*** The following all came from a buy (Jun-Jul) at Independent Records, who were starting to dump LPs and 45s at deep discounts (they were to close in 2023).
Spyro Gyra - Shaker Song / Paw Prints. 1978 Amherst promo (SP). Spyro Gyra were popular with my bandmates in high school (early 80s), and I think we even played a couple of their songs in our jazz/stage band. Very pleasant music really. They were one of the prototypes for what would become smooth jazz. Formed in Buffalo, their 1977 debut was a private press that's quite hard to score. Since they were in northwest New York, Amherst picked them up for a brief time, and that's when and where this promo came from. Eventually they were signed to MCA and were major sellers for the label. Both of these tracks are on the debut, and the Amherst and MCA LPs are very easy to score. I just bought this 45 because it was 10 cents. Good on the whole. Won't keep though. (Jul)
Shadowfax - What Goes Around / Maceo. 1986 Windham Hill (SP). I didn't even realize Windham Hill put out 45s! This was with the 10 centers, so why not try it? At this point in their career, Shadowfax is combining bad 80s new age, bad 80s smooth jazz, and bad 80s world fusion into a compendium of everything that was wrong with the 80s. A really great example of that specimen, smelly as it is. They're so far from the Watercourse Way album, they may as well be on another planet by now. Both of these tracks can also be found on their Too Far to Whisper album. (Jul)
***end of sale
Pat Metheny & Lyle Mays - As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls. 1981 ECM (LP). Thrift shop find (Jun). Pretty much what you would expect from a Metheny album on ECM in 1981. This is a very mellow, soothing, adult contemporary jazz, typical of the time and place. The side long title track has a little bit of Tangerine Dream in it, which I enjoyed. Overall it's a pretty album, and were I still in accumulation mode, I'd keep it. I consider it on par with First Circle, and since I already have that as a representative, I'll let this one go. Metheny is popular at the record shows.
*Dizzy Gillespie / Lalo Schifrin - Free Ride. 1977 Pablo (LP). From an estate sale (Jun). Put Free Ride in the same category as Donald Byrd's Street Lady. A remarkable set of tunes, it's clear Schifrin put a ton of energy into his compositions here. Yes, it does have a disco beat, but it's a full band effort, and there are no strings to get in the way. Alter that beat slightly, and you have one hell of a jazz funk classic. And Gillespie is filling in for Miles Davis here, while Davis was hiding in the basement. Same sort of random bursts of trumpet. One has to think Davis himself would have put out a record like this in 1977 had he been active. Sacrilege? No way, this is a brilliant album really. Nothing to be ashamed of. Which explains its rarity today. Lot of folks are hip to this one. No less than a baker's dozen of quality jazz musicians play on this, and there's a boatload of killer analog synthesizers too. Great electric guitar, flute, sax, percussion, etc...
Ron Carter - Yellow & Green. 1976 CTI (LP). With the Gillespie (Jun). It wasn't that long ago that I found Blues Farm at an estate sale up north. It was pleasant jazz, with a focus on Carter's bass, and not much else. And... the same can be said for Yellow & Green. In fact, this is a bit lesser honestly. Fairly dull background jazz. Average. As always with CTI, comes in a very fine gatefold. And it's now cuddled up to Blues Farm... in the sell bin.
Lee Morgan - Sonic Boom. 1979 Blue Note (LP). From RT's collection (Jun). OK yea, this is classic post bop - recorded in April of 1967. Not really my style, and had I sampled it, it probably would have gone straight to the sell list with McLean. But I was busy last night doing an administration task on my collection, so I let it play twice all the way through. I really do enjoy Morgan's trumpet playing. Honestly I wish they'd play music like this in restaurants. Pleasing for sure, but not something I need to keep.
*Miles Davis - Miles Smiles. 198? Columbia (LP) (1967). From RT (May). One of those Nice Price deals. Oddly, I have on CD (and a few on LP) just about every Miles Davis album from this period - except this one! So that really worked out nicely. From 1967, Davis is still exploring jazz in the same manner as Kind of Blue. This is one of his more respected titles, and I can see why. The ballads are noirish and the more energetic tracks have some mean rhythms and tight charts. Easy recommendation.
John Mayall - Jazz Blues Fusion. 1972 Polydor (LP). From RT (May). Well it's blues alright. It's John Mayall, so that's to be expected. Jazz? Not so much. There's some trumpet, but jazz never leapt to mind here. And the word fusion I think is literal, verse what the term came to mean a few years later. I'm not a big blues guy (as a genre, though I love the influence), so this one will go.
New York Mary - A Piece of the Apple. 1976 Arista (LP). Thrift shop find (May). Another new name for me. This one was sealed, so off to YouTube I went to hear a couple of tracks. OK good enough, I'll break the seal. A Piece of the Apple is a somewhat typical American styled instrumental fusion group, with a touch of funk. A little Average White Band, some Streetdancer, a bit of Stanley Clarke, and a host of more obscure bands. Tight charts with an in-sync saxophone and rhythm section. Some fine trumpet, electric guitar, and good songs. Not an earth shaker by any means, but a solid entry for fusion fans.
Ron Carter - Blues Farm. 1973 CTI (LP). From another estate sale (Apr). When first hearing this title, I thought it should have been part of the jazz-funk collection (two sections below) verse the soul-jazz (one section below). But it's really neither. Ron Carter is a famous bass player, and the music is geared towards his instrument. Unless you're in a Zeuhl band, rare is the bass player that will hold your attention for very long, and Blues Farm is no exception. Hubie Laws does his best to keep it interesting with his fine flute playing, but overall this falls into the pure jazz category, with bass as a feature. Pretty good, but not something I'll pull down for a listen. As always from CTI, the packaging is a fine thick gatefold.
