Sarah Vaughan - "Feelin' Good" (1972, Mainstream)

22.3.09 - Hello to all the New York Times readers who read the story about the man searching for "Just a Little Lovin" ... a friend sent me the article today. My conjecture is that the guy who finally sent him the song a few weeks ago got it from here ... timing seems right ... anyway welcome, enjoy, say hi in the comments ...

Sarah Vaughan's third studio album for Mainstream Records sits somewhere between the lush orchestrations of the Michel Legrand "Sarah Vaughan" album and the pop-jazz stylings of "Send In The Clowns" and "A Time In My Life".

"Feelin' Good" includes both contemporary pop songs and classics with rich orchestrations coming from three groups of arrangers.

This is not my usual jazz - the album arrived in a throwaway box from a retiring DJ. I dismissed it on a quick listen, but revisited it when I noticed that it was missing from the Shad Shack, and several tracks have grown on me since.

At this stage of her career Vaughan is something of a vocal dramatist, and here refines the dynamic range that Legrand's orchestrations had afforded her on the previous album. To my mind, she hits the mark in spectacular fashion on about half of this album ... and sounds like a drag queen channelling Shirley Bassey on the other half.

Michel Legrand's only contribution here is "Deep in the Night", an extraordinary track that builds from a cocktail bar blues into a full scale drama that leaves you breathless, with vocal and instrumental arrangements that trump anything on their previous collaboration - it ended up being tacked on to the CD re-release of the other album.

"Easy Evil" is a great restrained soulful piece, previously covered on this blog on Marcia Hines' album "Marcia Shines". Some nice wah-wah guitar, building brass and evil strings. "Promise Me" is a good ballad, with a nice reverbed second vocal playing call-and-answer with Vaughan's main vocal.

"Take a Love Song" sounds here like a lost Burt Bacharach number that deserves to be found, and is written by Donny Hathaway - just another example of his lost genius, covered from his second studio album.

"Just a Little Lovin' " is the established sample dig here (though I never quite understand why people want to dig holes that have already been dug, isn't that more canine than hip hop, behaviourly speaking? ) Anyway ... a guy named Irfane had a notable, catchy underground success about four years ago when he chopped it over a compressed house pulse, first running into sample clearance problems and then later releasing it on an album under the moniker "Outlines". Here's that track.

Hope you enjoy this album, just watch out for "Alone Again (Naturally)" and a cover of the Bee Gee's "Run To Me", along with a few of the others they're just a little bit scary. This album is guaranteed 50 % killer!

TRACKLIST
01. And The Feeling's Good (4:20)
(N.Gimbel - C.Fox)
02. Just A Little Lovin' Early In The Mornin' (3:07)
(Mann-Weil)
03. Alone Again (Naturally) (4:25)
(R. O'Sullivan)
04. Rainy Days And Mondays (3:42)
(Nichols-Williams)
05. Deep In The Night (3:17)
(Miller-Miriam)
06. Run To Me (3:00)
(Bee Gees - R.Stigwood)
07. Easy Evil (3:04)
(Alan O'Day)
08. Promise Me (4:00)
(Peter Matz - Carol Hall)
09. Take A Love Song (3:25)
(D.Hathaway - N.McKinnon)
10. Greatest Show On Earth (3:00)
(J.Marcellino - M.Larson)
11. When You Think Of It (4:00)
(R. Allen - A.Kent)

PRODUCTION DETAILS
Mainstream Records MRL 379
Producer - Bobby Shad
Conductor, Arranged By:
Allyn Ferguson (tracks 2, 6, 10)
Jack Elliott (tracks 2, 6, 10)
Michel Legrand (tracks 5)
Peter Matz (tracks 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9)

POST CREDITS
Vinyl rip by Simon666
Links in this post go to the Shad Shack and Daytime Lovers.
Thank them for their work if you go there!

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Please say hi in the comments. 

Yusef Lateef - "The African-American Epic Suite" for quintet & orchestra (1993)

A very different Yusef Lateef piece from the last post - a dark conceptual work for quintet and orchestra from 1993. We'll get the composer to explain :

Yusef Lateef said :

1st movement excerpt

1st Movement :
The African as Non American

As this movement opens you are taken back in time, about three hundred years, to the continent of West Africa. You imagine that you are listening to the music of Yoruba, Hausa, Akan, Ewe, Senufa, Benin, Dahomey, Ebo or Ashanti people, etcetera. In other words, you are listening to a music which has its historical roots in the soil of Africa.

In the 20th measure the violins enter on the note of D flat, one octave above high C. Programmatically the violins represent the first slave ships, stealthily approaching the shore of West Africa. The high D flat continues, gradually increasing in volume and intensity. by teh 58th measure the D flat has reached an alarming medium forte. In the 59th measure the slavers land and commence to capture the Africans. At this instant the calmness, serenity and calculated capriciousness of the African music is disturbed.

Now, fright, flight, cacaphony and mayhem can be heard in the music. The rest of the movement reflects the futile efforts of the Africans desperately tying to avoid the chains and shackles of the relentless slavers, ending with the bassoon sounding the nine note motif that signals the unknown future of the captives.


2nd movement excerpt

2nd Movement:
The Middle Passage and Transmutation

This movement opens with a dirge like passage which denotes the captives being stabilised in the bowels of the slave ship, with chains and unyielding leg irons. Sounds of pain are heard at intervals throughout the movement. Physical suffering and thoughts of sadness burdened with bewilderment rack the bodies and tax the minds of the captives during the middle passage, as well, tender thoughts and supplications of prayer for their families left behind pour forth from their tongues and hearts between the frequent moments of anguish and excruciating pain endured during the middle passage.

The motif, in a different context, sounds again near the end of this movement, which are followed by African exclamations, that are neither happy nor sad, at the sight of land - America - the new world, from which comes a new kind of human being (a trans-mutation), the African American.


3rd movement excerpt

3rd Movement
Love For All

Since the Great Awakening of the early nineteenth century it was realized by most of the known world that the African American reflected spirituality, love and a deep sense of compassion in his/her music; therefore, the 3rd movement reflects as deeply as the composer. Conductor and musicians are able to emit through musical sounds : compassion and love for all mankind.


4th movement excerpt

4th Movement
Freedom

The opening nine chords of the 4th movement, accompanied by the side-blown Chinese flute heralds the freedom of the African American academic and artistic expression, which actually began in earnest after the abolition of slavery, and has continued to blossom consistently even to this day, by the grace of God. This movement in essence, reflects this evolution beginning in the early sixties through 1993.
All praise is to god.

Simon adds :

I came across a reference to an essay by David Pope, an ex-student of Lateef, called "Diverse Compositional Techniques in Yusef Lateef's African American Epic Suite "First Movement - The African as Non-American" , from a journal called ex tempore, A Journal of Compositional and Theoretical Research in Music (Vol. IX/2: Spring/Summer 1999). I didn't have any luck getting in without the correct academic passwords, but I did manage to extract the images, three pages from Lateef's score for the first movement :



TRACKLIST

01 1st Movement : The African as Non-American - 6:16
02 2nd Movement : Transmutation - 12:40
03 3rd movement : Love For All - 11:46
04 4th Movement : Freedom - 15:22

Total Playing time 46:08

MUSICIANS

Yusef Lateef - Tenor Saxaphone, Germanic Flute, Alto Flute, Indian Flute, Bamboo Flutes, Indian temple flute, moan flute, Algaita, Shannie

Cologne Radio Orchestra (Kölner Rundfunkorchester) - Group

David de Villiers - Director (orchestra)
Eternal Wind - Performers :

Ralph Jones - Tenor and Soprano saxaphones, Flute, Bass Clarinet, Hichiriki, Bamboo Flutes

Charles Moore - Dumbek, Flugelhorn, Shofar, Conch Shells

Frederico Ramos - Acoustic and Elecric Guitars, Gimbri

Adam Rudolph - small percussion, cymbals, drums, bells, gong, tabla, didjiridoo, whistles, udu clay drums, hand drums, kalgu, kalngu (talking drum)

PRODUCTION
Recorded October 25 - November 3, 1993 at WDR Cologne.Ulrich Kurth - Producer, Liner NotesHelmut Büttner - Sound SupervisionHermann Kaldenhoff - Recording engineerGreg Calby - Digital Mastering, Sterling Sound New York.
Irene Van Dreyke - Sound TechnicianGreg Calby - Digital Mastering, Sterling Sound New York.Timo Kirves - Photography
MohrDesign, Köln - artwork
Ein Aufnahme des West-deutschen Rundfunks Köln


YUSEF LATEEF blog discography

Disclaimer :  These links were all live in 2009, when this blog post was written. That's a long time ago.

'Morning - The Savoy Sessions' at Hook's Gems

"The Last Savoy Sessions" (2000) at Lost Soul or Avaxhome
(includes : 'Prayer to the East" (1957); 'Jazz and the Sounds of Nature (1957); 'The Dreamer" (1959); 'The Fabric of jazz" (1959).
1955 'Yusef Lateef with Donald Byrd' at Musica Desde Las Antipodas
1957 'Before Dawn' at Jazzdisposition or AxaxHome
1957 'Jazz Mood" at AvaxHome
1957 "Jazz For the Thinker" at Musica Desde Las Antipodas
1957 "Prayer to the East" at Musica Desde Las Antipodas
1957 "Plays for Lovers' at Daytime Lovers
1957 'The Sounds of Yusef" at Taringa or Jazzagogo
1957 "Other Sounds" at KingCake Crypt / alternate
1958 'Lateef at Cranbrook' at Orgy in Rhythm
1959 "Cry! Tender' (FLAC) at CIA1959 "Cry! Tender" (MP3) at Lakasafunk / alternate 
1959 "The Dreamer" at Musica Desde Las Antipodas
1959 'Beautiful Flowers" at Jazzdisposition
1960 'Three Faces of Yusef Lateef' (MP3) at Jazz En la Web or AvaxHome
1960 'The Three Faces Of Yusef Lateef' (FLAC) at CIA

1960 "The Centaur and the Phoenix" @ Avax1960 'Lost in Sound' aka 'Outside Blues' @ Hook's Gems

1961 'Into Something' (MP3) / alternate / alternate

1961 "Eastern Sounds (FLAC) at CIA
1961 "Eastern Sounds" (MP3) at Somewhere I have Never travelled
1961 "with Mingus at Birdland" (radio broadcast) at Inconstant Sol
1963 "Jazz 'Round The World" donated by Trevor / alternate / alternate

1964 'Club Date' at Orgy in Rhythm
1964 'Psychicemotus' at seventeen green buicks / alternate
1964 'Live at Peps' Vol 1 at Marramua or Avaxhome or Kingcake Krypt
1964 'Live at Pep's Vol. 2" at Radiodada or Avaxhome or Kingcake Krypt
1965 'The Golden Flute' (MP3) at Orgy in Rhythm / alternate
1965 'The Golden Flute' (FLAC) at CIA1965 '1984' donated by Trevor
1966 'A flat, G flat and C' at Daytime Lovers / alternate
1968 'The Blue Yusef Lateef' at Voodoo Child / alternate
1969 'Yusef Lateef's Detroit' at Marramua / alternate
1969 "The Diverse Yusef Lateef" at M13.com.ua / alternate
1972 "The Gentle Giant" donated by Corvimax / alternate
1973 'Hush n' Thunder' at My Favourite Sound / alternate
1974 "Part of the Search" at Musica Desde Las Antipodas / alternate
1975 'Ten Years Hence' at Orgy in Rhythm
1976 'The Doctor Is In .. and Out" at My Favourite Sound / alternate
1978 'Autophysiopsychic' at All For the CTI
1979 'In a Temple Garden' at My Jazz World / alternate
1993 "The African-American Suite" - link at the base of this post
1995 "The World at Peace" (Adam Rudolph and Yusef Lateef)
2005 "Influence" - Belmondo/Lateef donated by Corvimax / alternate
2006 - Festival Jazz de Cully, March 26, Chapiteau, Cully (CH) - at Jazz Bootlegs
2007 "Live In New York" donated by Corvimax (thanks!)

POST CREDITS

CD rip by Simon666

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Bill Evans - "Symbiosis" (1974)

First posted by Bacoso to "Orgy In Rhythm", July 2006

Track 3 excerpt 


Track 1 excerpt 

Simon says :
This was a fairly recent re-post at OIR, but I thought it should be up, should be heard, and should be here! Simply put, it's a beautiful piece of music and the best use of a fender rhodes in an orchestral setting. Jan Stevens' review below nails it, so I'll hand you over and then add some more albums at the end on which Bill Evans plays the Rhodes.

Jan Stevens writes :
"Symbiosis" is a beautiful and vastly overlooked album in Bill Evans’ prolific canon, yet one that needs to be seriously reckoned with. Claus Ogerman, who had worked with Bill on two previous albums in 1963 and in 1966 ("Bill Evans Trio With Symphony Orchestra") , composed an adventurous and often hauntingly gorgeous work in two parts. In the third section of the first movement, working over a slow and gentle jazzy swing, Bill plays long and fast-moving lines on electric piano that catch your ear with their shimmering beauty and complexity. Ogerman writes lush but never maudlin strings (and a few flutes) here in dense, often whole-tone and poly-chordal fashion underneath - creating a perfect cushion for the pianist’s swirling right-hand lines.

The Rhodes fits in well here, as it does sparingly in and out through Symbiosis’ framework. It is often used as punctuation at the end of a written ensemble phrase, or as an ensemble texture. Evans’ choices as to when to use the Rhodes or the Steinway are wise indeed, and not without great sensitivity, integrating seamlessly within the composition. Claus Ogerman as composer-arranger succeeds marvelously here with a work of great harmonic expression and rhythmic interest that showcases Evans’ lyrical expression and his obviously inherent classical strengths, yet within a composition that represents much of what jazz is about. (Ogerman would later do the same for tenor sax virtuoso Michael Brecker for his "Cityscape" album.)

If we consider the aural comparisons to the other albums Bill did with orchestral accompaniment, it is far and away the most superior achievement, and may represent his best use of the electric keyboard in context. “Symbiosis” is far too important to be neglected as often as it has when jazz writers discuss Bill Evans albums.

As biographer Keith Shadwick noted: “Evans brings to the work the consummate artistry and sensitivity that occurs when he is stretched and stimulated. His rubato playing in the opening and second movement sometimes alone, sometimes in unison with the strings, is both moving and immensely accomplished in a way that few jazz or classical pianists could have countenanced."

TRACKLIST

1st Movement (Moderato, Various Tempi) - 24:58
Track 1 (a) 7:58
Track 2 (b) 5:17
Track 3 (c) 11:43

2nd Movement (Largo- Andante - Maestoso - Largo) - 15:55
Track 4 (a) 9:11
Track 5 (b) 6:44

PERSONNEL

Piano [Steinway & Fender-rhodes] - Bill Evans 
 Composed By, Arranged By, Conductor - Claus Ogerman 
 Concertmaster - David Nadien
Bass - Eddie Gomez
Bassoon - Wally Kane
Clarinet, Clarinet [Bass] - Danny Bank , Ron Janelly
Congas - Ralph McDonald
Contrabassoon - Donald MacCourt
Drums - Marty Morell
Flute - Bill Slapin , Don Hammond , Hubert Laws
French Horn - Al Richmond , Brooks Tillotson , Earl Chapin , James Buffington , Pete Gordon (2) , Ray Alonge
Oboe - George Marge , Phil Bodner
Percussion - Dave Carey , Doug Allen , George Devens
Saxophone [Alto] - Harvey Estrin , Jerry Dodgion , Phil Woods , Walt Levinsky
Trombone [Bass] - Paul Faulise , Tommy Mitchell
Trombone [Tenor] - Urbie Green
Trumpet - Bernie Glow , Johnny Frosk , Marky Markowitz , Marvin Stamm , Mel Davis , Victor Paz
Tuba - Don Butterfield

PRODUCTION DETAILS

Recorded on February 11, 12 and 14th 1974 at Columbia Recording Studios, New York City.
MPS Records Catalogue # 15402
Producer - Helen Keane
Recorded By - Frank Laico
Photography - Raymond Ross
Cover Design - Ulrich Eichberger + MPS-Atelier
Hubert Laws courtesy of CTI Records.
David Nadien courtesy of the New York Philarmonic Orchestra.

Bill Evans on the Fender Rhodes

1970 "From Left to Right" at Sing My Body Electric / alternate
1971 "The Bill Evans Album" at Blues and Cats
1972 "Living Time" (with George Russell) at Etnik Cafe
1974 "Intuition" (with Eddie Gomez) at Jazzt music

1974 "Symbiosis" in comments here

1976 "Montreaux Vol. 3" at DJ Vilson Professor Groove / alternate
1978 "New Conversations" at Las Cintas Recuperadas / FLAC version
1978 "Affinity" (with Toots Thielemans) at Soundological Investimigations
1979 "We Will Meet Again" at musica que cuelga

Claus Ogerman

website on Claus Ogerman

1980 'Claus Ogerman & The London Symphony Orchestra with Gidon Kremer' at Scoredaddy's
1982 "Cityscape" - Michael Brecker & Claus Ogerman - rapidshare 1 2
2008 'Across The Crystal Sea' - Danielo Perez & Claus Ogerman at sunline-muzic

SYMBIOSIS WAV - MP3 

Three from Cannonball Adderley (1969-71)

CANNONBALL ADDERLEY
'THE BLACK MESSIAH" (1971)

Originally posted by Bacoso at "Orgy in Rhythm", May 2006.
Re-post by permission. Text by Bacoso.

DOWNLOAD 

I guess this must be the post I have had the most requests to re-up since I first posted it in May 2006. I finally got it together to rip it again this time @320 from my original vinyl.

Still immersed in the burgeoning electronic jazz-rock explosion of the times, Cannonball Adderley goes further toward a rapprochement with the rock and soul audiences than ever before on this fascinating, overlooked double album. For starters, he recorded it live at West Hollywood's Troubadour club, then known as a showcase for folk and rock acts. He also imported additional players into his quintet, expanding into exotic percussion effects with Airto Moreira (whom Miles Davis had previously featured), hard rock guitar with session man Mike Deasy, fiery tenor sax from the young Ernie Watts, and occasional seasoning from conguero Buck Clarke and clarinetist Alvin Batiste.

"Now I don't give a damn whether you can count or not, we still are the Cannonball Adderley Quintet!," quoth the leader, who is in loose, loquacious form throughout the set (the jazz world badly misses his witty verbal intros). With Joe Zawinul now flying off to Weather Report, his replacement is an even more electronically minded pianist, George Duke, who levitates into the outer limits with his Echoplex and ring modulator and proves to be a solid comper. But Zawinul is not forgotten, for the band pursues a long, probing, atmospheric excursion on his tune, "Dr. Honouris Causa". Adderley generously gives Deasy two contrasting feature numbers -- "Little Benny Hen", a raucous, amateurishly sung blues/rock piece, and "Zanek", a great countrified tune with an avant-garde freakout at the climax -- and all of the other guests save Clarke get single solo features.

Brother Nat Adderley gamely visits the outside on cornet while Cannonball doubles with increasing adventurousness on soprano and alto and bassist Walter Booker and drummer Roy McCurdy deftly handle all of the changes of style. Cannonball adeptly keeps pace with Miles Davis, his former boss - the driving "The Chocolate Nuisance" could easily be a first cousin of "Pharoah's Dance" on "Bitches Brew" - while not abandoning his funky soul-jazz base nor the special audience-friendly ambience of his concerts.

Unlike Adderley's other two-for-one-priced double albums of the '70s, this one was inexplicably sold at full price, which probably limited its sales and might partly explain why it remains surprisingly hard to find in used LP bins. Surprisingly enough this has never made a cd issue. No reissues in any format. Recorded Live at The Troubadour.

MUSICIANS

Cannonball Adderley (Alto & Soprano saxophone)
Nat Adderley (Cornet)
Roy Mac Curdy (Drums)
Walter Booker (bass)
George Duke (Piano, electric piano)
Airto Moreira (percussion)
David Axelrod (Production)

'THE CANNONBALL ADDERLEY QUINTET & ORCHESTRA' (1970)

Originally posted by Bacoso at "Orgy in Rhythm", May 2006.
Re-post by permission. Text by Bacoso and Motown67.

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No reissues - ripped from the original vinyl @320.Side 1 has the intro edited by 20 seconds due to a bad scratch, so
Reader lc has kindly upped 'Experience in E' without my edited intro - nice work chap !!!

This one's for Kristof. Motown67 on the case at Soulstrut.com :

Cannonball Adderley Quintet & Orchestra features three songs, each penned by different authors. Joe Zawinul wrote 'Experience In E', 'Tensity' is by David Axelrod and Lalo Schifrin was responsible for 'Dialogues For Jazz Quintet and Orchestra'.

'Experience In E' and 'Dialogues For Jazz Quintet' gravitate back and forth between Free Jazz and heavily orchestrated Bop. There’s a nice middle part in the former, and a short bass and drum part in the latter that could be looped. 'Tensity' is the best of the three as it has a strong backbeat to a Soul-Jazz melody. It’s been sampled several times as well.

CANNONBALL ADDERLEY QUINTET AND ORCHESTRA:

Nat Adderley - cornet
Julian "Cannonball" Adderley - alto sax
Joe Zawinul - electric piano
Walter Booker - bass
Roy McCurdy - drums
Orchestra arranged & conducted by Bill Fischer: 
Trumpet - Freddie Hill, Paul Hubinon
Trombone - Dick Leith, Dick Hyde
French Horn - David Duke, Art Maebe
Saxaphones - Gene Cipriano, Jackie Kelso
Flute, clarinet, piccolo - Bill Green
Flute, piccolo - Jim Horn
Oboe - Ernie Watts, Jerry Kasper
Bassoon - Don Christlieb
Arco Bass - Ray Brown
Mallets - Gary Coleman
Percussion - John Arnold
Violins - James Getzoff, Bill Hymanson, Ralph Schaefer, Bill Henderson, Assa Drori, Stanley Plummer, Gerald Vinci, Henry Roth, Israel Baker, Marvin Limonick, Paul Shure, Lou Raderman.
Violas - Joe Reilich, Milton Thomas, Allan Harshman, Myron Sandler, Sam Boghossian, Gary Nuttycombe
Cellos - Edgar Lustgarden, Raphael Kramer, Armand Kaproff, Jeffrey Solow
Bass - Morty Corb, Bob West, Al McKibbon, Max Bennett

Session #18574 - Capitol Tower - LA, May 20, 1970
74567 'Experience in E' Cap.ST-484
74568: no information (poss. not used).

Nat Adderley (c) , Julian "Cannonball" Adderley (as), Joe Zawinul (p), Walter Booker (b), Roy McCurdy (dm) with Orchestra arr. & cond. by Bill Fischer (similar to previous session).
Arr. by Lalo Schifrin-1.
Session #18575 - Capitol Tower - LA, May 21, 1970

CANNONBALL ADDERLEY QUINTET
'COUNTRY PREACHER" (1969)

Originally posted by Bacoso at "Orgy in Rhythm", December 2006. Re-post by permission. Text by Bacoso.

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David Axelrod at the controls again- although he does not get credited on the cover he shared the production duties on this with the Adderley brothers. This one's for Kristof.

Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's 1969 album COUNTRY PREACHER is not only one of his best works but one of the pinnacles of the entire soul-jazz movement. Though Yusef Lateef, Herbie Mann, Jimmy Smith, and others made outstanding records in this under-appreciated sub-genre, COUNTRY PREACHER is the album that delivers all of the strengths of soul jazz with few of its weaknesses.

A stellar combo, featuring Adderley's cornetist brother Nat, standout electric pianist Joe Zawinul, and the killer rhythm section of bassist Walter Booker and drummer Roy McCurdy, gives Adderley's alto and, unusually for him, soprano sax just the sort of groove-oriented, percussive setting his hard-edged and intense sound needs. The gospel-based titled track is wonderful, but "Afro-Spanish Omelette", a medley of Caribbean-style workouts, is one of the highlights of Adderley's entire career.

TRACKLIST

01. Walk Tall (Queen Esther Marrow/Jim Rein/Joe Zawinul) 5:12
02. Country Preacher (Joe Zawinul) 4:28
03. Hummin' (Nat Adderley) 6:35
04. Oh Babe (Nat Adderley/Julian Adderley) 4:50
05. Afro-Spanish Omlet (Nat Adderley/W. Booker/Joe Zawinul/Julian Adderley) 15:40
06. The Scene (Joe Zawinul/Nat Adderley) 2:03

MUSICIANS

Julian "Cannonball" Adderley - saxaphones
Nat Adderley - cornet
Joe Zawinul - electric piano
Walter Booker - bass
Roy McCurdy - drums

more 70s albums from CANNONBALL ADDERLEY in the blogosphere :

"the price you got to pay to be free"(1970) at Ile Oxumare
"the happy people" (1972) at Ile Oxumare
(GREAT tracks on "Happy people" featuring Airto and Flora Purim)
"Soul Zodiac" (1972) thanks Gildas

"Live at Jazz Jamboree (Poland)" (1972) at Pan Mietek

"Love, Sex and the Zodiac" (1974) at My Jazz World
"Big Man" (1975) at Axography
"Phenix" (1975) - at Oufar Khan
"Music, You all" (1976) at My Jazz World
"Soul of the Bible" (1976) at My Jazz World
"Lovers" (1976) at My Jazz World

Please leave a comment.

'Shaft's Big Score' - Gordon Parks (1972)

Gordon Park's score for the second Shaft film seems to have fallen into some sort of soundtrack netherworld. The O.C Smith theme song "Blowin' Your Mind" (which is almost a continuation of the original Isaac Hayes theme) has appeared on a few blaxploitation compilations, but the rest of it remains out of print. Even a "Best Of Shaft" compilation released in 1999 completely omits this album, focusing on the first and third films, "Shaft" and "Shaft In Africa".

Critical opinion of "Shaft's Big Score", when it has existed has generally been quite disparaging, focusing on the fact that Parks (who also directed the first two Shaft films) had to complete this soundtrack in two weeks, with Isaac Hayes apparently being unavailable.

But let me put it to you that this soundtrack is worth a listen (and a download) - Parks is an interesting composer working with great orchestrators. He takes Hayes' funk, strings and brass template, and adds in subtle, shifting woodwind textures, developing and extending the pastiche riffs - it's a true musical "sequel" to the original Shaft.

There's more jazz here. In two earlier short tracks - "The Other Side" has the melancholy of some of the sequences in Marvin Gaye's "Trouble Man". The track "First Meeting" (in the traditional blaxploitation 'love theme' role) has a beautiful interplay between muted vibes, dark minor strings, and Freddie Hubbard's trumpet soloing over brass chord clusters.

There's some filler, and a couple of OC Smith vocal tracks, but the master track here is the thirteen minute "Symphony for Shafted Souls", which takes up all of side two on the album. Starting off in traditional chase music territory, it breaks down in the middle to a rolling, repeating series of chords that are passed between brass and strings. Snatches of all the main themes start to come back in, then Freddie Hubbard's trumpet leads the orchestra to a big-band finish.

I found this in one of those amazing Tokyo record shops in 2000. There's a bit of dust, but the vinyl's in much better condition than the dirty old cover I've scanned above :)

While you're listening, read a bit about Gordon Parks, who was something of a renaissance man - besides directing the Shaft films, he was a major LIFE magazine photographer, a civil rights campaigner, published books of poetry, composed music for operas and theatre, and generally worked across many forms of art, guided by a social politics that was concerned with poverty and inequality. His Wikipedia page has some good detail. Also, here's a sequence of his photos.

'Shaft's Big Score' - Gordon Parks (1972)

TRACKLIST
01 Blowin´ Your Mind (Vocal : O.C. Smith)
02 The Other Side
03 Smart Money
04 First Meeting
05 Asby-Kelly Man
06 Don´t Misunderstand (Vocal : O.C. Smith)
07 Move On It (Vocal : O.C. Smith)
08 Symphony For Shafted Souls
(The Big Chase)
Take Off / Dance of the Cars / Water Ballet (Part I) / Water Ballet (Part II) / Call and Response / The Last Amen.

PERSONNEL
Composer - Gordon Parks
Producer - Tom McIntosh
Engineer - Aaron Rochin
Conducted by Dick Hazard (great name!)
Orchestrations by Dick Hazard, Tom McIntosh, Jimmy Jones, Dale Oehler.
Trumpet - Freddie Hubbard
Guitar - Joe Pass
Alto Sax - Marshal Royal
Vocals - O.C. Smith

Click the back cover (above) for more credits - edit : better scan somewhere further down in the comments. Also, scroll down in comments to get Funkback's "missing track" by Isaac Hayes (which is in the movie, but not on the album), as well as a 200dpi scan of the back cover that I've added on request.

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