World Saxophone Quartet - Takin’ It 2 The Next Level 1996

World Saxophone Quartet - Takin’ It 2 The Next Level 1996
Label: Justin Time

Jazz

Members include Hamiet Bluiett (born on September 16, 1940, in Lovejoy, IL), baritone saxophone, alto clarinet; Arthur Blythe (born on July 5, 1940, in Los Angeles, CA; joined group, 1990; left group, 1992; rejoined group, 1994; left group, 1995), alto saxophone; Julius Hemphill (born in 1940 in Fort Worth, TX; died on April 2, 1995; left group, 1990), soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, flute; Oliver Lake (born on September 14, 1942, in Marianna, AR), soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, keyboards, flute; DavidMurray (born on February 19, 1955), tenor saxophone, bass clarinet; Eric Person (born in St. Louis, MO; group member, 1993-96), soprano saxophone, alto saxophone; John Purcell (joined group, 1996), saxophones, saxello, flute, oboe, English horn, clarinets; James Spaulding (born on July 30, 1937, in Indianapolis, IN; group member, 1993), alto saxophone, flute. Addresses: Record company--Justin Time Records, Inc., 5455 Pare, Suite 101, Montreal, QC H4P 1P7, Canada.

Since its inception in 1976, the World Saxophone Quartet has been critically lauded for its improvisatory skills and is considered among the legitimate heirs to such post-bop, free jazz, and postmodern jazz pioneers as Albert Ayler, Anthony Braxton, Steve Lacy, Cecil Taylor, Ornette Coleman, and Eric Dolphy. The tonal innovations and radical new approaches that these musicians introduced to the jazz idiom in the 1960s include a rejection of mainstream jazz in favor of music more closely resembling that of such modern composers as Charles Ives and John Cage; these innovations eventually influenced some of the most highly regarded jazz recordings of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Pharoah Sanders. These recordings feature longer performances of individual musical pieces, which were played in a more spontaneous, unstructured fashion that often resulted in deeply disturbing, cacophonous performances.

The World Saxophone Quartet has continued these groundbreaking traditions, while adding the musicians' individual abilities to compose distinctive jazz music that serves as a launching pad for their improvisatory skills. While the largely unaccompanied four-saxophone lineup of the World Saxophone Quartet has drawn critical comparisons to the string quartets most commonly associated with classical chamber music, the Quartet has experimented equally with atonal music, distortion, volume, jazz standards by such composers as Duke Ellington, and European classical compositions. Each member of the original lineup of the World Saxophone Quartet was associated with the 1970s "loft jazz" scene in New York City.
Three original members of the World Saxophone Quartet--Hamiet Bluiett, Julius Hemphill, and Oliver Lake--were acquaintances from the vibrant jazz scene of St. Louis, Missouri, during the 1960s and early 1970s. Hemphill grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, and immersed himself in the city's jazz and R&B scene, including a period of study with jazz clarinetist John Carter. After a brief stint as a saxophonist for Ike Turner, Hemphill joined the Black Artists Group in St. Louis, a loosely knit consortium of artists who experimented with poetry, theater, painting, sculpture, and music. He moved to New York City in the mid-1970s and worked with such free jazz proponents as Anthony Braxton and Lester Bowie.By Bruce Walker.

It is obvious from the first notes that this is a very different outing by the World Saxophone Quartet — the band is backed by a rhythm section. The playing of keyboardist Donald Blackman, bassist Calvin Jones and drummer Ronnie Burrage actually adds to the music rather than taking away from the core band, for their funky rhythms are fairly unpredictable and adventurous in their own way. The WSQ (which at the time consisted of David Murray on tenor and bass clarinet, baritonist Hamiet Bluiett, altoist Oliver Lake and John Purcell on saxello and tenor) sounds inspired by the "new" setting, and their playing is as adventurous as ever. Mostly sticking to group originals, the expanded band explores many moods on such numbers as "Wiring," "Rio," "The Desegregation of Our Children" and
"When Thee Monarchs Come to Town".All Music Guide.
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David Murray– Tenor Saxophone, Bass Clarinet on track 7
Hamiet Bluiett– Baritone Saxophone
Oliver Lake– Alto Saxophone
John R. Purcell– Saxello, Tenor Saxophone on track 6

Featuring
Donald Blackman– Piano and Keyboards
Calvin Jones– Acoustic & Electric Bass
Ronnie Barrage– Drums, Shékéré, Tamboura, Vocals, Keyboards and other miscellaneous percussion
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01. Wiring (Lake) - 6:28
02. Soft Landing (Lake) - 1:11
03. Rio (Lake) - 7:30
04. The Peace Before (Blackman) - 1:23
05. Blues for a Warrior Spirit (Bluiett) - 13:08
06. The Desegregation of Our Children (Murray) - 12:35
07. When the Monarchs Come to Town (Murray) - 2:51
08. Endless Flight (Burrage) - 7:35
09. Ballad After Us (Purcell) - 4:36
10. Australopithecus (Underwood) - 9:29
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