Interplay (album)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Interplay
Studio album by Bill Evans

Publication
(s)

1962

Label (s) Riverside

Format (s)

CD

Genre (s)

jazz

Title (number)

6 or 7

running time

45:27

occupation

production

Orrin Keepnews

Studio (s)

Nola Penthouse Studio, New York City

chronology
Moonbeams
(1962) 		Interplay Empathy
(1963)

Interplay is a jazz album by Bill Evans , recorded on July 16-17, 1962 in New York City and released by Riverside Records .

The album

Bill Evans' publications in 1962 were still under the impression of the accidental death of his friend and trio colleague Scott LaFaro the year before; then the pianist had withdrawn for a while and, with his tendency towards self-isolation , heightened his addiction to heroin . He had only returned to the studio in December 1961 and was involved in recordings for Herbie Mann's album Nirvana .

Soon after the Nirvana recordings, Helen Keane became his manager in August 1962, who now steered the pianist's professional affairs more purposefully. She soon realized that the Riverside company was in financial difficulties and could not be the basis for the Bill Evans trio in the long term; therefore Evans moved to Verve Records in 1962 . Before that, however, the contract with Grauer and Keepnews had to be fulfilled, which resulted in material for four albums. After Bill Evans recorded two albums for Riverside in May and June 1962 with his trio of Chuck Israels and Paul Motian , How My Heart Sings! and the ballad album Moonbeams , Interplay 's first album a month later, was Bill Evans' first work, in which he gathered a larger ensemble around him.

Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard , guitarist Jim Hall , bassist Percy Heath and drummer Philly Joe Jones played with Evans at the interplay session . With Hall Evans recorded the duo album Undercurrent for United Artists Records in April / May . The now assembled quintet took up five jazz standards ; Highlights were the songbook classics “You and the Night and the Music”, “ You Go to My Head ”, “ I'll Never Smile Again ” and “Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams”; in addition there was the blues "Interplay" composed by Evans .

Orrin Keepnews later reported that Hubbard was unfamiliar with the material Evans selected from the Great American Songbook of the 1930s; therefore the recording of “I'll Never Smile Again” had to be repeated on July 17th ( take 7 ). It later appeared as take 6 in the CD edition of the album

Reviews and awards of the album

Scott Yanow described the Interplay session as "excellent music" and gave the album four (out of five) stars; Richard Cook and Brian Morton were a little more reserved in the Penguin Guide to Jazz , only gave them three stars and had reservations about the interaction of the band, which had been initiated by Keepnews. Although Hall and Evans harmonized excellently with each other in the previous undercurrent session, the interplay of the quintet is often incoherent, although Hubbard plays really well. Evans biographer Hanns E. Petrik praised the session “characterized by a gripping and elegant swing”; “Philly Joe Jones and Percy Heath make an excellent rhythm team. If the playing of the other musicians on this LP seems flawless, Interplay is an album on which Bill Evans stands out. His fluid improvisations, often performed with single notes, complement the solos of Hubbard and Hall perfectly. Especially in “I'll Never Smile Again” the successful continuation of the trumpet solo through the piano is a successful example of this ”. Martin Kunzler also praised the “excellent recordings” in his jazz dictionary .
Interplay hit # 26 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart when it was re-released in 1983. At the 1984 Grammy Awards , producer Orrin Keepnews was recognized in the "Best Album" category.

The titles

Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard (1976)
  • Bill Evans: Interplay (Riverside RLP 9445, OJC 308)
  1. You and the Night and the Music ( Howard Dietz , Arthur Schwartz ) - 7:04
  2. When You Wish upon a Star ( Leigh Harline , Ned Washington ) - 5:45
  3. I'll Never Smile Again [take 7] ( Ruth Lowe ) - 6:32
  4. I'll Never Smile Again (take 6) ( Ruth Lowe ) - 6:38 (alternate take)
  5. Interplay ( Bill Evans ) - 8:14
  6. You Go to My Head ( J. Fred Coots , Haven Gillespie ) - 5:06
  7. Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away) ( Harry Barris , Ted Koehler , Billy Moll) - 6:24
  • Titles 1, 4 and 5 were published on July 16; titles 2, 3, 6 and 7

recorded on July 17th.

Editorial note

The re-release The Interplay Sessions contained an alternate take (take 6) of the track "I'll Never Smile Again"; it was added to the later CD edition. The double album (M 47066 IMS), which was released by Milestone Records in the 1980s , also contained the material from the nknown session with Zoot Sims , Jim Hall, Ron Carter and Philly Joe Jones, which was created in August '62 , and which was released in the 1960s - during the riverside -Era - remained unpublished.

swell

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. Petrik. P. 33.
  2. ↑ In August 1962, there was another session with Hall, Philly Joe Jones and Zoot Sims , Ron Carter , the so-called Unknown Session (Riverside VIJ 4026), which at that time was not found to be good by the Riverside leaders and only in the 1980s was released.
  3. ↑ On July 17th “Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams”, “” and “You Go to My Head” were also recorded. Orrin Keepnews in the liner otes
  4. ↑ Quoted from Petrik, p. 124.
  5. ↑ Kunzler, p. 349.
  6. ↑ See Keepnews, liner notes