Charles Lloyd

Item: Lift Every Voice
Author: Jeff Cebulski

Lift Every Voice

(2002)

Reviewed by Jeff Cebulski

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Label ECMThe Phantom Tollbooth2004

gospel jazz

We conclude with two albums from longtime saxophone wonders, one deceased but resurrected on disc, the other presenting what might be jazz's only real response to the events of 9-11.

Why A&M did not release the music on Bossas and Ballads after it was recorded in 1989 is a major mystery (instead, it released the more tepid Apasionado). Getz, for all his health difficulties stemming from decades of drug use, hardly sounded better. He caresses every song as a close friend, while his erstwhile musical collaborator, pianist Kenny Barron, provided five compositions and solid support. As the album's title suggests, the material is divided between Latin-rhythmed pieces and thoughtful ballads. Every cut has something memorable; Getz made truly smooth jazz before that moniker was given to relatively homogenized radio music.

On Lift Every Voice, Charles Lloyd hearkened back to old times by reconnecting with drummer Billy Hart and inviting pianist Geri Allen to sit in (in place of the deceased Michel Petrucciani) on a double-CD collection of songs that reflected a somber but hopeful tone following the tragic events in New York City. Included were guitarist John Abercrombie (who appeared on Lloyd's two previous CD's for ECM) and bassists Marc Johnson and Larry Grenadier. Abercrombie's echoing fills and washes provide a mystical-like riffing to Lloyd's chordal perusing. What we hear on this album is not so much different from Lloyd's past recordings but is predominated by Americanized spiritual motifs rather than the Eastern themes that emanate from Lloyd's Buddhistic influences. The run of pieces on the second disc, which includes the three spirituals "Go Down Moses," "Wayfaring Stranger," and "Deep River," is one of the most moving moments in latter day jazz. This is true artistic courage, a player presenting a homage to his roots in a time when politically-popular sophistication rules the day.