Priestess (album)
| Priestess | |
|---|---|
| Live album by Gil Evans | |
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Publication |
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| Label (s) | Antilles , Polystar Records |
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Format (s) |
LP, CD |
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Title (number) |
4th |
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running time |
40:48 |
| occupation | |
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Studio (s) |
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Priestess (English priestess ) is a jazz album by the Gil Evans Orchestra, which was recorded live on May 13, 1977 in New York's St. George Episcopal Church and released in 1983 on Antilles , the jazz sub-label of Island Records .
The album
On May 13, 1977, the band leader, arranger and pianist Gil Evans was 65 years old; he celebrated his birthday with a concert in New York's St. George's Episcopal Church on East 16th Street. The concert was also intended as a benefit event for the neighborhood's City and Country School , which was attended by his sons Miles and Noah. The previous December all school musical instruments had been stolen and Evans hoped to replace them with the concert proceeds. Coincidentally, John Simon , who was also the producer of Evans' 1971 Capitol album, also had a child at the school. He helped organize the evening and together they decided to record the concert. The album Priestess was put together from the two and a half hours of concert material.
reception
Stephanie Stein Crease wrote: “'Priestess' is far more mainstream than There Comes a Time ; it has nowhere near near the latter's swirling density and extensive group improvisations. It's a beautifully produced album; the sound is luminous, and Gil's textures come through clearly. "
In Allmusic gave Scott Yanow the album 4 stars and noted that Priestess was one of his better shots [this period]; although two of the tracks were over twelve minutes long (the title track was 19½ minutes), the music was generally under control. With soloists like David Sanborn , Arthur Blythe , Lew Soloff and George Adams , the music is very stimulating and captivating.
Even Ian Carr raised in Jazz - Rough Guide the album as one of the most important in the discography of the band leader out and said: "This is the minimalist side at its most sublime. […] Although the arrangements are merely sketches from the old master's pen, the music is highly concentrated and totally coherent. ” According to the author, the highlights are the soloists Lew Soloff and Arthur Blythe in the title piece, David Sanborn in Short Visit , George Adams in Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk and Lunar Eclipse , in which the whole ensemble plays improvised and written out passages.
Richard Cook and Brian Morton gave the album the second highest rating of 3½ stars in The Penguin Guide to Jazz , noting that Priestess was a bit apart from the live recordings of Evans in the late 1970s. Whether justified or unjustified, David Sanborn's solo in Short Visit would have given it cult status , which would have earned his merits in jazz. There would be no Evans or Hendrix composition here, and a curiosity, Lunar Eclipse by Masabumi Kikuchi .
Track list
- Gil Evans: Priestess (Antilles AN1010 (LP), Antilles 422-826 770-2-CD)
- Priestess ( Billy Harper ) - 19:42
- Short Visit ( John Simon ) - 12:07
- Lunar Eclipse ( Masabumi Kikuchi ) - 4:19
- Orange Was the Color of Her Dress Then Blue Silk ( Charles Mingus ) - 4:40
literature
- Ian Carr , Digby Fairweather , Brian Priestley : Rough Guide Jazz. The ultimate guide to jazz. 1800 bands and artists from the beginning until today. 2nd, expanded and updated edition. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-476-01892-X .
- Stephanie Stein Crease: Gil Evans: Out of the Cool - his Life and Music. A Cappella Books / Chicago Review Press, Chicago 2002; ISBN 978-1-55652-493-6 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Entry on Discogs
- ↑ a b Stein Crease, p. 292 f.
- ^ Review of Scott Yanow's Priestess album on Allmusic . Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ Ian Carr, Jazz Rough Guide, p. 202.
- ^ Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP and Cassette . 2nd Edition. Penguin, London 1994, ISBN 0-14-017949-6 , p. 430.