Record Reviews

JOE HARRIOTT ~ THREE CLASSIC ALBUMS REAL GONE JAZZ 499 (Barcode: 5036408174529) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1959 - 1962 Released: 2015 This is a reissue of the first three albums by British (born in Jamaica) saxophonist / composer Joe HarriottFind albums by this artist, one of the pivotal figures of modern British Jazz. These albums were recorded with the absolute crème de la crème of the aspiring new wave of British Jazz musicians, who were transforming the Jazz idiom at the time. They include trumpeters Hank ShawFind albums by this artist and Shake KeaneFind albums by this artist, pianists Harry SouthFind albums by this artist and Pat SmytheFind albums by this artist, bassist Coleridge GoodeFind albums by this artist and drummers Bobby OrrFind albums by this artist and Phil SeamenFind albums by this artist. Percussionist Frank HolderFind albums by this artist guest on several tracks. The sequence of these three albums, recorded over a period of about three years, is perhaps the most important example of the birth of the revolutionary modern British Jazz in the early 1960s, which was about to spread shortly also to the rest of the Continent. The first album "Southern HorizonsFind albums with this title" (recorded between May 1959 and April 1960) is seemingly a straightforward Bebop date, but a more advanced listener will find some highly unusual twists and turns, somewhat related to the work of Ornette ColemanFind albums by this artist, which already take this album beyond Bebop and into a more adventurous area Harriott was already developing in his head. The second album "Free FormFind albums with this title" (recorded in November 1960), which despite its title is not about the commonly conceived Free Jazz idiom, takes a dramatic leap forward, even beyond what Coleman was doing at the time, creating the European equivalent of Free Form, which was much more subtle and sophisticated in many respects and based on amalgamation of chord structures, tonality, rhythmic diversity and contemporary European Classical influences with the Jazz tradition. The result is presented on this album in full bloom, and constitutes perhaps the "Big Bang" of European Jazz. The third album "AbstractFind albums with this title" (recorded between November 1961 and May 1962) is a full blown Free Form masterpiece, which to this day is one of the strongest examples of primal modern British Jazz, which has almost nothing to do with American Jazz tradition and breaks all possible barriers and limitations, opening a new prospect for things to come. In spite of his genius, or perhaps because of it, Harriott would die in 1973 as a lonely, forgotten and destitute man, ravaged by illness, after almost four years of inactivity. His music and his pivotal contribution to British Jazz was sadly almost completely ignored for decades and even today he is known only to a selected group of admirers. Any serious Jazz connoisseur, who is not familiar with these albums, should rectify this unforgivable neglect ASAP, as there would not be British / European Jazz as we know it without Joe Harriott´s contribution. Absolutely essential! Side Note The Real Gone JazzFind albums on this label label releases hundreds of album collections, which include usually between three to eight original albums in a two to four CDs sets. Most of these albums were recorded and released in the 1950s and early 1960s. These collections provide the track lists and lineups of the original albums, but no recording information, liner notes and any background information whatsoever. The label takes advantage of the copyright law in UK, which limited the length of the copyright protection of recorded works to 50 years, after which recorded works become public domain. In 2013 UK implemented a correction of the copyright law extending the protection of recorded works to 70 years (like the rest of Europe), but the correction does not apply retroactively, which means that recordings which entered the 50 years rule prior to January 1, 2013 (i.e. recorded before January 1, 1963) remain public domain. There are two great advantages to these releases: they are really inexpensive and they bring back to life many albums not reissued previously on CD, which means it would cost a collector an arm and a leg to get a copy of them. Many of these albums are absolute gems and essential pieces of Jazz history. The disadvantages are: the lack of proper information, original cover art, combining tracks of several original albums on one CD and the sound quality, which depends on where the label gets the source material. From my experience most of the releases have quite excellent sound quality but I have not listened to all of them and some people have complained about it.

Updated: 27/05/2018Posted: 26/03/2016

CD 2 Digipak Remastered Essential Recommend To A Friend