Search - Paul Bley, Barry Altschul, Gary Peacock :: Virtuosi

Stunning free jazz

Jess Row | NYC | 03/29/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a great album this is--a demonstration that "free jazz" isn't always chaotic and loud, as one might think after listening to Ornette, Cecil Taylor, Albert Ayler, et al. The mood here is one of relaxed curiosity and slow unfolding--each chord and beat spills over into the next. "Virtuosi" may be a terrible title, but it's accurate, at least in the sense that all three are in peak form and communicating beautifully with one another. It's a shame this recording isn't better known; it deserves to be heard alongside the Corea/Vitrous/Haynes and Jarrett/Haden/Motian trios of the same era."