Paul Motian

This is an utterly fascinating tribute to the music of Thelonious Monk. Most of the selections feature the unusual trio of tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano, guitarist Bill Frisell (who with his wide range of original sounds is really a one-band band), and drummer Paul Motian. Tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman and pianist Geri Allen are guests on two songs apiece and fit in quite well with the sparse but very complete trio. Among the ten Monk songs explored, taken apart and given surprising treatment are "Evidence," "Bye-Ya," "Ugly Beauty," and "Trinkle Tinkle." Recommended to open-eared listeners.

During the 20 years that preceded this set, Paul Motian had led some of the most intriguing jazz groups around. For this project, his "Electric Bebop Band" consists of two tenors (Chris Potter and Chris Cheek), two guitars (Kurt Rosenwinkel and Brad Schoeppach), bassist Steve Swallow, and the leader himself on drums. With the exception of Motian's opening selection and a pair of originals by Rosenwinkel, the repertoire consists of three songs by Thelonious Monk and one tune apiece from Bud Powell, Miles Davis, George Shearing, Charlie Parker, and Rodgers & Hart. Essentially a straight-ahead bebop date, the most unusual aspect of the set (which unfortunately has no liner notes, so individual soloists are not identified) is that there are many sections where two different players solo together…

In 1999, a year after recording the splendid reunion album Not Two, Not One, Paul Bley’s highly innovative trio with Gary Peacock and Paul Motian took to the road with concerts on both sides of the Atlantic. When Will The Blues Leave documents a terrific performance at the Aula Magna di Trevano in Switzerland. Included here, alongside the angular freebop Ornette Coleman title track, are Paul Bley’s “Mazatlan”, brimming over with energy, Gary Peacock’s evergreen “Moor”, Gershwin’s tender “I Loves You Porgy” and much more. All played with the subtlety of master improvisers, recasting the music in every moment.

On this unusual album, pianist Paul Bley's 1964 trio (with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Paul Motian) is joined by tenor-saxophonist John Gilmore during his brief hiatus from Sun Ra's Arkestra. Unissued at the time (five of the eight numbers made their debut on Bley's IAI label), the music is explorative but not as free as one might expect. Best-known among the six Carla Bley originals (which are joined by Paul's "Turns") is the lyrical "Ida Lupino" which is heard in two versions. The music overall is quite stimulating and a bit offbeat, a reflection of Paul Bley's adventurous spirit.

This 1987 date teams the iconoclastic pianist with guitarist Bill Frisell, drummer Paul Motian, and British saxophonist John Surman. While it's easy to argue that, with Manfred Eicher's icy, crystalline production, this was a stock date for both the artists and the label, that argument would be flat wrong. Bley was looking for a new lyricism in his own playing and in his compositions. He was coming from a different place than the large harmonies offered by augmented and suspended chords and writing for piano trios. The other band members – two other extremely lyrical improvisers in Surman and Frisell.

By the fall of 1992, Keith Jarrett had already spent 30 years as a notable jazz performer. What better way to celebrate than to return to this record’s eponymous venue in his birthplace of Allentown, Pennsylvania for a once-in-a-lifetime gig? Switching out his usual go-to, Jack DeJohnette, for Paul Motian (no stranger to Jarrett, with whom he’d worked in the 70s), the trio works wonders with the new colors the latter provides. Peacock and Jarrett are both verbose players who manage never to step on each other’s toes. With Motian backing them, they take longer pauses for reflection, listening to the wind as it blows through their leaves. His presence and panache are as palpable as the prevalence of alliterations in this sentence, bringing an irresistible brushed beat to the squint-eyed groove of Jaki Byard’s “Chandra.”

Wolfgang Muthspiel is an Austrian guitarist, composer, and founder/owner of Material Records. His intuitive, probing style has made him a celebrated, in-demand sideman since the 1980s. He has worked with Gary Burton, Youssou N’Dour, Gary Peacock, Dave Liebman, Paul Motian, and dozens more.