Ethan Iverson's "Jazz: 1973-1990"

Annotation :

"To begin with, I believe that the courageous, outlandish, down ‘n dirty music played together by Keith Jarrett, Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, and Paul Motian to be shamefully underrated and misunderstood. Jarrett was the leader and they were informally called the "American quartet." They left a large body of work."

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"... I loved this band then, but as I’ve grown up, they seem to have gotten even better. (This is not true of all the music on the list below.) My pick as their best are the recordings for MCA-Impulse, now collected in two wonderful Impulse boxes. However, any of these albums have the juice."

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"One of the best-selling jazz albums ever is still a great party record."

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"I had all the 70’s Rivers records once. My favorite was The Quest with Dave Holland and Barry Altschul, but it’s not on CD and my LP is long gone..."

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"...Trio Sessions is a CD reissue of a two-record set. It's completely free, but they are listening hard, and when Rivers picks up the tenor the music really takes off. Very good Cecil McBee on the first session, and Altschul was the perfect drummer for Rivers, Paul Bley, and Anthony Braxton."

Annotation :

"The first tune, “Innerconnections,” has a shredding solo by Dewey on alto—one of the few recordings with him on that instrument."

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"Originally on Muse as Live at Boomers. With the great Sam Jones, Louis Hayes, and Clifford Jordan. Walton sounds as strong as Bud Powell on “Cheryl” and “I’ll Remember April.” Any Cedar/Clifford Jordan quartet is going to be the real deal. Hayes is right in there, but ya gotta hear Billy Higgins play with Cedar, too. They are a recent passion; Ben Street showed me the light."

Annotation :

"Several great tunes, including the title track, “Nubian Sundance,” and the beautiful duet on “Blackthorn Rose.” I’ve heard a live tape of Zawinul, Shorter, Jaco, and Alex Acuna in Detroit playing “Scarlet Woman” that featured long and inspired solos by both Shorter and Zawinul. Wayne Shorter, Native Dancer (Columbia). Milton Nascimento is introduced with a splash. Wayne’s soprano playing is outstanding."

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"This is one of those records that everybody has. It is fascinating to hear Keith Jarrett threading the complex Wheeler harmony. Some great Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette on here too.
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"The St. Louis avant-scene. The solo track, “Lonely Blacks,” is powerful."

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"Justly famous as one of the great solo saxophone recitals."

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"This is one of the very greatest jazz records, featuring duos with Don Cherry, Archie Shepp, Ornette Coleman, and Hampton Hawes. Every note is perfect."

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"A great record for Rudd, whose extraordinary solo on “Robes” is surreally enhanced by his own over-dubbed chimes."

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"Dex plays well, Louis Hayes burns, and Woody Shaw steals the show."