John Abercrombie Organ Trio – Recorded at Youth House, Szeged Hungary – October 7, 1995 – Radio Bartok, Budapest –
The John Abercrombie Organ Trio this weekend. Featuring Dan Wall on Hammond B-3 and Adam Nussbaum on drums and recorded at The Youth House in Szeged, Hungary on October 7, 1995 by Radio Bartok in Budapest.
A much needed dose of mellow for a Sunday – taking the temperature of the room down a few degrees and spreading a very audible sigh of relief. Maybe just me, but the overall feeling of this session is heartfelt exuberance, and god knows it’s coming in handy.
John Abercrombie has played on more than fifty ECM sessions, both as a leader and highly creative contributor to recordings with Charles Lloyd, Kenny Wheeler, Jan Garbarek, Collin Walcott, Jack DeJohnette, Enrico Rava, Barre Phillips, Dave Liebman and many more. Along the way his playing has evolved, becoming, he says, both freer and more traditional, without ever renouncing experimentation. His 2011 recording Without A Song, with Joe Lovano, Drew Gress and Joey Baron, reflected upon the music that first inspired him back in the 1960s, taking stock of the freedoms implied in the music of Coltrane, Coleman and Rollins, and emphasizing his musical connections to Bill Evans and guitarist Jim Hall.
At the end of the 1970s he formed his first quartet, recording three albums – Arcade, Abercrombie Quartet, and M – with pianist Richie Beirach, bassist George Mraz and drummer Peter Donald (re-released as a 3-CD set, The First Quartet, in 2015). It was in this group in which the guitarist defined some priorities, moving away from a jazz-rock period into a more spacious, impressionistic and original music.
A trio with bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Peter Erskine incorporated experiments with the guitar synthesizer, and what Abercrombie called “louder, more open music.”
He reunited with his Gateway colleagues in 1995 for an album titled Homecoming. Another propitious relationship has been with guitarist, pianist, and composer Ralph Towner, with whom Abercrombie has worked in duet setting.
Tossing a few good vibes into your weekend. Goes well with gazing off into space.
Enjoy.
