Andrew Hill - Smoke Stack

[mke]

Some interesting discussion has already happened here, but I'm wondering what the JC-ites think.

The two-bass line-up makes the sound more difficult, but maybe also impels Hill to make his playing more explicit, an interesting duality. Roy Haynes is just as killer and more avant than on "Black Fire." Cf. his abstracted, non-tempo giving ride pattern on "Wailing Wail"! On the same track, Richard Davis's bowing: microtonal or out of tune? I'm trying to think of it as a pitched equivalent to Haynes's rhythmic work, but still having a hard time really enjoying it.

More generally, it's interesting to hear compositional ideas similar to those on "Black Fire" in a more "difficult" context.

[hearsay]

Yes, the two basses, plus Hill's rhythmic abstractions and Haynes constant syncopation make this one incredibly rhythmically dense. I too wondered if Davis was purposefully out of tune, but I find that piece to be just beautiful. I agree that the compositional ideas are not so different from Hill's other recordings, but the instrumentation and approach to them makes them sound so much different.

[hearsay]

Listening to "Wailing Wail" again today there's no doubt to me that Davis pitch is on purpose, it's to overt and to me really gives the piece an erie, sad overtone.

[amfortas]

In the latest edition of Jazzwise, amazingly, this cd gets only 2 stars:i thought it was excellent, though not quite up to the standard of Andrew!, Judgement or his other 1960's Bluenotes.

[Alino]

Originally Posted by amfortas

In the latest edition of Jazzwise, amazingly, this cd gets only 2 stars:i thought it was excellent, though not quite up to the standard of Andrew!, Judgement or his other 1960's Bluenotes.

Red it. I found that review unmerited and superficial (TWO stars!).
Jazzwise -magazine I read and often appriciate- sometimes publishes pretty moody works, I think. Particoulary when it's not about UK's music...

[Darryl G. Thomas]

I've listened to this recently. It's probably the most difficult of Hill's recordings for me to get into. Usually I'm into his music from the first note. I'm not saying it's bad, just that I require more listening.

[Rob C]

I picked up the RVG of this and have listened to it a few times. I like it a lot! Very unique sound.

(I've heard CDRs of the Hill Mosaic, so I'd heard this stuff before--but I find that I absorb single discs much better than the huge box sets. I'm currently going through the same process with Jackie Mac's BNs that were previously on the Mosaic. I've been picking up the individual CDs.)

[Rob C]

Originally Posted by hearsay

Listening to "Wailing Wail" again today there's no doubt to me that Davis pitch is on purpose, it's to overt and to me really gives the piece an erie, sad overtone.

Is that really "Wailing Wail", or "Wailing Wall", which is what it's called on the Mosaic--and makes more sense as a title?

[hearsay]

yeah, should be wall, my fault.

[amfortas]

Originally Posted by Alino

Red it. I found that review unmerited and superficial (TWO stars!).
Jazzwise -magazine I read and often appriciate- sometimes publishes pretty moody works, I think. Particoulary when it's not about UK's music...

Yeah, i was stunned at only 2 stars ! Agree about the magazine, i read it but its annoying at times:like those moody reviews, and the letters page. Thought Smoke Stack was excellent.

[mke]

Originally Posted by Rob C

Is that really "Wailing Wail", or "Wailing Wall", which is what it's called on the Mosaic--and makes more sense as a title?

On my 2006 RVG, it's "Wailing Wail," which is a cooler title, if you ask me.

[Nate Dorward]

Don't forget "The Groits" (alt.take, sic) on Andrew!!!.

[mke]

Groits or Griots, I love that melody.

[Al in NYC]

My absolute favorite Hill recording. I must've listened to this hundreds of times. I really love the dense texture and mood of this session and the lack of horns serves to make apparent the rhythmic, tonal, and emotional complexities of Andrew's work.

[Rob C]

Originally Posted by hearsay

yeah, should be wall, my fault.

No, not your fault, as mke points out. I'm just trying to figure out which is correct as between the RVG and the Mosaic.

(I also recently noticed that a Jackie McLean tune titled "Hootman" on the Mosaic is called "Hootnan" on the RVG of Action. "Hootnan" is about ten bazillion times better as a title than "Hootman", so I'm going with the RVG on that one. I'm less confident about "Wailing Wail".)

[hearsay]

I think it's supposed to be Wailing Wall, I could be wrong. I just looked in my MP3 collection and it's listed as Walling Wall!?!?