A Portrait of Mal Waldron - A Personal Retrospect by Tom van Overberghe in English and Dutch

“Let us assume that coincidence is a matter of lines; lines that in themselves may be part of an ordinary, everyday reality, but intersect at a point that no one could foresee, that no one could predict or invent. Because you can invent a lot, but not everything.” - from “Flamenco Sketches” by Wannes Van de Velde.

Backstage, from the darkness of the wings, two good-humored African-American men, both in their seventies, enter a hallway that leads to a long narrow staircase next to the stage. They are welcomed by an enthusiastic, broadly smiling white man who is in his early thirties. He precedes the two older men and together they descend the stairs that lead to the artists' foyer. The white guy in his thirties is me, Tom van Overberghe. The two African-American guys in their seventies are Max Roach and Mal Waldron after their concert on September 20, 1995 in Antwerp arts center deSingel.

What I am describing is an 'outtake' from my film “A Portrait of Mal Waldron”, a scene which I call “The descent from the Olympus of jazz” because at the time I felt like a chosen mortal who was granted the rare privilege to spend time in the company of two Gods. Two jazz Gods. Or to put it in the words of soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy: "Mal and Max Roach and people like that, they are really giants, they are really “eminence" and there aren't too many of those". In addition to their status as jazz eminence, they were the living connection with all those legendary musicians who made a big name in post-war jazz history: Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Charles Mingus, Billie Holiday, Abbey Lincoln and so on.

The fact that the collaboration with Mal Waldron and the resulting years of friendship made such a great and lasting impression on me, undoubtedly has its origins in the fact that I

grew up in a musical family with a strong love for jazz. The jazz musicians with whom I would work with in person years later, were only spoken of in superlatives during family gatherings in my youth. Both my grandfathers earned their spurs before and after World War II in semi-professional dance orchestras and big bands, one as a trombone player, the other as a drummer. From the late 1950s their sons - my father Cel Overberghe and my uncle Fred Van Hove - followed in their footsteps and in turn became the pioneers of free jazz and free improvised music in Belgium.

From the early age of seven I attended music school where I took guitar lessons until I was eighteen with Joost Weyler, whose parents were the driving force behind the “Halewynstichting” in Antwerp. Classical guitar was my main training, but as a fan of The Rolling Stones and Muddy Waters, I also played rock and blues and through my guitar teacher I ended up at the Sunday jazz harmony and interplay lessons in the late 1970s and early 1980s that were given by his brother Maarten. These were the precursor of what later developed as the Jazz Studio, a full day course for jazz musicians.

Although after secondary school I enrolled in film and photography at the Sint-Lukas Institute in Brussels, the calling of music kept ringing in my ears and at times I really struggled either to choose one or the other. In the end I decided to try to combine both passions. When the opportunity occurred to realize this dream, I immediately took advantage of it. For my short film about the Flemish writer Hendrik Conscience - one of the six episodes from the film “Elixir d'Anvers” from 1996 - I not only wrote the script and directed the film, but also composed and performed the soundtrack. To my great pleasure, it also led to the first musical collaboration with my father. He played the saxophone on a number of tracks that I, together with Fred Bekky from the legendary Belgian pop group The Pebbles, had composed based on sampled instruments.

In the years succeeding the making of “A Portrait of Mal Waldron” - which premiered in August 1997 at the Jazz Middelheim festival - I remained in touch with Mal Waldron, his Japanese wife Hiromi, their five children and a big Leonberger dog named Uksy. When he performed in Belgium, I always tried to attend his concerts. Afterwards we had a chat or went out for dinner. I usually visited him in Brussels, but he also came to my home in Antwerp. I once described Mal Waldron as the combination of an Eastern sage and a bad boy, and that made our encounters an entertaining and satisfying pastime. Apparently he also appreciated my company because one time he said: "Tom, you should visit me more often." During those visits we used to listen to music, watched music documentaries about Bud Powell or John Coltrane, or we watched the television series “Friends” of which he was a big fan. He was also a musical mentor that I could turn to for advice. For example, we discussed the changes of some of his compositions, such as “Fire Waltz” or “Soul Eyes”. When I asked him about the harmonic function of a certain chord in a certain measure, he would laugh: "Because it sounds good!”. He concluded his music lesson with: "It's all about the soul and the fingers Tom".

What always surprised me a bit about Mal Waldron was that he didn't have his own piano. The only keyboard he owned was a small Casio electric piano on which he played at his coffee table with headphones on so he wouldn't disturb the neighbors. It seemed as if he was one with his instrument and that from the moment he sat on a stage behind the piano the music just flowed out of him naturally. The last time I spoke to him was on the phone, the day before his untimely death on December 2, 2002. He would have celebrated Christmas in Antwerp with my family a few weeks later. An event he eagerly looked forward to with the words: "That's fantastic". The last words I heard from him. Two days later the sad news of his death followed. I attended the cremation and the modest funeral

service that was organized for him. His daughter, singer Mala Waldron, had flown in from New York and sang her composition "He's My Father". The service was followed by an intimate concert with some of the musicians he had worked with, including bassist Arjen Gorter and saxophonist Sean Bergin. Not a day has passed since then without thinking of Mal. He has always been very present. I keep several photos of him on the wall at my home. When my youngest daughter wrote an essay on Billie Holiday for school, Mala, Mal's eldest daughter, wrote a short contribution on request, reminiscing the time Billie was her godmother.

The music of Mal Waldron resonated in me on such a deep level that it single-handedly sent me on the musical path that I have continued to follow until today and I still experience our friendship as a source of power from which I draw a lot of energy and drive. An American jazz singer once summed it up as follows: “This film is the gift that keeps on giving.” Besides his music, there was something else that spoke to my heart. In an interview for the film, Mal Waldron told me that in the late 1950s, during “Jazz & Poetry” evenings at the famous Five Spot Café in New York, he had accompanied Beat Poets such as Allen Ginsberg. That also struck a chord with me. After all, reading a book like "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac left a deep impression when I read it for the first time as a fifteen-year-old. It was nothing less than a revelation, and the identification with the main characters and the free-spirited attitude towards life that is the heartbeat of the book had reassured me as an adolescent teenager that there was a place for me in this world too.

Meanwhile my personal musicianship evolved until in 2007 it reached the point when for the first time, I ventured into the musical waters that my father Cel Overberghe and uncle Fred Van Hove had preceded me: free improvisation. The day my father turned seventy, May 30, 2007 to be precise, I performed an impromptu concert with him and Kris Nelissen, a bass playing friend, that gave me so much joy and felt so liberating that me and my father promptly formed a band that played their debut concert a few months later, on December 10, 2007, at café El Negocito in Ghent under the name CO2. To clarify that group name, I wrote the following text: “CO2. There are always two sides to a coin. First: the C and the O are the initials of my father's name - Cel Overberghe - the “2” relates to the fact that with me alongside there are 2 Overberghes in this band. Second: as a chemical formula CO2 refers to the band as a laboratory. A laboratory of musical poisoners so to speak because we love to think outside the box.”

The following years, I organized numerous free improv concerts under the name CO2, most of which took place in a number of Antwerp cafés such as Plaza Real, Bato Batu or Do Re Mi. The "modus operandi" consisted of inviting a number of like-minded guest musicians with whom I performed together with my father in trios, quartets or quintets formed for the occasion. In 2011, with the support of Rogé Verstraete from El Negocito Records, I was granted subsidies from the Flemish government that enabled us to release a first CD in 2012, entitled “Intersections”. For the occasion, CO2 was renamed CO2 Quartet because in addition to myself and my father, bassist Paul Van Gysegem, also a veteran of Belgian improvisation music, as well as the ever dynamic and surprising Ghent-Italian drummer Giovanni Barcella played along. Five years later, in 2017, a second CD followed celebrating both our 10th anniversary and my father's 80th birthday. Hence the title “10/80”. The CD consisted of two separate live concerts recorded in 2013 and 2014 by sound engineer Michael W. Huon who also mixed and mastered our first CD. One concert was recorded in Antwerp with bassist Peter Jacquemyn, the other in Brussels with drummer Dirk Wauters.

What started out as an occasional formation that fulfilled my desire to be able to make music alongside my father, whom I have always admired for the unsophisticated self-evidence with which he practised his artistic talents, evolved into a project that brought us to places and in the company of musicians that exceeded my wildest expectations. A highlight is undoubtedly the concert organized by Christel Kumpen and Koen Vandenhoudt on December 10, 2017 in De Studio in Antwerp, exactly ten years after our first concert in El Negocito. CO2 opened as support act for a duo consisting of the great Joe McPhee and Paal Nilssen-Love and was, by way of encore, subsequently invited by Joe to close the evening with him and Paal in quartet.

After many years without being in touch with the Waldron family, I received an email in October 2018 from Hiromi, Mal's widow, asking if I might be interested in a couple of boxes with archival material that belonged to Mal. Because she was moving out, I could pick it up at her place if I wanted. An offer that I eagerly accepted. When I got home and began to carefully search through all of Mal Waldron's personal belongings, I made a special discovery that was very meaningful to me. In a scrapbook in which Mal had kept numerous newspaper articles, photos and posters, I found an original poster of a concert that had taken place in Ghent in 1971, consisting of Mal Waldron, Paul Van Gysegem and Cel Overberghe, all on one night. The fact that it was precisely Cel en Paul whom I brought together forty years later for our first CO2 CD, which was also a way of paying hommage to Mal Waldron “whose music, friendship, wit and wisdom will remain an everlasting source of inspiration” as I wrote in the liner notes, gave that poster the tangible aura of that unpredictable, unforeseeable meeting point of accidentally intersecting lines from the introductory quote by Wannes Van de Velde. The title of the CD, “Intersections”, unintentionally gained extra meaning.

Tom Van Overberghe
February 2021

A Portrait of Mal Waldron: the beautiful documentary Tom made on Mal Waldron

The outtake Tom describes in the first paragraph

“Laat ons aannemen dat toeval een kwestie is van lijnen; lijnen die op zichzelf misschien deel uitmaken van een banale, alledaagse realiteit, maar die mekaar snijden in een punt dat niemand kon voorzien, dat niemand kon voorspellen of bedenken. Want ge kunt veel bedenken, maar niet alles.” - uit “Flamencoschetsen” van Wannes Van de Velde.

Vanuit het schemerdonker van de coulissen doemen twee goedgeluimde Afro-Amerikaanse mannen op, beiden in de zeventig, die in een gangetje dat naast het podium naar een lange smalle trap leidt, verwelkomt worden door een enthousiaste, breed lachende witte man van vooraan in de dertig. Hij gaat de twee zeventigers voor en samen dalen zij de de trap af die naar de artiestenfoyer leidt.

De witte dertiger ben ikzelf, de twee Afro-Amerikaanse zeventigers zijn Max Roach en Mal Waldron na afloop van hun concert op 20 september 1995 in kunstencentrum deSingel in Antwerpen.

Wat ik beschrijf is een ‘outtake’ uit mijn film “A Portrait of Mal Waldron”, een scene die ikzelf “De afdaling van de Olympus van de jazz” noem omdat ik mij op dat moment als een uitverkoren sterveling voelde die het zeldzame voorrecht vergund was om enige tijd in het gezelschap van twee goden door te brengen. Twee jazz goden. Of om het met de woorden van sopraansaxofonist Steve Lacy te zeggen: “Mal and Max Roach and people like that, they are really giants, they are really ’eminence’ and there aren’t too many of those”. Naast hun status als jazzeminentie waren zij de levende connectie met al die legendarische muzikanten die in de loop van de na-oorlogse jazzgeschiedenis naam hebben gemaakt: Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Charles Mingus, Billie Holiday, Abbey Lincoln en ga zo maar door.

Dat de samenwerking met Mal Waldron en de jarenlange vriendschap die eruit voortvloeide zo’n grote en blijvende indruk op mij gemaakt heeft, vindt ongetwijfeld zijn oorsprong in het feit dat ik ben opgegroeid in een muzikale familie met een uitgesproken voorliefde voor jazz. Over de jazzmusici waarmee ik jaren later in levende lijve zou samenwerken, werd in mijn jeugd tijdens familiebijeenkomsten enkel in superlatieven gesproken.

Mijn beide grootvaders waren zowel voor als na de Tweede Wereldoorlog actief in semi-professionele dansorkesten en big bands, respectievelijk als trombonist en als drummer. Vanaf de late jaren vijftig traden hun zonen - mijn vader Cel Overberghe en mijn oom Fred Van Hove - in hun voetsporen en ontpopten zich op hun beurt tot de pioniers van de free jazz en de vrij geïmproviseerde muziek in België.

Zelf ging ik vanaf mijn zevende levensjaar naar de muziekschool waar ik tot mijn achttiende gitaarlessen volgde bij Joost Weyler wiens ouders de bezielers waren van de Halewynstichting in Antwerpen. Ik leerde hoofdzakelijk klassieke gitaar maar begaf mij als fan van o.m. The Rolling Stones en Muddy Waters op ook het pad van de rock en de blues en via mijn gitaarleraar belandde ik eind jaren ’70, begin jaren ‘80 uiteindelijk ook in de zondagse lessen jazzharmonie en samenspel die door zijn broer Maarten werden gegeven en de voorloper waren van wat later uitgegroeide tot de Jazz Studio, een volwaardige dagopleiding voor jazzmusici.

Hoewel ik mij na mijn middelbare studies inschreef voor de opleiding film en fotografie aan het Sint-Lukas Instituut in Brussel, bleef ook de roep van de muziek in mijn oren klinken. Bij momenten ervaarde ik het als een verscheurende keuze om ofwel voor het één of voor het ander te moeten kiezen. Ik besloot dan maar om te trachten beide passies te

combineren. Toen de kans zich voordeed om die droom waar te maken, heb ik die dan ook met beide handen gegrepen. Zo heb ik voor mijn kortfilm over de Vlaamse schrijver Hendrik Conscience - een van de zes episodes uit de compilatiefilm “Elixir d’Anvers” uit 1996 - niet alleen de regie en het scenario voor mijn rekening genomen maar ook de compositie en uitvoering van de soundtrack. Het leidde, tot mijn grote genoegen, ook tot de eerste muzikale samenwerking met mijn vader. Hij speelde saxofoon op een aantal tracks die ik samen met Fred Bekky van de legendarische Belgische popgroep The Pebbles op basis van gesampelde instrumenten had samengesteld.

In de jaren na het maken van “A Portrait of Mal Waldron” - die in augustus 1997 in première ging tijdens het Jazz Middelheim festival - ben ik het contact met Mal Waldron, zijn Japanse vrouw Hiromi, hun vijf kinderen en de grote Leonberger hond genaamd Uksy, blijven onderhouden. Wanneer hij in België optrad, ging ik meestal luisteren. Nadien maakten we een praatje of gingen uit eten. Doorgaans zocht ik hem in Brussel op maar hij kwam ook bij mij thuis in Antwerpen over de vloer. Ik heb Mal Waldron ooit omschreven als een kruising tussen een oosterse wijze en een kwajongen en dat maakte van onze ontmoetingen een vermakelijk en deugddoend tijdverdrijf. Blijkbaar stelde hij ook mijn gezelschap op prijs want op een keer zei hij: “Tom, you should visit me more often.” Tijdens die bezoekjes luisterden we naar muziek, bekeken muziekdocumentaires over bijvoorbeeld Bud Powell of John Coltrane of we keken naar de televisieserie “Friends” waar Mal een grote fan van was. Hij was ook een muzikale mentor waar ik bij terecht kon voor advies. We bespraken dan bijvoorbeeld de akkoordprogressies van enkele van zijn composities, zoals “Fire Waltz” of “Soul Eyes”. Als ik hem dan vroeg naar de harmonische functie van een bepaald akkoord in een bepaalde maat, antwoordde hij lachend: “Because it sounds good!”. Hij besloot zijn muziekles met: “It’s all about the soul and the fingers Tom”.

Wat mij altijd een beetje verbaasde was dat Mal Waldron niet over een eigen piano beschikte. Het enige keyboard dat ik ooit bij hem aantrof was een kleine elektrische piano van het merk Casio waarop hij aan zijn salontafel zat te tokkelen met een hoofdtelefoon op om de buren niet te storen. Het leek erop dat hij één geheel vormde met zijn instrument en dat vanaf het moment dat hij op een podium achter de piano ging zitten de muziek er als vanzelf uitstroomde.

De laatste keer dat ik hem sprak was aan de telefoon, één dag voor zijn vroegtijdige dood op 2 december 2002. Normaal gezien zou hij een paar weken later kerstmis gevierd hebben in Antwerpen met mijn familie. Een evenement waar hij naar uitkeek met de woorden: "That's fantastic". De laatste woorden die ik van hem hoorde. Twee dagen later volgde het droevige nieuws van zijn overlijden. Ik was aanwezig tijdens de crematie en de bescheiden uitvaartdienst die voor hem georganiseerd was. Zijn dochter, de zangeres Mala Waldron, was overgevlogen vanuit New York en zong haar compositie “He’s My Father”. Na de dienst volgde een intiem concert met enkele van de muzikanten waarmee hij had samengewerkt waaronder bassist Arjen Gorter en saxofonist Sean Bergin.

Sindsdien gaat er geen dag voorbij dat ik niet aan hem denk. Hij is altijd heel erg aanwezig gebleven. Er hangen bij mij thuis dan ook meerdere foto’s van hem aan de muur. Toen mijn jongste dochter voor school een werk schreef over Billie Holiday heeft Mala, de oudste dochter van Mal, op verzoek een korte bijdrage geschreven vanwege het feit dat Billie Holiday haar ‘godmother’ was geweest.

De muziek van Mal Waldron resoneerde in mij op zo’n diep niveau dat het mij eigenhandig het muzikale pad op stuurde dat ik tot vandaag de dag ben blijven volgen en ik ervaar onze vriendschap nog steeds als een krachtbron waaruit ik zeer veel energie en

gedrevenheid put. Een Amerikaanse jazz zangeres vatte het ooit als volgt samen: “This film is the gift that keeps on giving.”

Naast zijn muziek was er nog iets anders dat me erg aansprak. In een interview voor de film vertelde Mal Waldron dat hij eind jaren vijftig, tijdens “Jazz & Poetry” avonden in het bekende New Yorkse Five Spot Café, Beat Poets waaronder Allen Ginsberg had begeleid. Ook dat raakte een gevoelige snaar. Het lezen van een boek als “On The Road” van Jack Kerouac had immers een diepe indruk nagelaten toen ik het als vijftienjarige voor de eerste keer las. Het was niet minder dan een openbaring en de identificatie met de hoofdpersonages en de vrijgevochten levenshouding die het kloppend hart van het boek vormt, hadden mij als puberende teenager het geruststellende gevoel gegeven dat er ook voor mij een plaatsje was in deze wereld.

Mijn persoonlijke ontwikkeling als muzikant bereikte in 2007 het punt waarop ik mij voor het eerst in het muzikale vaarwater waagde waar mijn vader Cel Overberghe en oom Fred Van Hove mij in voorgegaan waren: de vrij geïmproviseerde muziek. De dag dat mijn vader zeventig werd, 30 mei 2007 om precies te zijn, heb ik samen met hem en Kris Nelissen, een bevriende bassist, een impromptu concertje ten beste gegeven dat mij zoveel deugd deed en dat zo bevrijdend aanvoelde dat ik prompt met mijn vader een groep gevormd heb die we een paar maanden later, op 10 december 2007, boven het doopvond hielden in het Gentse café El Negocito onder de naam CO2. Ter verduidelijking van die groepsnaam schreef ik: “CO2. There are always two sides to a coin. First: the C and the O are the initials of my father’s name - Cel Overberghe - the “2” relaties to the fact that with me alongside there are 2 Overberghes in this band. Second: as a chemical formula CO2 refers to the band as a laboratory. A laboratory of musical poisoners so to speak because we love to think outside the box.”

De daaropvolgende jaren heb ik onder de naam CO2 tal van vrij geïmproviseerde concerten georganiseerd waarvan het meerendeel plaatsvond in een aantal Antwerpse cafés zoals Plaza Real, Bato Batu of Do Re Mi. De ‘modus operandi’ bestond er uit om een aantal gelijkgestemde gastmuzikanten uit te nodigen waarmee ik dan samen met mijn vader optrad in voor de gelegenheid gevormde trio’s, kwartetten of kwintetten. In 2011 sloeg ik er in om geruggesteund door Rogé Verstraete van El Negocito Records subsidies van de Vlaamse overheid te bekomen die ons in staat stelden om in 2012 een eerste cd uit te brengen met als titel “Intersections”. Voor de gelegenheid werd CO2 omgedoopt tot CO2 Quartet omdat naast ikzelf en mijn vader ook bassist Paul Van Gysegem, ook een veteraan van de Belgische improvisatiemuziek, alsook de immer dynamische en verrassende Gents-Italiaanse drummer Giovanni Barcella meespeelden. Vijf jaar later, in 2017, volgde een tweede cd, ditmaal in eigen beheer uitgebracht, waarmee we zowel ons tienjarige bestaan als de tachtigste verjaardag van mijn vader vierden. Vandaar de titel “10/80”. De cd bestond uit twee afzonderlijke live concerten die in 2013 en 2014 waren opgenomen door geluidsingenieur Michael W. Huon die ook onze eerste cd had afgewerkt. Het ene concert werd opgenomen in Antwerpen met bassist Peter Jacquemyn, het andere in Brussel met drummer Dirk Wauters.

Wat begon als een gelegenheidsformatie waarmee mijn verlangen in vervulling ging om te kunnen musiceren aan de zijde van mijn vader, die ik altijd erg bewonderd heb om de ongekunstelde vanzelfsprekendheid waarmee hij zijn artistieke talenten beoefende, evolueerde tot een project dat ons op plaatsen en in het gezelschap van muzikanten bracht die mijn stoutste verwachtingen overtroffen. Een hoogtepunt is ongetwijfeld het door Christel Kumpen en Koen Vandenhoudt georganiseerde concert op 10 december 2017 in De Studio in Antwerpen, exact tien jaar na ons eerste concert in El Negocito. CO2 opende als “support act” voor een duo bestaande uit de klassenbakken Joe McPhee en

Paal Nilssen-Love en werd, bij wijze van ‘encore’, nadien door Joe uitgenodigd om samen met hem en Paal als gelegenheidskwartet de avond af te sluiten.

Na vele jaren geen contact meer te hebben gehad met de familie Waldron, ontving ik in oktober 2018 een mail van Hiromi, de weduwe van Mal, met de vraag of ik eventueel geïnteresseerd was in een aantal archiefdozen die aan Mal toebehoord hadden. Omdat zij ging verhuizen mocht ik die als ik wou bij haar komen ophalen. Een aanbod waar ik uiteraard gretig op in ging. Toen ik al die persoonlijke spullen van Mal Waldron bij mij thuis zorgvuldig begon te doorzoeken, deed ik een voor mij persoonlijk wel heel bijzondere en betekenisvolle ontdekking. In een plakboek waarin Mal krantenartikels, foto’s en affiches had bijgehouden, vond ik een originele affiche terug van een concert dat in 1971 in Gent had plaatsgevonden met op één avond zowel Mal Waldron, Paul Van Gysegem en Cel Overberghe. Dat het net Cel en Paul waren die ik veertig jaar later samenbracht voor de opnames van onze eerste CO2 cd, die ook een hommage was aan Mal Waldron “whose music, friendship, wit and wisdom will remain an everlasting source of inspiration” zoals ik in de liner notes schreef, gaf die affiche het tastbare aura van dat onvoorspelbare, niet te voorziene snijpunt van elkaar toevallig kruisende lijnen uit het inleidende citaat van Wannes Van de Velde. De titel van de cd, “Intersections”, kreeg daarmee ongewild extra betekenis.

Tom Van Overberghe
Februari 2021

(1986) The Seagulls of Kristiansund *****

 

With: Woody Shaw (trumpet), Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano), Reggie Workman (bass), Ed Blackwell (drums)
Record date: September 16, 1986

In the eighties, Mal’s visits to the US were becoming more frequent and longer. In 1986 he stayed a couple of month’s. He admitted himself that being back felt good for him, but his home remained in Europe. During those visits he always played at the Village Vanguard in NYC for a week or so with a set group. He appeared there already with this very same all-star group in 1983 which was recorded and brought out on DVD (highly recommended). In 1986 he appeared with the same group: a dream line-up for every jazz lover. There’s Woody Shaw on trumpet. Probably one of the most innovative trumpet players of all time and definitely one of the most exciting of his time. There’s Monk’s most faithful companion Charlie Rouse on tenor saxophone. Reggie Workman on bass, one of jazz’ all time greatest. And like that wasn’t even enough Ed Blackwell on drums who is probably one of the most rhythmic players from the freejazz ’60’s scene. And then of course I forget Mal himself…. It leads to one of his very best recordings. Part of the concert was released on Soul Note as ‘The Seagull’s of Kristiansund’. The other part was released as The Git Go. This very one is probably a very little bit better.

The whole concert blasts off with a Mal classic. The hunting and nervous Snake Out in one of it’s best performances I know. Mal set’s in the theme, Workman and Blackwell follow quite soon and there’s the tension with the rest of the band filling in. It’s Woody Shaw who is there to release that tension with a mind-blowing solo. Woody is creative and doesn’t sound predictable for one note which is incredible with a modal piece like this. The possibilities are endless and his technical skills are very impressive. He plays with chords, notes, tempo’s and phrases. One of the most advanced postbop players that always dares to play near and on the edge but never really passes it in an unpleasant way. Then there’s Rouse with his warm but squeezed sounds. The short phrases he plays add up to the tense feeling all trough the music. His pretty traditional sound doesn’t sound a second out of place in this pretty advanced postbop composition. Mal takes it all away with his typical nervous repetitive style, fully interacting with Workman and Blackwell. Reggie plays one of his fantastic solo’s playing inside and outside all at the same time. And then there’s Blackwell who is very, very solid as an accompanist in the background but really kicks ass in his solo. Blackwell is a very different player from Rashied Ali but they give me that same feeling: you sometimes wonder if it’s really one guy drumming. Blackwell’s feet and hand’s really just all doing their own thing but still it all sounds so structured.

The following ‘Judy’ is the most straightforward piece of the album but swings unbelievably hard. Rouse’s solo is great playing with the theme constantly in different forms fully exploring it’s potential. Shaw picks up exactly there showing off his great technique again with countless very fast loops that just dazzle your head. And again it’s Mal and his rhythm section that really make things complete with their very tight playing in the background. Mal with his full and rich chords, Reggie walking, running and anything in between and Blackwell just playing in a very laidback style. The true highlight of the album is yet to come: it’s the title song itself. A 23 minute long version of one of Mal’s most beautiful compositions with plenty of soloing space for every participating musician. It starts off with it’s soft and melancholic theme. It really reminds one of a Norwegian harbor on a cold December day. It’s one of Mal’s most atmospheric pieces. Where the other songs swinged hard and all the band members really showed off their skills, there’s a way more minimalistic approach here. Rouse blow’s soft and gentle, almost whispering: you could hear his breath going trough his horn. He carefully weighs what to play. Workman dances beautifully around the chords, sometimes imitating seagull sounds, than humming in it’s lower register again. Such a versatile artist. Then there’s Shaw. He could blow your ears off but could also play soft as the wind. Here he is like that wind. And it’s Mal who really takes it away with such a simple but impressive solo. A beautiful closure of a very good live session. People who were there were very, very lucky.

This beautiful and impressive music is not hard to find at all. Plenty of copies available on both cd and vinyl. There’s also the great 4cd Soul Note box that also contains the other part of the concert and 2 cd’s with another great quintet: with Sonny Fortune and Ricky Ford. It’s pretty expensive these days so buying the separate releases is not a bad idea. The box set does not add any extra liner notes or whatsoever. One of his very best recordings: you should really buy this without any hesitation.

(1986) Mal Waldron/Jackie McLean - Left Alone '86 ***1/2

 

With: Jackie McLean (alto saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano), Herbie Lewis (bass), Eddie Moore (drums)
Record date: September 1, 1986

Friends for life, Waldron and McLean reunited quite often. There are only two official records of those reunions. The first was for Victor Japan in 1976, this one on Paddle Wheel was the last in 1986. Just like that 1976 recording this was recorded in Japan where both guys were famous for their 1960 Bethlehem recording 'Left Alone'. And just like the 1976 session Mal and Jackie decided to play mainly jazz standards. It was recorded live altough there is no audience heard between the songs. Not sure if there is even an audience as Mal has played more than only this occasion in a concert hall without an audience. It was also captured on video: the whole concert is on Youtube!

So what to think about the music? Well it's all pretty much ok. They definitly do not blow your mind and both Jackie and Mal have made far more interesting music. But it's definitly no punishment listening to it. Both musicians are in excellent form and the band is a very steady one. Drummer Eddie Moore was to appear lots of times in Mal's bands from this time. The new version of their classic Left Alone is beutifully played. Other songs like All of Me swing gently while ballads are played with feeling. But it is very, very straightforward and just like their previous recording it feels like a missed opportunity. McLean was one of the most innovative alto saxophonists in jazz history with masterpieces like 'Let Freedom Ring' and 'One Step Beyond'. And Mal... well I suppose I have said enough about his innovative qualities on this blog already. With that in mind, an album full of very straightahead jazz standards is just a little bit boring. The one song where one can really hear the potential of this golden duo is on the pretty long 'Minor Pulsation'. Here is plenty of space for every bandmember to stretch out. McLean is soloing in his oldfashioned raw bluesy style and Mal plays a very intense solo full of interaction with both rhythm section members. Exciting music!

Like most Paddle Wheel releases this record is still easy to get for a low price. Both on vinyl as cd. The cd version contains a bonus: an extra version of Left Alone. If youre a fan of both like I am you'd probably want this. But I can't say it's on the turntable a lot. It's really recommended to watch the show on Youtube. 

(1986) Update ****1/2

 

With: Mal Waldron (solo piano)

Record date: March 10, 1986

In March 1986, Mal recorded one of his best studio solo outings for the Italian Soul Note label. Mal solo is almost always an enjoyment to listen to. But there are quite a few sessions where he recorded standards only and those were a bit dull at times. When Mal plays his own material solo the chances of succes are bigger. Albums like 'The Opening' and 'Meditations' are essential Mal. For this solo album, Mal has chosen for a mixed repertoire: it contains some of his own work and some standards. But the standards played here do get a very creative twist which makes this record a fascinating more than 50 minute long journey.

It opens with Free For C.T.: a tribute to Cecil Taylor and the first reference to that pianist on this album. What Mal does excellent is not trying to copy his style but just include elements of his style in his own playing. The whole composition is a fascinating trip going from free oriented jazz to almost classical passages. It's full of new directions and just when you think Mal settles with a melody or style he goes into another direction. This should probably have been titled: variations on a theme by Cecil Taylor (I'll explain later why). The version of 'A Night In Tunisia' starts completely different than the steaming bebop original from the '40's. It starts almost like a melancholic ballad with Mal subtly introducting the theme playing louder and more percussive as the music progresses. It's one of the best versions I know and such a contrast with all those versions with horns. It shows Mal's compositional skills as he can twist any note in the direction he wants rebuilding the original with a diffrent sound. This is how I like him to play jazz standards!

Frank Loesser's 'Inch Worm' (here stated mistakenly as Inch Work) is another huge difference with Coltrane's energetic version from his selftitled album. It's again more in a ballad style with a gentle touch and hints of classical repertoire by Satie for example. A bit confusing is 'Variations on a Theme by Cecil Taylor' which probably should have been titled 'Free for C.T. as the theme is recognizable as the one that was played on later albums as 'Free for C.T.'. Track 1 also really has more variations than the more thematic track 4. Soul Note is a bit sloppy with the title tracks on this one. It's a beautiful melody, with a very Waldronesque sound. It's dark and touching, almost sad. The closing standards are a beautiful way to bring the album to it's end, especially the pretty basic version of 'I Should Care'.

Soul Note has released some real Waldron classics and this is definitely one of them! It's not very hard to obtain a copy on any format. If you like Mal's solo work, this one is essential. If you consider yourself a Mal afficinado it's also essential. 

(1986) Mal Waldron/Steve Lacy - Sempre Amore ****1/2

With: Steve Lacy (soprano saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: February 17, 1986

This was the very first studio recording by the great Lacy/Waldron duo. They had performed together many times, both as a duo as in larger groups. In a duo setting, it was always live: at Dreher, the Bimhuis and at the Jazzbuhne. The only records that were already released at the time of this duo was the stuff at Dreher. And there’s more that makes this recording unique. It consists only of Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington compositions. It leads to a sound that is familiar on one hand but is also very different from their previous works. It’s definitely the most accesible one of their work together.

Accessible yes, but boring? No way! It’s another fantastic recording which I revisit over and over again. The starting ‘Johnny Come Lately’ has that ice cold dark atmosphere set by Lacy with his beautiful tone on the soprano. Even when he plays so dissonant it all makes sense. The composition gets a whole new sound. Songs like a ‘Prelude to a Kiss’ and ‘Star Crossed Lovers’ are just incredibly beautiful with both Lacy and Waldron picking each note carefully. It’s Lacy in it’s most melodic accessible way, clearly respecting the tradition these songs were written in, yet still sounding creative and innovative.

What is central again on this record is the interplay between them. It’s like they are one and the same person constantly interacting, talking to each other and reacting on even the smallest details the other is playing. I would not be surprised if one of them would actually be capable of predicting what the other is about to play. And that is very impressive as both are not very predictable musicians. One of the best examples of this is also one of the most beautiful songs on the album: ‘A Flower is a Lonesome Thing’. One of the other things that stands out is that this music isn’t so much about technical skills (while both musicians have them) but more about emotional depth and feeling. These compositions really get a new meaning instead of just being played.

This was released on the great Italian ‘Soul Note’ label. It’s excellent in sound and widely available in any form. This one is credited to Mal, being the first artist mentioned, but that really was a random choice. Some of their records mention Mal first, others Steve. It’s really like their music: fully balanced with both playing an equally important part. This really is essential music and one of the best sax-piano duo’s I know.

(1986) Mal Waldron/Doudou Gouirand/Michel Marre - Space ***1/2

 

With: Michel Marre (trumpet), Doudou Gouirand (alto saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: February, 1986

1986 was a year with quite a lot of highlights for Mal. It was the year his band with Woody Shaw, Charlie Rouse, Reggie Workman and Ed Blackwell was recorded. There was a recorded reunion with Jackie McLean and a Eric Dolphy/Booker Little memorial concert with his old rhythm section and some fresh new talent. And then I am not even mentioning some great dates for Soul Note. His recording year started with this record, with two not very well known French musicians. It’s creative music in the more free spectrum, though I would not say it’s necessarily very unaccesible. But a trained ear for the music is recommended.

So is it any good? Well, it’s not essential stuff but it is not bad either. The starting composition which counts for 20 minutes has some pretty interesting directions. Mal is in superb form showing he is both comfortable with both more traditional jazz as jazz that is more free in nature. This first composition really goes all between the well known and more new territories. Gouirand’s tone is warm and Marre is pretty creative sometimes playing loud then whispering trough his horn again. And that is what the music keeps interesting: sometimes it’s more free and in your face, then it’s more quiet again. And Mal’s soloing around the 17th minute is of great beauty. It’s the whole closure of this first song that is most impressive. Segala has a more march like feeling, like the music on Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra. But it’s a little short. The next composition is even shorter and a bit unnecessary to be honest. The Last Poet is another nice changing direction. A more African based composition with a very joyous theme. The version of Soul Eyes is nice but nothing special. And it’s pretty hearable now that both guys are fine players but not excellent. They miss a bit of technical skill, perhaps even character.

It was released on a pretty obscure French label called Vent du Sud. The music is recorded pretty well but the packaging is very basic. If you happen to find it for a nice price, you know like an additional item when you’re shopping on Discogs you could get it. But you do not really miss something big if it is not in your collection.

(1985) Mal Waldron/David Friesen - Dedication ***1/2

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), David Friesen (bass)
Record date: November 18, 1985

In November 1985 Mal made his first official recording for Soul Note in the Barigozzi Studios in Milano. It was the start of a very fruitful collaboration. The label produced some 16 albums with Waldron on it as a leader, a co-leader and a sideman. This record is the last of three duet albums with the bassist David Friesen.

The opening ‘Dedication’ was written by both Waldron and Friesen together. It really starts more like a soundscape than an actual song. It’s that ambient influence again and again it works perfectly. Waldron’s minimalistic approach combining with the electrical bass effects by Friesen works almost hypnotic. Very creative stuff that later emerges in more jazzy based compositions. In ‘All God’s Chillun Got Rhythm’ Mal uses a part from his own ‘Due Torri’ composition. Or probably it was the other way around then and he lend those chords from that original. Mal shows of he’s perfectly capable to play fast too, with a few hints of Bud Powell that really made this composition famous in his collaboration with Sonny Stitt. ‘It Never Entered My Mind’ is a bit boring at times and lacks character. Rhythmics is pretty challenging original by Mal’s with lots of interaction between both Waldron and Friesen. The music is a little more free and the compositions a bit more abstract. Then with Tapestry the more ambient feeling returns. It’s very interesting hearing Mal’s style blend with this kind of music. The closing Batik is probably the best and most beautiful on the album. Friesen's touch is very warm and personal one.

Almost every single Soul Note release by Mal is widely avaible for very reasonable prices. So is this one. It’s also included in the 11cd box-set. A nice but not essential record. If I had to pick my favorite encounter between the two it was their first on Muse.

(1985) Mal Waldron/Marion Brown - Songs of Love and Regret ****

 

With: Marion Brown (alto saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: November 9 and 10, 1985

Back in Europe, Mal was up for another fascinating encounter. This time it was with the great American freejazz saxophonist Marion Brown. They chose for an intimite duo form to record and a beautiful and very varied repertoire of compositions by both of the musicians themselves, Monk, Strayhorn and McCoy Tyner. The result is a very good and intimate album with a bluesy feel all trough.

Brown, a freejazz giant from the ’60’s is of course most well known for his association with John Coltrane and even more: Archie Shepp. He was in the frontline of the ‘New Thing’ in the ’60’s and recorded the great ‘Three for Shepp’ and many more. In the ’70’s his music became a bit milder and more accessible also recording jazz standards regularly. On this album, it’s his more gentle side that shows. And that gentle side goes pretty well with the bluesy side of Mal. Shepp’s influence is undeniably there in his sound. That raw but almost Ben Webster like air in some of his phrases.

The opening ‘Blue Monk’ is fascinating and I have never heard so much of Monk’s style in Waldron’s play. His humorous references to the legend are very interesting to hear. Brown is a very different player than Lacy. Of course he plays a different saxophone but his whole style is definitely way more in the tradition and blues. And though the chemistry is not as big as with Lacy, there is plenty of it too here with Brown. Brown’s composition is one of absolute beauty with a slight African air over it. It could have been an Abdullah Ibrahim composition. His warm vibrato gives it exactly the right energy. Mal’s solo is one of equal beauty: he sounds subtle and optimistic. His soloing is cut off to soon unfortunately. The version of Tyner’s Contemplation is mind blowing. Of course the original on McCoy Tyner’s ‘The Real McCoy’ is stunning already but it’s refreshing to hear that same composition in a duet setting. Brown blows that soft his sound almost vanishes in the air…. Almost but not quite yet it hit’s every nerve in your body. Mal’s playing  is soft and thoughtful in the background with those dark chords makes it even heavier. His solo is not more than an inspired play of the theme but works out so well. You don’t want him to play anything else. There’s some solo piano by Waldron on the second composition and some solo saxophone by Marion Brown in the second to last track. Brown is a highly emotional player and it works out pretty well. It has a strange desolate feeling over it an it’s like you’re almost in his horn. The closing ‘Flower is A Lonesome Thing’ again is of great beauty.

Free Lance released the album in 1987 and reissued it in 2003 with different artwork. That one also contains a bonus track. I’ve got that last version and it sounds great. Liner notes are in French…. Don’t know about the original but there are plenty of copies available. Highly recommended!

(1985) Mal Waldron/Yosuke Yamashita - Piano Duo Live at Pit Inn ****

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), Yosuke Yamashita (piano)
Record date: September 17, 1985

Piano duo’s could be highly successful and interesting encounters, but for some reason they do never really attract me at first. But when I hear what’s going on mostly that attitude changes. Because a piano is such a versatile instrument: it’s both harmonic as percussive. And because of that you do not really miss a rhythm section and it’s highly suitable for a solo or duo recording. In September 1985 Mal encountered one of Japan’s best and probably most well known pianists: Yosuke Yamashita. A very gifted piano player, influenced by classical music and free jazz but also very much by Mal. In fact he has recorded a tribute album to Mal only 2 years before the recording of this concert. This concert was recorded in a small Tokyo jazz club called Pit Inn.

The performance contains lengthy duo improvisations: 2 that were actually improvised on the spot and the third based on ‘My Old Flame’. There is plenty of space for both pianists to fully stretch out and they improvise off and on sometimes separately and sometimes together. When one improvises the other provides heavy background playing. When they improvise together they react on what the other is doing and vice versa. Sometimes imitating each other or playing each note in the other direction. It sounds like a competition sometimes but not like anyone really has to win. It’s more about pushing the other further and further. They also seem to really feel what the other is about to play. It’s really a fascinating hearing. Then there’s the overall sound: it’s jazzy, bluesy, experimental, free, structured all in one.

You could definitely hear Mal’s influence on Yamashita’s playing. Yamashita hits the piano probably even harder but most of all: he really is an original player and not some copycat. He manages to play excellent solo’s using all kinds of phrases, sometimes from well known songs. And he also manages to push Mal into creative territory with his energetic background playing. Mal has played piano duo’s before and after but Yamashita is probably the best ‘opponent’.

This was never released on vinyl so cd is your only option. I’ve got the 1986 original which sounds excellent and is a bit cheaper to buy than the 1998 reissue on Village Records. Recommended stuff for piano jazz lovers and of course Yamashita fan’s. A highly successful experiment which should be listened to with headphones on so you can hear even better what Mal and Yosuke are doing separately.

(1985) Sumiko Yoseyama/Mal Waldron - Duo and Duo 76/45 **

 

With: Sumiko Yoseyama (vocals), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: September/October, 1985

Okay, resit! Really I gave this one a fair chance and have to admit that it’s a little better than it’s predecessor. Why? Well first of all there is no strings to be found here nor a cocktail jazz band. It’s just Sumiko and Mal which gives it a more sincere sound. Also, there’s a little more space for Mal. And his soloing is pretty warm and nice as is his playing behind Sumiko. And the last improvement is the English of Sumiko which seems to be a little better.

But part from that: this is still pretty hard to listen to for me. I still really think Sumiko is just not a very great singer. Her timing is so so, her technique very basic and her sound is not pleasant or warm. There is no soul in her singing which is essential, especially when you sing with Mal.

There are plenty of buying options on both vinyl or cd. I’ve got the ‘Tuff Beats’ remaster from 2005 that also contains the duo 76/45 as a bonus. So no review of that album here. Which is probably better anyway.

(1985) And Alone ***

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano solo)
Record date: September 1-2, 1985

Mal’s stay in Japan in 1985 was a pretty productive one. The first record he made was a solo effort for Sony Japan. It’s his first solo record in a studio since the 1972 Paula album: ‘On Steinway’. That album contained four very interesting originals, this one consists mostly of standards and 2 Mal classics that seem to be obligated to play for Mal in Japan: All Alone and Left Alone. The result is a nice but pretty straightforward album. It’s a lovely album do some work at home to, or read a book in front of the fireplace. Not a record that strikes with surprise after surprise.

When Mal plays standards solo he mostly really play them and improvise around the theme. That means no explorations outside of the chord schemes or anything. He plays them in a very classic way with thoughtful ornamentations around some of the notes. With one exception, this album is also a ballad only album. So just be prepared to listen to some nice piano playing.

This album was reissued quite recently in 2015 and is still in print. The original is not hard to find either. If you’re looking for a very straightforward and relaxing record this is one for you. But Mal made much more exciting work solo, both live as in the studio.

(1985) David Friesen/Mal Waldron - Remembering Mal ***1/2

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), David Friesen (bass)
Record date: July, 1985

Mal’s second duo recording with David Friesen was a live encounter in a LA restaurant. As a recording date, it’s his first of many albums for the Soul Note label. But this one was released posthumously in 2006, hence the title: Remembering Mal. The album has a more jam session like feel than their Muse studio album. That means a little less emotional depth but a highly enjoyable live gig filled with jazz standards.

And they chose some very fine jazz standards. If I Were a Bell has that same joyous feel over it like the studio version on the Muse album. It’s highly energetic and Friesen really shows of his excellent technique. ‘Fire Waltz’ is of course a classic and it’s nice to hear Friesen’s freewheeling accompaniment while Mal is giving an excellent solo. ‘Round Midnight is always beautiful out of Mal’s hands and this is not an exception though it does not level up with the version with Workman and Blackwell. All in all, Mal and Friesen were a well matching duo. Friesen is a modest bassist with an excellent technique. In no way one of the musicians try to overrule the other, it really is interplay on a high level.

Released quite recently this is still quite easy to obtain. It’s also part of the second Soul Note/Black Saint box which I highly recommend. 11 Mal discs for around 30 euros is really a steal. The overall sound quality of this recording is not optimal. Friesen’s bass is pretty well recorded but Mal’s piano sounds a bit plastic at times. There’s also a lot of background restaurant noise but that really doesn’t bother me at all. It adds up to the live atmosphere. It might irritate you if you’re sensitive for that kind of stuff. This is not essential Mal, but just a very enjoyable live session by two gifted musicians.

(1985) Femi Bellomo/Mal Waldron - Since You've Gone **

 

With: Femi Bellomo (vocals), Roberto Ottaviano (soprano and alto saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano), Attilo Zanchi (bass), Gianni Cazzola (drums)
Record date: March 11 to 15, 1985

From the year 1983 Mal would regularly accompany female jazz vocalists. He did quite a few times with different Italian singers: Femi Bellomo, Danila Satragno, Tiziana Ghiglioni and Tiziana Simona. Mal had a few countries he visited very often and Italy, also on of his first European residences for a small time, was one of them where he also recorded quite a lot records. Of course he also had a pretty long association with the great Italian Soul Note label. For this session, Mal plays with an all Italian band including Roberto Ottaviano which whom he would later record a duo album for DIW.

There they are again: vocals…. I have to admit that contrary to Yoseyama, Femi Bellomo could actually sing. But do I like her voice? Nah I really don’t. It’s loud and in you’re face. She’s at her best on Mal’s Seagull’s where she sings with a more gentle approach. The band is pretty much okay but as with most of the vocal albums, hasn’t really got the opportunity to actually show off. Ottoviano is a pretty good player but a bit too smooth for my taste at times. He's definitely more interesting on the duo album he recorded with Mal. Mal’s own role is pretty modest too. He does really make clear again why is so much in favor by vocals. His timing is just incredible and so steady.

There’s only one issue released: the original Dire LP from 1985. I really think the sound quality is really bad for a studio record from that time. It sounds hollow with lot’s of echoing especially on Bellomo’s singing. Ottaviano’s soprano sounds like it's doubled times. Very weird. An interesting recording if you like vocal jazz and Mal Waldron. If you don’t really feel for that kinda thing you could skip without hesitation.

(1984) Steve Lacy/Mal Waldron - Live in Berlin ****1/2

 

With: Steve Lacy (soprano saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: June 15, 1984

One year after the release of the great Bimhuis encounter, another duet was released posthumously. One might think you could have enough Waldron/Lacy duets or having one is having them all but it really is quite the contrary. This ‘Jazzwerkstatt’ is another highly recommended recording by this golden duo. It was released 5 years after Waldron died and only three years after Lacy’s death. It’s in a suite form with beautiful transitions from one composition into the other.

The opening ‘Improvisation’ is hearing two master musicians creating something fascinating on the spot. Sometimes Lacy leads and Mal follows. Then Mal takes over and Lacy follows. Sometimes they both lead and sometimes no one really does. Mal’s improvisation is very intense on this one. It flows over in ‘Blinks’. Which is a typical Lacy composition: a complex original with lots of suprises and floating within and without structures. It’s where Mal actually stops playing chords but playing the piano more at the service of Lacy’s improvisation. Lacy play’s the most incredible sounds: sometimes he sounds angry, then happy again, sometimes sad and then jumpy again. ‘A Flower is A Lonesome Thing’ is beautiful way of getting to hear what was to come on ‘Sempre Amore’: the Billy Strayhorn tribute. And as much as their interpretations of Monk work, so does their interpretation of that great composer. Lacy’s tune is full of beauty and compassion, his solo is mild and tender. So is Mal’s solo that just contain a few notes but say more than a thousand words. The closing Monk tunes are standard repertoire by the duo and as always: they nail it.

A record that Is widely available and highly recommended. It’s one of the few albums that is actually still in print. If you’re a fan of this duo, this is essential stuff. Jazzwerkstatt did a great job releasing this beautiful music.

(1984) Mal Waldron/David Friesen - Encounters ****

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), David Friesen (bass)
Record date: March 18, 1984

This is the first of 3 duo encounters with jazz bassist David Friesen and it’s my favorite one of them. It’s a very intimate but also varied record with all kinds of music and influences. The starting standard ‘If I Were a Bell’ is a great success. According to the liners both Waldron and Friesen laughed troughout the complete song while playing it. And one could really hear that: it’s full of easy but joyous playing and tons of interaction. The title songs is a more free yet very accessible composition with a beautiful start by Mal, than Friesen comes in just interacting almost telepathically with what Mal is doing. His bass playing sounds very warm.

It’s Friesen’s solo effort that is probably the most impressive piece on the album: ‘For Toby’ was written for his youngest song and it’s incredibly beautiful. It’s not jazz in a traditional matter but a highly emotional melody played on his ‘Oregon’ bass. That instrument allows him to delay with a Roland pedal and overdub himself while playing. ‘Night Wind’ starts with an almost ambient feel, Friesen playing Shakuhachi, a Japanese kind of flute. Then Mal falls in with a very simple but beautiful repeating motive. Again it lays pretty far from traditional jazz and has hint’s of eastern music, ambient and new age. It’s very refreshing to hear. Then there’s another jazz standard, a ballad to be precisely. And ‘Imagination’ is performed with great beauty and subtlety. Listening to what you’re companion is doing is so important in jazz and this record is all about that. You could hear a form of mutual respect and admiration trough their playing. The session comes to an end with Mal playing a solo piece. It’s loud and highly percussive with Mal exploring both inside as outside as the title already suggests. It's slow and fast, staccato and waltzing, bluesy and free. Great closing song.

This was Mal’s only recording put out for the famous Muse label which has brought out so many underrated jazz classics. As with most Muse LP’s there were probably produced quite a few as there are plenty of copies to be found on the internet, even sealed ones! And also like with most second hand Muse recordings it’s cheap but best available in the U.S. I have got the Japanese Sony cd which really sounds awesome. Especially with the solo track by Friesen, it’s like you’re inside his bass. If you’re able to find a copy for a decent price do not hesitate. This is the Waldron/Friesen duet I like best. It’s a very personal and creative record with plenty of pleasant surprises.

(1983) Sumiko Yoseyama/Mal Waldron - With Mal (Sumiko Yoseyama Meets Mal Waldron) *

 

With: Sumiko Yoseyama (vocals), Mal Waldron (piano), Kunimitsu Inaba (bass), Motohiko Hino (drums)
Record date: December 21, 22 and 28, 1983

Mal really was fond of female singers. Of course his affiliation with Billy Holiday is the thing some people know him best for. And his calm, dark tones really blend well with most female voices. Yet between 1964 and and 1983 he only recorded once with a singer: with Kimiko Kasai for Victor Japan. In 1983 he recorded with another Japanese singer: Sumiko Yoseyama. And from this session, he would record lots of times with female vocalists: Italian singers, Japanese singers and American singers. As I mentioned in my Kasai review, I am really not a big fan of vocal jazz. The only ones I really, really enjoy are Lady Day and Ella. So please bear that in mind while reading these reviews.

This session…. oh boy I really, really dislike it. Not to offend anyone, especially not Sumiko, but I really think she’s much of a singer. She has a very flat voice, not vibrato whatsoever and not capable to improvise with it. It sounds a bit cold and sometimes even out of tune. But she also isn’t really speaking the English language very well. Where Kasai sounds pretty fluent, Sumiko has a very thick Japanese accent which makes a lot of sentences pretty hard to understand. And a bit laughable at times. Then there’s the band. Mal really is nothing more than an accompanying pianist with zero space to improvise or stretch out. Same goes for the rest of the band: they could probably play very well but can’t show off anywhere. Now Jeanne Lee was a singer who could really give that space. And there’s the songs with strings…. which makes it even worse. Not much of a strings fan anyway but I know plenty of examples where it actually adds something. Here: it really does not and they sound as chords coming from a keyboard. Yuk.

As I am not so fond of vocals anyway one should always check out for themselves of course. Plenty of samples to be found on the internet. Not cheap to buy so be sure this is really you’re thing. I’ve got the cd version which is fine.

(1983) You And The Night And The Music ***1/2

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), Reggie Workman (bass), Ed Blackwell (drums)
Record date: December 9, 1983

On the very same day the Satie tribute was recorded, the trio recorded another album for a different label. It’s titled You And The Night And The Music. It’s an album full of jazz standards and just one Mal original. Mal recording standards could be very interesting but also a bit dull at times. It gives him less space to stretch out and seems to limit his freedom a bit. With this record, it’s a bit of both. There are a few very interesting parts and also some that are a little boring probably. There is not a bad note to be found of course but one wonders what this group could have been capable of playing some of Mal’s originals or perhaps Workman’s compositions. It would probably have lead to a more interesting record.

Every version of every standard is very solid. And like Mal ’81 and Run About Mal with that other trio, this is very pleasant music. Even on more mainstream music like this both Workman and Blackwell are still able to find freedom in all the chords. The interplay between the musicians comes natural: the guys probably did not rehearse at all. The most beautiful song and best of the album is the version of ‘Round Midnight with Workman using his bow to provide a very deep grumbling sound that really ads something to this classic composition. Another one is the title song with Blackwell’s multi rhythmic playing and a great drum solo. The closing Waldron composition is also very beatiful. Dedicated to his mother who died in 1979. According to Mal she was a warm but very strict person. As stated before: some pretty great music but musicians of this level are definitely capable of more. They probably should have taken a bit more time.

Plenty of reissues are still avaible. The Japanese are all on Paddle Wheel/King. The US is on ProJazz, a label unknown to me. I have got the cd reissue on Paddle Wheel Japan from 2005. Great sound, basic packaging but with English liner notes! Liner notes that start with a pretty false statement: that Mal’s music became milder after his move to Europe…. Probably a mistake in translation? As it is a bit scarce in both Europe and US of course there are only Japanese sellers trying to take advantage of it asking ridiculous prices for it. As the liners are not essential one should probably grab the cheapest. Not a very challenging album but more like a pretty great jam session.

(1983) Plays Eric Satie ****

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), Reggie Workman (bass), Ed Blackwell (drums)
Record date: December 8, 1983

In 1983, Waldron toured Japan with his band of that time: the awesome trio with Workman and Blackwell. Mal is a classicaly schooled pianist with a master in composition. In his young years he had to play the works by Chopin, Beethoven and Mozart hundreds of times. He did not dislike it but his heart was more in jazz anyway. Yet, classical music and some composers influenced him. The great modern French composer Erik Satie was definitely one of them. Mal is a bit like the Satie of jazz. Just like Mal, Satie was really a musician of the ‘less is more’ philosophy. No bombastic orchestra’s or nervous staccato runs but beautiful almost meditative compositions. Repetitive patterns were also a part of his style.

As I already stated in the ‘Breaking New Ground’ review, Mal’s version of Satie’s second Gymnopedie was a success. And the guys probably felt that way also so they decided a full album with Satie tributes and compositions. It lead to a very accessible and highly enjoyable album of music. It’s also surprising to hear how the music suits both Workman and Blackwell. Both pretty loud players from the free jazz scene, they manage these subtle compositions more than fine. And they do not get boring for one second.

Now fucking around with classical music and give it a jazzy vibe is a pretty risky business. Perhaps purists would still be offended but I think the openminded Satie would like it. It’s fascinating to hear how well Satie’s music lends it self to be jazzified without sounding silly. Workman could really swing his arse of in a composition like Premiere Pensee Rose + Croix. The same goes for Blackwell who plays in a really supportive kind of way without being boring or predictable. Big highlight of the album is definitely Gymnopedie No.1 which is my favorite Satie composition anyway. It’s treated with the respect it really deserves. Mal plays in a beautiful airy style giving it exactly the sound and feel it needs.

This is a Japan only release which makes it always a bit more difficult to obtain but it is far from impossible. There are multiple cd releases. I have the original LP version which sounds absolutely great. They fortunately put Workman pretty forward in the mix. This is definitely not Mal’s most innovative or shocking album but it is really, really nice to listen to. If you’re a true Mal fan: get it!

(1983) Breaking New Ground ****

 

With: Mal Waldron (piano), Reggie Workman (bass), Ed Blackwell (drums)
Record date: June 28 & 29, 1983

In 1983, Mal formed a trio that was to record 3 albums in a year. But part from these trio records, of course both Workman as Blackwell would play on far more sessions with Mal in different settings. For instance they formed the rhythm section on the famous Village Vanguard tapes with Woody Shaw and Charlie Rouse. Their first trio record was recorded in New York, but put out in Japan only at first (there is some confusion about this, but as David Baker was the engineer, New York makes more sense and so was it credited on it’s initial release. ‘Breaking New Ground’ is exactly what the title says: Mal is actually breaking new ground again. This time he does not only explore modal jazz and bop but also classical music and for the first time since ‘Eleneor Rigby’ in 1969: pop music. The results are a bit mixed and that makes this record pretty hard to judge. It contains some of Mal’s finest work but some of the experiments are less successful.

This trio was a lust for the ears. Really: both Workman and Blackwell are of course top notch jazz musicians and are both among my favorites. But their style really fits in well with Mal’s. Both are able, just like Mal, to play both inside as outside. All three of them are percussive players, even Workman with his hard swinging bass. And all three of them are players that are really driving on the vibe by other players, focused on what others are doing. The results are pretty great.

The starting waltz is a beautiful warming up for what is up to come. The version of Suicide Is Painless is the best and most creative I have ever heard. From the quite relaxed theme song it was it is transformed in a hard grooving and swinging song with plenty of space for all three to explore. It starts of pretty sweet but turns bad within seconds. Mal’s left hand almost pushes trough the keys causing heavy droning effects. Workman plays is ass of hitting every spot and Blackwell is the solid background player that is doing all kinds of things yet keeping control. Workman’s solo is classic Workman with a deep and dark twist. Using his bow, jamming on his bass like a guitar to give it a dark but funky feeling with Mal subtly playing the repeating chords in the background.

The remakes of the pop tunes are pretty daring of course and it speaks for Mal that he was so open minded. But they are not a very big success. Earth Wind and Fire’s ‘After the Love Has Gone’ really sounds in parts like a cocktail pianist playing soul classics on a piano. When Mal starts soloing it get’s a little better but still: one begs for the original as that sound really suits better. ‘Beat It’ is more like a small break in the album but a pretty unnecessary one and with ‘You Are The Sunshine of My Life’ one has too say: this is just not Mal’s kinda thing. Or perhaps not the right jazzy remake. Stevie’s version is preferably anyway. Definitely not bad music but it just doesn’t really work out.

Satie’s Gymnopedie #2 is a completely different story. Boy does that work out well. Of course Mal was already influenced by the great French composer and his minimalistic approach is a similarity to that of Mal. And it feels very natural to Mal. His gentle touch is perfect for this tune. But what is even more beautiful is to hear Workman’s deep bass far in the background. His soloing is again of great beauty. Clearly respecting Satie’s music his approach is also minimalistic. The guys probably felt this success as well because they recorded a full Satie tribute at the end of the year in December.

And then there’s ‘Everything Must Change’ where the magic works a little better. There’s some more interaction but mostly: it’s sounds all a bit more natural. The music has a melancholy over it that goes well with Mal’s sad playing. Again there is some beautiful sensitive bass playing by Reggie Workman and Mal hit’s all the right notes. And the closing songs is more of a free effort with some less structure and more outside playing. The contrast with ‘After The Love Has Gone’ could not be bigger. Of course both Workman and Blackwell feel very much at ease here. Nice closing song of a very mixed record.

‘Breaking New Ground’ is widely available in different versions. It was originally released on Baystate Japan. Especially the Eastwind reissues are pretty easy to obtain for a low price. Some of them have a white cover. Eastwind did not put out the most beatiful reissues. Though it’s okay sound wise, the packaging is very, very basic. Should you get it? I think so. Of course there are some less successful compositions but they are interesting also for Mal did not play a lot of pop tunes. But it’s songs like MASH and the Satie composition that are really making it worth it.

(1982) Steve Lacy & Mal Waldron - At The Bimhuis 1982 *****

 

With: Steve Lacy (soprano saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano)
Record date: December 10, 1982

In December 1982 Lacy and Waldron gave a performance at the old Bimhuis in Amsterdam. It was a very small, cozy but also little uncomfortable venue but lots of jazz giants performed there. It was also a bit like the homebase of musicians like Micha Mengelberg, Han Bennink etc. The music was recorded by Sjaak Willemse but not released until 2006. It was my first acquaintance with the duo music of Mal and Lacy and always remained my favorite. This really is one of my desert island discs.

The session starts with Lacy’s beautiful ‘Blues for Aida’ which has a very strange and cold atmosphere yet feels highly emotional. It has this desolate feel in, it’s difficult to describe. Lacy’s intensely cold sound on soprano also has strange very warm tone all at once and that is so clearly hearable on this ballad. His upper register squealing, where you could almost hear his breath going trough his horn, just hits you right to the bone. Then there’s ‘Snake Out’ in one of it’s most thrilling versions. Mal sets a very fast tempo and Lacy sometimes go with Mal but also improvises after en before the beat sealing constant interaction with Waldron’s nervous chord playing. It’s music that demands to listen to every single note that has been played. But nervous and hunted as it sound at first hand there comes a transition in the 6th minute where Mal changes the whole structure of the tune. The chords get darker and darker and Lacy starts talking trough his horn, squeaking than returning back to his regular playing again. Every minute is one full of fascination. Then there’s Mal’s bluesy solo hitting on the same Blue notes over and over again. He’s stamping his feet so hard on the Bimhuis floor you could actually hear it on record. From the more up tempo style he goes more into a ballad style where every note seems to be the right one. His piano sounds warm and full in sound. And then when it actually starts to sound a bit comfortable back is the theme again and Lacy’s back too.

Nobody plays like Lacy and Waldron combined. They start with a great version of ‘Reflections’ which shows a more gentle side of both of them. Mal is playing a little more virtuoso and Lacy is playing more between the lines yet still stepping out here and there. But it’s never boring as still a lot is happening in their playing. And just like Monk you could hear originality, creativity and humor all trough. The version of ‘Round Midnight is probably my all time favorite, by any artist. It again has that desolate almost depressing (in a good way?) feel. A deeply emotional version, almost spiritual. Like Lacy actually having a conversation with Mal trough their instruments. Just listen to the small break at 2:20. To me that is what music is all about.

Only one version is available of this great release. That is the 2006 cd version on the Dutch ‘Daybreak’ label. The sound quality is excellent and it’s still widely available. Highly recommended especially if the 4cd ‘Dreher’ set is perhaps a little big to start with. This one is probably a bit more accessible too. If you run into it, do not hesitate and buy it. Well, I would even dare to say: get yourself a copy!

(1982) In Retrospect **

 

With: Akira Miyazawa (tenor saxophone, flute), Mal Waldron (piano), Isao Suzuki (bass), Hironobu Fuzisawa (drums)
Record date: April 23, 1982

Mal did not bring a band to Japan in 1982 so the records he made there were with Japanese musicians. Isao Suzuki was an old companion of Mal playing excellent bass parts on the great Reminiscent Suite. Both the well recorded Miyazawa as the lesser known Fuzisawa were mostly active in the Japanese jazz scene. Part from the opening ‘All Alone’ this is a standard only album. But standards could be played in a very interesting way. Unfortunately that is not really the case here.

The opening with Mal’s beautiful ‘All Alone’ is probably the best of the record. Miyazawa’s solo is thoughtful and beautiful and I dig it, even though I am not a very big flute fan. With ‘Oleo’ comes the boredom unfortunately… Really what the hell is Miyazawa doing? It’s really playing blues scale after blues scale. The predictability of his solo’s throughout the album is pretty annoying. He really sounds like a saxophonist who has just picked up the horn and practices with scales and ladders. The paths on this album have been walked on so many times. Standards could be made exciting but here they are not. One could play standards in a boring way but still impress with great technical abilities or a big personality. This album lacks both of them. Suzuki sounds uninspired here too and Mal just plays his part, nothing more and nothing less. And that goes for the whole band. They just play, play and play. But it does not really lead anywhere nor does it mean anything. The best parts in the music are the more slow pieces like ‘All Alone’ and ‘I Can’t Get Started’ where Miyazawa sounds bit better in place.

‘In Retrospect’ is very, very widely available record on both vinyl and cd. I’ve got the very cheap version on the American ‘Four Star’ label. Not only cheap in money but also in packaging, it almost looks like a cd-r. Always listen for yourself but if you ask me: this is a Mal record you might wanna skip. It really sounds like a pretty boring jam session.

(1982) Kazutoki Umezu/Mal Waldron - Another Step **1/2

 

With: Kazutoki Umezu (alto saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano), Takeharu Hayakawa (bass), Takashi Kikuchi (drums)
Record date: April 21-22, 1982

In 1982 it was 7 years ago Mal made his last record in Japan. That was the quartet with Jackie McLean and Billy Higgins for Victor. Now 7 years later he was back to make another series of albums in the Land of the Rising Sun for the coming years. All for different labels. The first one was as a co-leader with Japanese jazz alto-saxophonist Kazutoki Umezu. There’s two standards, two originals by the alto saxophonist and one Waldron composition to be played. Bass is played by Hayakawa and drums by Kikuchi.

Most of these guys mostly played within the Japanese jazz scene. Umezu is a saxophone player… well it really has to be your style. To me it lacks originality and character at times but I also seriously sometimes doubt if he could actually really play changes that well. And on one hand you’ve got the feeling it’s changes he wants to play, but he also sometimes sound like he wants to go ‘out there’. But when he does, it does not come natural and sound nice. The opening standard ‘I Should Care’ is played in a very decent manner. There’s no chance for the rhythm section to stretch out and they really do not do anything more than accompany Mal and Umezu. That really goes for most of the album. Umezu sounds like he’s searching for something but just cannot find it, just missing the notes he actually wanted to play. ‘Lonely Nights’ is probably the best piece. Umezu plays a nice and subdued solo, Mal’s solo is beautiful.

Hole in Stomach Woman starts like a free jazz piece but returns back to structure quite rapidly. It all sounds a bit humorous. Umezu’s solo is a bit more inspired by Oliver Lake and Eric Dolphy this time but he does not reach that level of technical skill. The repetitiveness of some of his licks sounds a bit annoying at times. Finally there is some more space for the bassist and drummer but they both fail to impress. Closing up is the ok but bit boring waltz and the classic ‘Round Midnight. That composition could make or break the record of course. It’s definitely the composition where most of the band sounds a bit more inspired. Some nice moments there.

This record is still pretty well available on vinyl. The cd version, that I own myself, is pretty rare. Perhaps there is something in Umezu’s playing that I just don’t hear and I am giving the guy a hard time. Or perhaps I am making an unjust comparison to those other ’80’s quartets with Joe Henderson and Clifford Jordan. But in my opinion, this is a pretty forgettable session. Mal’s solo’s make up a little bit but this album could be skipped easily.

(1982) One Entrance, Many Exits ***1/2

 

With: Joe Henderson (tenor saxophone), Mal Waldron (piano), David Friesen (bass), Billy Higgins (drums)
Record date: January 4, 1982

In the ’80’s Mal went to the States more often and stayed for longer periods over there. In the first month of 1982 he was still there and made a recording for yet another label: Palo Alto. He formed another great group also: this time it’s not Clifford Jordan but nobody less than the great Joe Henderson on tenor saxophone. There is David Friesen on bass, with whom Mal would make several duo albums and the good old solid Higgins on drums.

The record starts of with ‘Golden Golson’ which really reminds of Benny Golson’s classic ‘I Remember Clifford’. It’s a pretty straightforward effort with Henderson playing some changes and creating a sound that actually reminds one of Golson. A nice tribute. The title song is a duet between Friesen and Waldron and contains some more out playing. It’s like a conversation between the two without words with Friesen not just picking chords or notes but playing with possible sound effects from his bass too. It’s a very interesting duet with lots of silence used to create a weird kind of tension in the music. ‘Chazz Jazz’ is a solo effort and Henderson returns together with Higgins on ‘Herbal Syndrome’ which is really is one of the best songs of the album. With a very nice modal groove and Henderson returning to his regular sound this could have easily been on a classic Henderson Blue Note date. There’s a little Coltrane present here too. The lovely droning bowing bass by Friesen gives it a nice eastern feeling as does Henderson’s dissonance and overblows. The reading of ‘How Deep is the Ocean’ is lovely with Henderson’s excellent soloing and an inspired piece by Mal himself. Henderson just really shows these kind of standards are in his blood. The ease of his improvisation says it all. The closing piece is more of the same: a nice contemporary jazz song but nothing really surprising or shocking. For me that is the small downside on this album. When I saw the names present here I expected a little more excitement. Nonetheless the playing is excellent of course.

This was Mal’s only record for the American Palo Alto label. Copies on both vinyl and cd are widely available and both do not cost a lot of money. It’s definitely money well spend and is considered one of Mal's best records. Yet I miss a little a spark here and there. But that's my personal taste of course.