Burning Dervish

FORREALHEADZ

2009-07-11T21:49:00.000-04:00

Soul, funk, hip hop, jazz, reggae...yeah this joint has everything...some really, really sweet vinyl rips and scans...the Redd Foxx post alone is worth your while...

Dig FORREALHEADZ

Steve Kuhn - At Birdland, Revisiting an Old Boss Named Coltrane - NYTimes.com

2009-07-09T23:06:00.001-04:00

Music Review - Steve Kuhn - At Birdland, Revisiting an Old Boss Named Coltrane - NYTimes.com:

"The pianist Steve Kuhn can play John Coltrane’s music meaningfully without sounding as if he lives by it. That shows self-possession, for a couple of reasons. Coltrane was the most influential jazz musician in the late 1950s and 1960s, when Mr. Kuhn got started. And Mr. Kuhn, now 71, also has something many of his peers don’t: a small but significant association with Coltrane on the bandstand...He played with the first version of Coltrane’s quartet, in the spring of 1960, during a long gig at the Jazz Gallery in the East Village before McCoy Tyner took over to finish the run. And that was it...Nearly 50 years later he has released a quartet record of Coltrane’s music, “Mostly Coltrane” (ECM). On Tuesday at Birdland he played some of it — elegantly — in a group that put the saxophonist Joe Lovano alongside Mr. Kuhn’s regular working trio, with David Finck on bass and Billy Drummond on drums..."

Reid Anderson - Abolish Bad Architecture

2009-07-08T21:23:00.001-04:00

From Wikipedia:

"Reid Anderson is a bassist and composer originally from Minnesota...best known for his work in The Bad Plus with pianist Ethan Iverson and drummer Dave King. In 1998, Anderson and his trio...released the album Dirty Show Tunes to widespread critical and popular acclaim from the jazz community. A second album, Abolish Bad Architecture, was released a year later...This album generated even more attention..."

From AMG:

"...Abolish Bad Architecture is another exemplary showcase for the young bassist/composer and his fiery quartet. Jeff Ballard...on drums, deftly handling the complex rhythmic structures...Tenor saxophonist Mark Turner and pianist Ethan Iverson contribute some of their finest playing on record. The final selection, "Hommage: Mahler," contains whiffs of the "Adagietto" movement of Gustav Mahler's "Symphony No. 2." Anderson places the plaintive melody over a soft-rock drum beat, which somehow makes perfect musical sense. Only a superior conceptualist could pull something like this off."

Really a lovely record, deserving of many spins. Thank you, Craig, for the introduction to this one...

Download:
Reid Anderson - Abolish Bad Architecture

Montefiori Cocktail: A Taste Of...Part 1

2009-07-06T22:50:00.002-04:00

There is really no other way to say it: this record, this band, is just muthacluckin' fun...

I first came across these guys in the late '90s...we had one of their CDs in an office I worked in and we played it constantly...it added a certain, um...levity to the environment...

I wound up with a copy of that disc but lost it...I recently came across the band again on eMusic and though they don't have that first album, I dug in with this one...yes, I will get them all at some point...

This music is sort of Austin Powers meets Jobim in the house at the end of Zabriskie Point...

Listen to the tracks 'Hu Ha' and "Another B' and try not to smile. Let me know how that goes...

Download:
Montefiori Cocktail: A Taste Of...Part 1

DoorJam Archive

2009-07-04T22:18:00.000-04:00

This site looks like it has gone silent but you should peep it out anyway...

"Famous reggae author Door Peeper & Mista P from the Port-O-Jam Sound System present new podcasts & achive shows from their Internet Radio Show on (defunct) GlobalGrooving.com A mixture of new releases, roots, revival from ska 2 skinhead 2 roots oldies 2 jazz rare grooves & some old chat"

Why should you care? Well, see, the podcasts are still up and running and they are well worth your time...streaming and download available...though not a main focus of the site, there are also a bunch of scans of vintage reggae vinyl labels.

Dig DoorJam Archive

Art Blakey Quintet - A Night at Birdland, Vol. 1

2009-07-02T21:42:00.002-04:00

Let's open with some brief excerpts from a great review from AMG:

"...the pre-Messengers quintet heard on this first volume of live club dates at Birdland in New York City provides solid evidence to the assertion that this ensemble was a one of a kind group the likes of which was not heard until the mid-'60s Miles Davis Quintet...This recording, as well as subsequent editions of these performances, launches an initial breakthrough for Blakey and modern jazz in general, and defines the way jazz music could be heard for decades thereafter. Everybody must own copies of all volumes of A Night at Birdland."

There is an epic take on "A Night in Tunisia" but the highlight for me is a Horace Silver composition, "Quicksilver"...

Download:
Art Blakey Quintet - A Night at Birdland, Vol. 1

Flying Lotus - 1983

2009-06-30T21:04:00.001-04:00

From Wikipedia:

"Flying Lotus, (born Steven Ellison) is an experimental hip hop music producer, disc jockey, and laptop musician from Winnetka, California...He is most famous (yet also uncredited) for the music in many of the segues of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim...His great-aunt is the late Alice Coltrane...Flying Lotus is commonly identified as a hip hop producer, but his style is drawn from many genres, including jazz, electronic, and Brazilian music. His hip hop beats are unique for their hazy, ambient sound, while his percussion is purposely slightly off time, creating a messier, more organic atmosphere..."

Hip hop is not at all what I would call Flying Lotus but who cares what I think...Here's what AMG has to say about this record:

"...Lotus layers spacy keyboards over bass-heavy beats, clearly very much influenced by the whole free jazz-based electronica and hip-hop Sa-Ra craziness that's prevalent in the L.A. area...Lotus doesn't drag out his pieces; instead, all but two of them fall neatly under four minutes, keeping 1983 from becoming a masturbatory exercise in keyboard lines and instead making it very listenable, with beats that circle around without becoming predictable, pulling jazz and Brazilian rhythms into his own electronic-based production and creating a very coherent and listenable album. The individual songs are good...but it's the entire record that has the greatest effect. It's controlled and circular but also very warm and expressive, able to have fun, to not take itself too seriously....intelligent, accessible, jazz-based electronica and left-field hip-hop..."

The thing I agree with most here is that the record as a whole is the way to go when listening to it...It also blows by; I have listened to it several times last night and this morning. It is great mood music...

Because the record is (or seems) so short, I am including two tracks from Flying Lotus's 2008 record Los Angeles, which I originally scored from Captain's Crate...

Download:
Flying Lotus - 1983

John Scofield - A Go Go

2009-06-29T21:34:00.000-04:00

From his All Music bio:

"One of the "big three" of current jazz guitarists (along with Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell), John Scofield's influence grew in the '90s. Possessor of a very distinctive rock-oriented sound that is often a bit distorted, Scofield is a masterful jazz improviser whose music generally falls somewhere between post-bop, fusion, and soul jazz..."

And their entry about this record:

"John Scofield owes a great deal to Medeski, Martin & Wood for the success of A Go Go. The piano/organ, bass, and drum playing trio adds a world of bouncing vibes to Scofield's inquisitive, happy guitar work here...an album of mostly breezy, sometimes tense, jam-based grooves. The album's charm is in its "city meets the tropics" feel. The four players create such a warm, vibrant sound that resisting the urge to tap one's feet along with the beat becomes a near impossibility...There's nary a moment of filler to be found across the ten tracks. It's clear that Scofield enjoyed the collaboration, as his guitars seem to nearly speak joy. His alternately jangling and plucking style sees him weaving in and out of the young trio's sound net with ample confidence. As fun as A Go Go is, it's just as well-sequenced, as Scofield and company vary their pace and tone expertly throughout the album's running time...far more than four cool cats jamming together and enjoying each other's company. It's an immensely entertaining, enlightening ride."

I have had a mental block against Scofield for a few years now, not quite accepting his latest incarnation in the jam band scene. That was foolish. This record is not redefining music but it is fun as hell. Great sound, great playing.

Download:
John Scofield - A Go Go

The Dice Game

2009-06-26T21:34:00.001-04:00

Here's a happening site...loads of hip hop, which makes it a great site to feature on a Friday night...

Dig The Dice Game.

And hopefully you haven't forgotten to check out my twitter updates...

A complete disregard for all that is good about music - and people

2009-06-25T21:40:00.000-04:00

From the June 29 issue of The New Yorker, this piece starts promisingly enough:

"In the winter of 2004, Jonathan Pieslak, a composer and an associate professor of music at City College, was researching a paper on heavy metal when he stumbled on a Web site devoted to the death-metal band Slayer...On the site, a fan had written that, during the Gulf War, the band received forty per cent of its fan mail from soldiers in the Middle East. The claim turned out to be an exaggeration, but Pieslak became interested. In April, Indiana University Press published his book “Sound Targets: American Soldiers and Music in the Iraq War,” which examines the role of music in military recruiting, combat, interrogations, and morale, and explains many things about Slayer’s appeal..."

But sort of wound up depressing me:

"...listening to heavy metal, with its double-pedal bass drums and tremolo-style guitars, Pieslak writes, is a good way to prepare mentally for a mission, because it “sounds considerably like the consistent discharge of bullets fired from an automatic gun...”"

and

"...Music, Pieslak writes, has always been a part of the military experience, from training cadences (“Soldier, Soldier Have You Heard”) to battle cries (Joshua’s trumpets, “Hakkaa päälle”) and “thunder runs,” in which troops descend in force upon a given area...In the book’s fourth chapter, “Music as a Psychological Tactic,” Pieslak examines a “sonic battle” between American troops—who blasted “Welcome to the Jungle,” by Guns N’ Roses, and “Hell’s Bells,” by AC/DC—and Iraqi mullahs, who tried to drown out the metal with chants of “Allahu Akbar” and Arabic music..."

To be clear, what I am writing here is not a commentary on soldiers. I have never and could never do the job they do and frankly have no judgment whatsoever to cast upon them. Now the people that put other people in these situations...who force human beings to debase something as important to our species as music...I guess I am just looking for things to be outraged about today and this did it for me...Sorry.

Burning Dervish Birthday Party

2009-06-23T00:01:00.002-04:00

BurningDervish.com launched, modestly enough, three years ago today.

At the end of Year One I did a re-cap/look forward and what stands out is how many of the plans I had for the site changed...for the better I think...

At the end of Year Two I posted once each hour on the anniversary of the site launch - a different mix compilation each hour. It was fun.

This year I don't feel ambitious but I want to mark the day, if only because this blog is such a source of fun and connection for me...

One thing I thought would be interesting to do would be to look at what the three most viewed posts were of all time. I have had Google Analytics installed since day one, so getting that info is easy...

For all of the music I post here...the jazz, the reggae, the African and Middle Eastern...the three most popular posts are all about heavy metal music!

See, I ran a project on the site where I collaborated with the readers to create the definitive heavy metal mix...and apparently people liked it more than I remembered! The top three most trafficked posts/pages to date on BurningDervish.com are:

3. New Wave of British Heavy Metal

2. The Heavy Metal topic tag. I don't know if this has been indexed or bookmarked or what but this page get a boat load of traffic...

1. And our "winner" - Early Metal (1966 - 1971)

To commemorate the readers' love for and interest in the subject, here is a re-post of the mix that resulted from our collaboration together...

Download:
Burning Dervish History of Metal Volume One

The track list:

Sweet Wine by Cream
I'm Eighteen by Alice Cooper
Into the Void by Black Sabbath
Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll by Blue Oyster Cult
Victim of Changes by Judas Priest
Blitzkrieg Bop by The Ramones
Neat, Neat, Neat by The Damned
Ace of Spades by Motorhead
The Zoo by The Scorpions
Run to the Hills by Iron Maiden

Thanks for everything so far. Don't forget that Burning Dervish is now on Twitter and Facebook - with different content than what is here on the main site...Peace.

Wilco Contest

2009-06-22T21:15:00.002-04:00

This one came in over the transom from a promoter for a couple of Wilco's summer shows...a little aggressively promotional, for that I apologize, but I love Wilco and thought you would be interested:

"Enter to win tickets to see Wilco at any of the following minor league ball parks this summer: July 10 (Frawley Stadium in Wilmington, DE), July 11 (LaLacheur Park in Lowell, MA), July 13 (Keyspan Park in Brooklyn, NY) and July 18 (Dutchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, NY). Plus, the grand prize winner scores a pair of tickets to all 4 shows. All you have to do is draw a picture in chalk on the sidewalk that incorporates information about one of the 4 shows (date, location and wilcoworld.net), take a picture and send it to us at ballparks@wilcoworld.net (please no files larger than 1MB in size) with your name, location and phone number. We'll judge entries based on their creativity and informativeness. More information on the shows at http://www.wilcoworld.net/shows/index.php. Contest ends June 30."

Have at it, my friends, and please don't forget to check out the Burning Dervish page on Facebook...

Cheers.

Masada - 50th Birthday Celebration Volume Seven

2009-06-20T21:20:00.001-04:00

From the record label website:

"As the members of this classic quartet get busier and busier, performances get rarer and rarer. This first set out of six they performed over three nights during Zorn's infamous Birthday month, was on fire from first note to last. Filled with wild extended solos and dizzying group conductions, this unforgettable evening of music highlights how this amazing band continues to grow into its second decade."

Personnel:
Joey Baron: Drum
Greg Cohen: Bass
Dave Douglas: Trumpet
John Zorn: Alto Saxophone

Track listing:
1. Karaim
2. Hath-Arob
3. Sippur
4. Acharei Mot
5. Kedushah
6. Ravayah
7. Piriam
8. Ashnah

Download:
Masada - 50th Birthday Celebration Volume Seven

Don't forget that Burning Dervish is now on Twitter...

Enokizu 78

2009-06-18T21:22:00.002-04:00

This is some music I am very happy to post up and share. See, the person behind these recordings is one of those guys...well, let's put it this way: there are some musicians you encounter who you sense can pick up any instrument (or object for that matter) and play it. This cat is one of those...I've known a few and it always reminds me how hard I have to work at it just to be mediocre...ha...

Anyway, based in New Haven, Enokizu 78 is:

"...a one man recording project conceived during the winter of 2007 / 2008. Utilizing vintage and modern synthesizers as well as electric guitar, Enokizu 78 strives for a rich variety between electronic sounds and more traditional instruments. With a wide range of influences the Enokizu 78 sound will constantly surprise you with its diversity."

Exactly the kind of thing that fits in here, right?

I am posting three tracks, but I encourage you to head over to Enokizu 78's MySpace page...there are a ton more tracks, info on where to buy the music, catch performances, etc.

Like the best in electronic music Enokizu 78 not only stands on its own musical strength, but challenges you to discern the influences and styles being incorporated from track to track...I don't make it back to New Haven much these days but I would love to see the performances (that's a hint for some audio or video recordings, sir...).

Download:
Family Musicales 2 - Vaguely Laswell-ian, with some guitar textures suggesting Nicky Skopelitis...
Infantile - Straight ambient. If it were a 60-minute track you would leave it on...
Relationship - a nice drone...a hard-edged sitar-like background with some moaning harmonica

Janey Winterbauer and Marc Perlman - 25:32:47

2009-06-13T21:40:00.001-04:00

The glib description on their MySpace page and lack of rich information on this release don't entirely diminish what is a nice little record...Co-produced with Ed Ackerson, this EP features Gary Louris, Tim O'Reagan and Kraig Johnson, amongst others. Here is some of what I found on the record label's website:

"Singer Janey Winterbauer (of Astronaut Wife) and Marc Perlman (of the Jayhawks) have joined together in a tuneful, melancholy, soulful collaboration on their debut EP 25:32:47. Working with producer/arranger Ed Ackerson, Winterbauer and Perlman have conjured a perfect atmosphere for Perlman's lyrical songcraft and Winterbauer's nuanced singing. Heart-searching words and haunting melodies hint at the previous work of both artists, but this collaboration is a new and unique perspective on both Janey and Marc's talents and ideas..."

Yeah. What he said...I know the title is supposed to be the running time but iTunes says it is 25:29...ha.

Here's their MySpace page, which features a track not on the record.

Download:
Janey Winterbauer and Marc Perlman - 25:32:47

...and don't forget to follow the Twitter feed for posts not available on the blog...

Burning Dervish Social Media Overhaul

2009-06-12T21:07:00.001-04:00

Been reorganizing a bit...too many sites, too may feeds...At this point there are over a dozen sites that make up Burning Dervish's online presence. There is a list of them here.

The latest additions include a Twitter account and a Facebook Fan Page.

The easiest way to track all of the activity is to follow the Facebook Fan Page or subscribe to the Burning Dervish FriendFeed, which aggregates all of the various posts. If you are only reading burningdervish.com, you're not getting the full-on Burning Dervish experience...

And why bother with all of this stuff, you ask? Well...it speaks to why I blog. I like to write a little, I like to discover and share music and I like to connect with other people. At this point, things have evolved from being about the website itself, to the RSS feed, to the MySpace and Facebook pages, to Twitter and who knows what else. Different people use different tools to manage the content they consume and I just want to reach as many people who might be interested in what I am up to here as possible.

Thanks.

Pink Phloyd

2009-06-09T21:25:00.002-04:00

I have made no secret on this blog of my love for Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. I also enjoy finding alternate versions, interpretations and covers of the record, in whole or as individual songs.

One version I have ignored up until now is Phish's, from 1998. There is much I can say about this set, but first let me hand it over to the Phish fans themselves.

OK, welcome back.

According to Mike Gordon, Phish's bass player, they pulled this together in about two hours of rehearsal (there is a nice interview with Gordon about the performance of here).

There are highlights throughout...Money is sufficiently balls out, but Us and Them and Any Colour You Like both have some lovely guitar playing...

If you are a Phish fan, you may have a special appreciation for both why they chose this record (and when) but also for how they incorporated it into their show. If you are not a Phish fan, it is way too nerdy to get into. Ha. If you really want to know hit me up.

I am not including the entire show for you completists out there, just DSotM as well as the tracks that put it in context for Phish fans and a couple of bonus covers they performed that night...

Download:
Phish - 1998/11/02 E. Centre, West Valley City, UT

Burning Dervish on Twitter

2009-06-08T21:40:00.001-04:00

The latest addition to the list of sites you can find Burning Dervish on...

I'm doing something a little different with burningdervish.com's Twitter feed, though. The posts from this site will not be posted on Twitter. Instead, there will be a completely different set of tweets consisting mainly of music I came across on other blogs, torrent sites and things like that. It will definitely be worth following in its own right.

Check out Burning Dervish on Twitter.

McCoy Tyner Trio with Freddie Hubbard - Hamburg, Germany - 1986-06-18

2009-06-07T21:45:00.001-04:00

Freddie Hubbard with the McCoy Tyner Trio at The Fabrik, Hamburg, Germany, June 18, 1986...

I so want to love this set. The sound of the recording is pristine and McCoy is in fine form (leading his trio at the time with Avery Sharpe and Louis Hayes) but I have to say...I just don't think Hubbard delivers the goods. I don't think his tone or his overall playing measure up. His problems have been well documented.

I have seen other reviews online praising this show and I am open to hearing from folks with better ears for Freddie than I have...

So why is this worth downloading? McCoy's support of Hubbard on the first track, Neoterra, and the Trio's soloing throughout...

Set:

1. Neoterra (25:49)
2. Island Birdie (17:17)
3. What Is This Thing Called Love? (9:45)

Download:
Freddie Hubbard with the McCoy Tyner Trio at The Fabrik, Hamburg, Germany, June 18, 1986

McCoy Tyner on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz - 1983

2009-06-03T21:02:00.002-04:00

Originally recorded May 4, 1983. Originally broadcast Oct. 29, 1983.

This set is part of the long-running Piano Jazz series on NPR. The host, Marian McPartland, is something of a musical prodigy, having been playing piano since 1921 - when she was three years old! Here is NPR's description of the show:

"Since April 1979, legendary pianist Marian McPartland has welcomed a stellar line-up of jazz artists for one hour of conversation and improvisation on her Peabody Award-winning program. Each week, McPartland, with her engaging personality and improvisational savvy, hosts a variety of performers in her radio living room.

Piano Jazz is a forum for jazz legends and influential performers as well as up-and-coming talents. Oscar Peterson, Herbie Hancock, Dave Brubeck, Diana Krall, Max Roach, Cassandra Wilson and Tony Bennett are among the over 500 guests who have joined McPartland to create dynamic duets and discuss their lives and music..."

The format includes Marian interviewing her guest, her guest performing, and Marian sitting in for a few numbers as well. I own two episodes, this one with McCoy and another with Alice Coltrane. As a performer McPartland was primarily a bebop player, she more than holds her own as an improviser on the two recordings I have heard...

In addition to conversation, the McCoy set includes these tracks:

* "The Greeting" (Tyner)
* "Prelude to a Kiss" (Ellington, Mills, Gordon)
* "Take the A Train" (Strayhorn)
* "Lazy Bird" (Coltrane)
* "Naima" (Coltrane)
* "Fly with the Wind" (Tyner)
* "Improvisation" (Tyner, McPartland)
* "Deep in a Dream" (Van Heusen, DeLange)
* "Passion Dance" (Tyner)

They rock out together on Passion Dance, in particular...

Download:
McCoy Tyner on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz - 1983

John Coltrane Live in ‘60, ‘61 & ‘65 (2007)

2009-05-29T21:48:00.000-04:00

Jazz Icons: John Coltrane Live in ‘60, ‘61 & ‘65 (2007):

"...an epic 95-minute overview of a true giant of 20th-century music. Three separate shows reveal Coltrane’s ascending creative arc from hard bop innovator as a member of the Miles Davis Quartet in 1960 to consummate bandleader in 1961 to unrivalled jazz visionary in 1965. This DVD not only features Trane’s classic quartet with Elvin Jones (drums), Jimmy Garrison (bass) and McCoy Tyner (piano), but also spotlights him onstage with other jazz legends including Stan Getz, Eric Dolphy and Oscar Peterson. Includes mind-blowing versions of his signature tunes 'My Favorite Things' and 'Impressions'."

CDs for Sale

2009-05-28T21:03:00.000-04:00

Hey, another round of CDs up on eBay. Only listed a half-dozen and they all had "buy it now" so I apologize in advance if there isn't much left when you get there...

Burning Dervish on eBay

DKT/MC5 - BRUSSELS 2005

2009-05-27T21:15:00.000-04:00

roio » Blog Archive » DKT/MC5 - BRUSSELS 2005:
"...Detroit’s MC5 were alternative before there was an alternative and they were punk before the movement took hold. While many critics call them protopunks, in an interview, Kramer said: “I think if there’s one thing the punks picked up from us, it was our do-it-yourself ethic - that you don’t have to follow the program, and you don’t have to wait until society says it’s okay to do your thing...”"

Jenny Scheinman - 12 Songs

2009-05-26T21:57:00.001-04:00

This is a striking record, one with so much substance. There is a baroque, almost chamber-like quality to much of the music, though I hear elements of Aaron Copeland in the melodies (though they contain more than a hint of klezmer as well) and Steve Reich in the ambience...The line-up includes Jenny Scheinman (violin); Bill Frisell (guitar); Rachelle Garniez (accordion, piano); Doug Wieselman (clarinet); Ron Miles (cornet); Tim Luntzel (double bass); and Dan Rieser (drums). There are moments where the wind and string instruments merge to create the most lovely effects...from All Music:

"...Her obsession is with songs and with lyrics -- neither of which appear on this paradoxically titled album. The 12 compositions here aren't actually songs, but are meant to feel like songs, by which Scheinman means that they're intended to be clear, straightforward, singable, and emotionally direct. This they generally do achieve, but even when things get a bit opaque (as on the saucy and slightly goofy "Moe Hawk" and the meandering "Antenna") they're still emotionally compelling...This kind of balance between directness, intensity, and complexity makes 12 Songs a more than usually impressive and compelling modern jazz album..."

I can't recommend this record highly enough.

Download:
Jenny Scheinman - 12 Songs

Gary Burton - Rarum, Vol. 4: Selected Recordings

2009-05-25T21:13:00.003-04:00

This record has been a revelation for me. You see, I never really checked out Gary Burton...my post-bop vibes have always been courtesy of Bobby Hutcherson...In a recent (and massive) hard drive swap I acquired a bunch of Burton (and other stuff I will roll out in the coming months) and Rarum, Volume 4 is where I started. It is a nice, basic overview of his sessions as a leader on the ECM label...from Muze:

"Gary Burton recorded for the ECM label for 15 years in the '70s and '80s. This set (which shares its title with other collections in the same series) is a portrait of the vibraphonist's working bands during that era. The material was chosen by Burton, and his liner notes follow the history with concise insights. With the exception of his duets with Chick Corea (not represented here, but their "Crystal Silence" is a key work in the discographies of both men) and Ralph Towner, Burton was truly a band player and leader throughout the entirety of his career. Perhaps recognising the specific timbres of his instrument, Burton has always sought appropriate settings to showcase its sound and gently expand its possibilities. Writing only rarely, Burton found material from the members of his band as well as a couple key outsiders, Carla Bley and Michael Gibbs."

And from Amazon:

"...an absorbing, wide-ranging portrait of his middle years, by the end of which he was well on the way to being the only vibist to seriously rival Milt Jackson...So consistent is the music despite its variety of mood and texture that it is difficult to nominate highlights...The playing throughout is of the highest quality, transcending the somewhat dated quality of a few of the arrangements or conceptions, and in all respects that matter this is timeless fare. If you're new to Burton, this is the perfect introduction to a great jazzman, and so satisfying is the compilation that it is hardly less recommended to those who may have one or two of the tracks already."

As an introduction to someone I am looking forward to getting more acquainted with, it worked for me...

Download:
Gary Burton - Rarum, Vol. 4: Selected Recordings