best sounding and best packaged of the lot. Blakey's group of this period (Lee Morgan, Wayne Shorter, Jymie Merritt, and Walter Davis, Jr.) is in great form during an extended workout of Morgan's intense blues "The Midget," and Dizzy Gillespie's timeless "A Night in Tunisia" is kicked off by Blakey's an electrifying solo. But it is the addition of some special guests for the first two numbers that proves to be extra special. Bud Powell, sitting in for Davis, and French saxophonist Barney Wilen, on alto rather than his normal tenor sax, are both added to the band for inspired versions of Powell's "Dance of the Infidels" and "Bouncing with Bud." Morgan's trumpet playing is outstanding throughout the concert. This is one of the essential live dates in Art Blakey's rather extensive discography.

A previously unissued 1989 Radio France live broadcast by the Barney Wilen Quartet. Recorded on September 27, 1989 at the Parisian jazz club Le Petit Opportun, the broadcast features Wilen offering fresh new interpretations of songs from La Note Bleue. It is issued here thanks to the collaboration of the INA (Institute National de l`Audiovisuel). Wilen is backed here by Jacky Terrasson on piano, Gilles Naturel on double-bass, and Peter Gritz on drums.

This compilation in Verve's laudable Jazz in Paris reissue series features two separate soundtracks of original music. The first features a dozen works by French saxophonist Barney Wilen, written for Edouard Molinaro's Un Témoin dans la Ville, with a quintet consisting of Kenny Dorham, Duke Jordan, Kenny Clarke, and bassist Paul Rovere. While many of the pieces were only heard as musical fragments in the film, and several of them are little more than a brief chorus or two in recorded form, the music doesn't need visuals to be effective. Best is Wilen's sole appearance on soprano sax, the mellow duo ballad with Jordan of "Mélodie pour les Radio-Taxis." None of the tunes is particularly memorable, though the music is certainly enjoyable…