Existing completely under the critical radar and largely ignored or unknown by music fans and critics alike, most of the musicians featured in this album won't be familiar to even the most seasoned jazz aficionado. But in this era of musical apathy, where so many music junkies look to the past for their musical fix, we have re-discovered hidden, obscure and esoteric jazz musicians who looked to the four corners of the earth - and beyond - for inspiration.
In our latest chapter of Spiritual Jazz, we return to the source – the Impulse! label, and the monumental influence of its most prominent artist, John Coltrane.
The biggest volume so far in the Spiritual Jazz series from Jazzman Records – and maybe the best as well! This fantastic collection looks at the huge legacy of spiritual jazz that flowed from the Japanese scene in the postwar years – sounds that had their initial expression around the same time that the modal jazz of Miles and Coltrane was bursting forth in the US, but which also too so many twists and turns of its own – with some very strong influences along the way from Japanese folk and culture! Much of this music was initially restricted only to release on Japanese labels – and even later, as some of the artists attained fame, the global circulation of their music only happened with more commercial recordings.
As the ‘60s progressed, cultural and political revolutions occurred both in the US and in Europe. Jazz was both a victim and a saviour, with radical developments in the music occurring in both continents. In the US, artists took control of their own musical destiny as small labels broke away from the mainstream, expressing new and creative visions of freedom and peace against a backdrop of civil unrest, repression and war. Be sure to check the first volume of this series, Spiritual Jazz.
At the end of the ‘50s, Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue heralded the revelatory arrival of modal jazz. As the vibrations of these giant steps resonated across the world, European jazz musicians reassessed their bearings and began to steer a new course. Across the continent they sent roots down into the rich soil of the European folk and Christian liturgical traditions, extended their music along ancient routes of communication and trade to the Middle East, and reached across the crumbling ramparts of the European empires to the music of Asia Africa and Latin America.
When Lonnie Smith cut Boogaloo to Beck in 2003 he made a comeback, though he was never gone in the first place. That record's deeply grooving, funky soul-jazz cut to the chase in a way many jazz organ records hadn't by taking the Blue Note aesthetic of turning the pop tunes of the day – even those as esoteric as Beck Hansen's – and turning them into vehicles for jazz improvisation. On Jungle Soul, the great organist and his quartet – Peter Bernstein on guitar, drummer and percussionist Allison Miller, and rhythm guitarist/producer Matt Balitsaris – tackle some jazz standards – "Bemsha Swing," "Willow Weep for Me," and Eddie Harris' bona fide soul-jazz classic "Freedom Jazz Dancer" – and place them against Marvin Gaye's "Trouble Man," and a handful of Smith originals and come up with a stunner.