Bobby Few, Alan Silva, & Frank Wright: Solos and Duets

Here are both volumes of Solos and Duets by Bobby Few, Alan Silva, and Frank Wright. Both albums were recorded at various intervals in 1975, and the music on each album lives up to the title.

Frank Wright, Bobby Few, Alan Silva - Solos & Duets Vol 1

Released in 1976 on Sun Records, catalogue # SR102. Recorded at Massy Paris Reims between January and November 1975.

Personnel:
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax

Tracks:
1. Side A. (23:31)
a. Song For Cyrille, Children Of Joy
b. El Torro
c. Unknown Step

2. Side B. (15:48)
a. Echo Send
b. Sound Of A

Frank Wright, Bobby Few, Alan Silva - Solos & Duets Vol 2

Released in 1976 on Sun Records, catalogue # SR103. Recorded at Massy Paris Reims between January and November 1975.

Personnel:
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax

Tracks:
1. Side A. (24:00)
a. Grenada
b. Fondemental Blues

2. Side B. (24:15)
a. Who's Got The Keys
b. We Have Found The Keys

Fans of Joseph Jarman and Famoudou Don Moye's Egwu-Anwu and Marion Brown's Duets albums, who want something with just a bit more edge (Wright seems to be chaneling Albert Ayler on his appearances during these sessions), will find plenty to love about these albums. Note that each of the tracks on these rips is of a complete album side. Muchas, muchas gracias to Arcturus (if u r still reading this blog) for sending these my way last year when I was having some computer difficulties.

Download Solos and Duets Vol. 1

Download Solos and Duets Vol. 2

Frank Wright: Last Polka in Nancy?

Last Polka in Nancy? was the second album released on the Center of the World label (catalogue # CS 002). The album was later reissued as a CD in 1999, with a bonus track on Fractal Records (catalogue # Fractal 007 CD). Like its companion recording, Center of the World, Vol. 1, Last Polka in Nancy? is out of print, and will cost an arm and a leg if you can find it. Besides, it isn't often that one gets to hear a free jazz polka tune (see track 5).

Here's Thom Jurek's review in AMG:

The second volume in the excellent Fractal live retrospective of the Frank Wright Quartet comes to us from Nancy in 1973. Pianist Bobby Few, bassist Alan Silva, and drummer Muhammad Ali (no, it's not) with Wright blowing the living hell out of his saxophones and clarinet, are a picture of free jazz as it permeated the European landscape at the time. This is a freewheeling exorcism of a set with spar but well placed dynamic sequences that accent all the textures possible when the boundaries to expression are gone. Silva uses a bow as much as he plays pizzicato; Few uses his keen sense of harmonic balance to open the upper register of the instrument while playing huge ninth and even 11th chords like a bell, ringing in the tone fields for Wright who bleats, squawks, screeches, screams, and moans through his horn, playing ostinato blues lines through his horn like Albert Ayler (check "Guana Dance, Part 2" by Silva especially). His notes are harsh, bitten off and bloodied curdles of the human voice as it attempts to express what it can never state in words. The compositions, if they can be called that, are by Few and Silva, and as open mode pieces; they work as such, especially on the level of timbral sonance and microtonal systemic work. Wright is no match for Few's sharp, elegant range on his instrument, and so he uses force as counterpoint, while Silva and Ali engage in the dance of shimmering tempos. There aren't many recordings like this out there, and this one is as essential and as blessed by demonic inspiration as Vol. 1 is.

Personnel:
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax, Bass Clarinet
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Muhammad Ali - Drums

Tracks:
1. Winter Echoes (Few) 14:47
2. Guanna Dance, Part 1 (Silva) 4:04
3. Guanna Dance, Part 2 (Silva) 11:33
4. Thinking of Monk (Few) 1:21
5. Doing the Polka (Few) 10:16
6. Two Birds with One Stone (Wright) 18:57

Tracks 1 - 5 were recorded at the Jazz Pulsations Festival in Nancy, France 10/10/73. Track 6 was recorded at Detmold, Neue Anta, in 1978.

Download Last Polka in Nancy?

Frank Wright: Church Number Nine

Church Number Nine was recorded March 7, 1970 in Paris, and released on an obscuroid French label called Calumet (catalogue # 3674) in 1973, in an extremely limited run (only 300 copies were produced). It was briefly reissued a few years ago as a CD on Black Keys. The music is one continuous piece, broken up only due to the limitations of the vinyl LP format, and it's everything you'd expect for a free jazz blowout that includes both Frank Wright and Noah Howard. Frank Wright also adds voice periodically - saying, among other things, "It's time for the world to be at peace" (to which I say, amen!). The tune, "Church Number Nine" has also appeared in truncated form on Noah Howard's Space Dimension (utilizing the same lineup on that song only) and as a bonus track on the Fractal reissue of the Frank Wright album, Center of the World Vol. 1.

This particular lineup also recorded One For John in late 1969 for BYG/Actuel. Also, note the liner notes written by Valerie Wilmer, author of a book about the free jazz scene entitled, As Serious As Your Life.

Personnel:
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax, Voice
Noah Howard - Alto Sax
Bobby Few - Piano
Muhammad Ali - Drums

Tracks:
Church Number Nine Part 1 (25:44)
Church Number Nine Part 2 (19:18)

Download Church Number Nine

Frank Wright & Muhammad Ali: Adieu, Little Man

Here's a reed/drum duo, in the tradition of John Coltrane and Rashied Ali (Muhammad's brother), tearing the roof off the sucka! If you like energy music, and loved Interstellar Space, you'll love this. Muhammad Ali didn't get a lot of recording opportunities during his career; his brother, who was also under-recorded, fared somewhat better. Those sessions on which Muhammad did appear quickly went out of print, with few being revived on CD (perhaps among the more noteworthy of those reisues was his appearance on three of the tracks on Alan Shorter's debut as a leader, Orgasm).

Adieu, Little Man was recorded in Paris in April 1974, and released on Wright's Center of the World label, catalogue # 004. The top image is from the front cover of the album (thanks to Rate Your Music); the remaining two images are of Frank Wright and Muhammad Ali, respectively from around that time. I don't know if those were part of that album's artwork or not. Whoever originally ripped this, thanks! Also props to Arcturus who sent this my way when my computer system went down last year.

Personnel:
Frank Wright -Tenor Sax, Bass Clarinet
Muhammad Ali -Drums

Tracks:
Side 1 (21:46)
Side 2 (22:20)

Download Adieu, Little Man

Frank Wright: Stove Man, Love is the Word

During its short existence, the blog Church Number Nine managed to post up a number of treasures, including the Frank Wright album, Stove Man, Love is the Word. It's a post-Center of the World outing that finds Wright and crew doing what they do best: blowing some minds. The reviewer at Allmusic.com describes the album as an extension of Eric Dolphy's work. The title track is a bluesy waltz number with Wright offering some smoky vocals (something he loved to do on his late 1970s albums - his singing style reminds me a bit of Satchmo for some reason). "T-and-W" picks up the pace with Wright, Alim, and Smith serving up some spirited soloing over Latin percussion - makes for some very pleasant listening. "Rice Patch" is a darker piece that seems to draw on mid-1960s Trane, mid-1960s Don Cherry, early 1970s McCoy Tyner for sonic inspiration. "Export" ends the album with a bang - a very fast-paced joyous noisefest. Solid spiritual jazz from beginning to end.

Sandra, catalogue # 2106

Recorded: Munich Loft May 22, 1979

Performers:
Frank Wright - tenor sax, vocals
Kamal Abdul Alim - trumpet
Tony Smith - piano
Richard Williams - bass
Kahlil Abdullah - conga, percussion
Gerry Griffin - drums

Tracks:
1. Stove Man, Love is the Word
2. T-and-W
3. Rice Patch
4. Export

Dowload Stove Man, Love is the Word

[Better image added thanks to Solomon in the comments!]

Blast from the past: Frank Wright's "Kevin, My Dear Son"

The now-defunct church number nine (great jazz blog while it lasted) had this one up about a year ago. The cat who ran that blog was kind enough to rip a clean copy of that long-out-of-print album, realizing its title holds a very special place in my heart (my own son, and first child, is named Kevin). Needless to say, I will be forever grateful.

Let's just say that of the precious few rips of this album circulating the internet tubes, this one sounds nice top to bottom. The music fits in nicely with Wright's other albums for Sun Records.

The details:

Kevin, My Dear Son
Sun Records SEB 004

Tracks
Side A
1. Odeon
2. No End To The Sun
3. November The First

Side B
1. Cowboys And Indians
2. Long Way From Home
3. Kevin, My Dear Son

Personnel
Frank Wright: tenor sax & bass clarinet
Kamal Abdul Alim: trumpet
Georges Arvanitas: piano
Reggie Workman: bass
Philly Joe Jones: drums
Khalil Abdullah: percussion
Eddie Jefferson: vocal
Sebastien Bernard: producer
Elvin Campbell: engineer
Jean Pierre Pellissier: mix engineer

Recorded in October, 1978
Compositions by Frank Wright, except "Cowboys & Indians" (composed Bobby Few). All lyrics by Frank Wright.

Get Kevin, My Dear Son

If that doesn't work try downloading from sharebee.

Frank Wright: One for John

The info:

Frank Wright
One For John

Credits:
Frank Wright - tenor sax
Noah Howard - alto sax
Bobby Few - piano
Muhammad Ali - drums

Recorded 12/5/1969, Studio Saravah, Paris, France

Released on BYG/Actuel, catalogue # 529336

Tracks:
1. China
2. One for John

Frank Wright's ensembles tended to tear the roof off the sucka - in particular those joints featuring Noah Howard. If you're already a fan of Frank Wright's music, you know what to expect. Be forewarned, the sound quality is a bit dodgy in spots, especially near the beginning of "China" where the vinyl sounds as if it's skipped. I keep hoping for a proper digital reissue. So far, no dice. In the meantime, this one will suffice.

Download One for John.

Frank Wright: Center of the World Vol. 1

This recording and its companion (Center of the World Vol. 2: Last Polka in Nancy?) are well worth tracking down. Both were reissued toward the end of the last decade on Fractal, and are back to out of print status. If you can find either cd, it'll fetch a premium these days.

The info:

Frank Wright Quartet-Center of the World

Center of the World 001 F recorded at Rotterdam, Doelen 5/26/72
Alan Silva-b,cel,voc; Muhammad Ali-d,voc; Bobby Few-p,voc; Frank Wright-ts,voc
1. Center of the World, Part 1 (Wright/Silva/Few) 19:51
2. Center of the World, Part 2 (Wright/Silva/Few) 19:45

Bonus tracks for cd reissue (Fractal FRAC 006) recorded at Detmold, Neue Anta 1978
3. No End (Wright) 17:32
4. Church Number 9 (Wright) 13:11

Review from Allmusic.com:

Originally recorded in 1972 in Rotterdam, this Frank Wright date stands as one of the unsung classics of the free jazz era. For years sought out by collectors at outrageous prices, the folks at Fractal have done us all a favor and reissued the original album on CD with two previously unreleased performances from a reunion date in 1978. Featuring Wright on tenor and bass clarinet, pianist Bobby Few, bassist Alan Silva, and drummer Muhammad Ali (no, not that one), the music captured here is one vast exploratory landscape where anything went and the intensity is blistering. While Wright is the leader of the ensemble and was capable of blowing the hell out of his horn, the true star on these sessions is Few, who joined Steve Lacy's Sextet upon departure from this group. Few doesn't support Wright -- he drives him, pushes him to the limit and causes Silva to seek refuge in Ali's drums. There are vast tonal expanses being explored here, and it's only Few who can map them, from both outside and inside the piano. His use of right-hand arpeggios is stunning considering the size of the chords he's laying out with the left. Far more lyrical than Cecil Taylor, Few pushes the range of Wright's instruments to the very limit of his abilities to play them and then extends them a bit. The title track is almost 40 minutes long and stands as a free jazz endurance test. Wright astonishes for many reasons, not the least of which is his ability to blow at the intensity he does for the entire gig. The 1978 show is more laid-back, and the band makes use of ostinato and other kinds of repetition to create the myth of a tune á la Albert Ayler, especially in "No End." Here Wright plays the insistent "call-to-prayer-and-revelation" honk that Ayler loved so much, and Few works with Silva (who is badly recorded on these two tracks) to bring up an entire battery of responses that shift meter, tone, and, because of the consistency of the phrasing, intervallic shifts and staggers. Throughout, Ali plays his best Elvin Jones, and pulls it off; his are the sticks that usher in the speed of this freight train of movement and fluidity, and he dances the kit with propulsion and true grit. Whatever you do, get this.

Due to file size issues, I've broken this up into two parts. Part one consists of the two sides from the original recording. Part two consists of the bonus tracks included on the cd reissue.

Download Center of the World Vol. 1, part one.

Download Center of the World Vol. 2, part two.

Note: Image courtesy of stofftreiber. Thanks!!!

Frank Wright: Shouting the Blues

This one's definitely a rarity! Some info:

Frank Wright, Shouting The Blues
Recorded Paris, France Dec. 12 1977
Sun Records

Personnel:
Frank Wright, Tenor Sax, Clarinette
Georges Arvanitas, Piano
Jacky Samson, Contrabass
Charles Saudrais, Drums

Side 1:
Up against the wall 5'07
Two birds with one stone 6'07
Long way from home 3'20
Church number Ten 4'15

Side 2:
Right On 3'47
Reverend Blues 4'27
Jerry 5'23
Incantation 7'40

Ripped From Vinyl, Very Rare Recording from Sun Records France

The sound quality is decent. Expect the usual snap/crackle/pop sounds that go along with listening to a record that's been played a few times. The files are labeled "Side 1" and "Side 2" with the tunes appearing in precisely the order in which they're listed above.

As the title suggests, there's a strong blues vibe to this particular recording. Frank Wright handles some vocal chores on this date - his vocal style isn't pretty, but then again, you don't want your blues singers to sound like potential American Idol contestants. In other words, the voice fits the musical background. "Up Against the Wall" is a standard blues tune. "Two Birds With One Stone" is a free-jazz tune that would fit in very well with Frank's earlier work. "Long Way From Home" heads back into blues territory. "Church Number Ten" picks up where an earlier Frank Wright tune ("Church Number Nine") leaves off. Think of a free jazz hymnal, and you'll pretty much get the idea.

On the second side, "Right On" layers an incendiary Frank Wright sax instrumental outing over a latin jazz background. "Reverend Blues" is a slower hymnal-style blues that opens with an Ayler-style sax solo and then Frank Wright lays into his troubles with that husky, smoky vocal style. "Jerry" follows up with some uptempo free-form jamming. Although these cats kick out the jams, the sound is always pleasant. "Incantation" ends the album with a gorgeous, meditative jam that again might fit in with some of Frank Wright's earlier work or perhaps some of Pharoah Sanders' gentler pieces from his Impulse! days.

I'll let the musical experts argue over whether this is an essential Frank Wright recording. It's certainly a unique addition to his canon in that the man actually sings. All I know is that it works for me, and that if you're a Frank Wright fan already, this one will treat you right. If you're new to the music of Frank Wright and find yourself really liking the instrumental tracks, make sure to look into his other recordings - I know that both his ESP-Disk recordings were recently reissued (as a 2-cd set), as was the early 1970s classic Uhuru Na Umoja.

Download Shouting the Blues.

Also of interest: I've bookmarked a couple Frank Wright discographies - one maintained by George Scala and one over at Center of the World. More bio info on Frank Wright may be found at Answers.com.