Search - Clark Terry :: Clark After Dark- Ballad

Gorgeous Ballad Album By Clark Terry!

J. Rich | 03/25/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Words cannot describe this beautiful recording. In the liner notes of this 1977 release, Clark Terry said that this was his "favorite album." This is a big statement considering that he already had a long and distinguished career before this record was cut.



This is a ballad record where Terry plays flugelhorn, and unlike the review who gave this album 4-stars said, he plays passionately and with tremendous precision and accuracy. He also plays with a "less is more" approach which for me is the best way to do a ballad. Every note he plays he puts his heart and soul into it. If you can't hear the beauty in his improvisations and in particular this recording, then you certainly don't have a heart. The musicians and string arrangements are also incredible. The orchestra was conducted by Peter Herbolzheimer.



Being a serious jazz listener and musician, I can say with confidence that these kinds of albums are truly amazing. If you're a jazz fan and you can't enjoy this recording, then my only question is why? Apart of listening and being passionate about this music is being open-minded to what it can offer.



Listening to "Clark After Dark" is a beautiful experience. Highly recommended."

Terry in the 70's studio

Nikica Gilic | Zagreb, Croatia | 11/04/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This interesting reissue of the 1978 Clark Terry album, made in London for German label MPS, is not at the top of my Terry list, although he does play some usually fine fluegelhorn (and occasional trumpet), but Herbolzheimer's arrangements don't seem flexible enough.

The explanation might be in the liner notes, where Terry is praised for his performance in studio, where he layed his lead fluegelhorn over the pre-recorded back ensemble arrangement of Garner's "Misty"...



The ensemble, buy the way, consists of an interesting British crew ( plus some mostly unobtrusive but nevertheless quite unnecessary strings) and the best charts, in my opinion, are those that give the other musicians a chance to stretch-out a little bit... For instance, great British pianist Gordon Beck is heard on few songs in the middle of the album....



Terry's performance is, nevertheless, consistently very good and at times even great, so 4 stars rating is, hopefully, not too generous.



Since the arrangements are not all that swinging (only partly thanks to the strings) and the sound of Terry's fluegelhorn is less passionate than the sound of his trumpet, the broader audiences, who like "smooth jazz", soul-jazz or "muzak" might also be interested in "Clark after Dark".

For some Clark Terry Highlights check out

Oscar Peterson Trio Plus OneOscar Peterson Trio Plus One or

To Duke and Basieand In Orbit."