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Beatstreet
Modern Jazz Quartet: Concorde
Original Jazz Classics/Universal Music; Rs. 295 (CD)
The Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) was one of those rare outfits that didn’t have a nominal leader, all four of its members being formally equal. For most of its life it comprised Milt Jackson on vibraphone, John Lewis on piano, Percy Heath on bass and Connie Kay on drums, the last named having just taken over his role in 1955, when this album was recorded.
Despite originating as the rhythm section of Dizzy Gillespie’s big band, MJQ was famed for its “cool” style rather than be-bop: quiet, laid-back and showing influences of classical music. Its repertoire encompassed works by Jackson and Lewis, among jazz’s better-known composers, as well as jazz and pop standards.
This album opens with Jackson’s ‘Ralph’s New Blues’ and closes with the title track, composed by Lewis, with four pop music standards thrown in between them. Lewis and Jackson share the bulk of the solo spotlight, as they did in most of MJQ’s work. But Jackson dazzles in a way that Lewis, even with his superb musicianship, doesn’t, thanks both to the captivating sound of the vibes and to its taking the lead on the themes of most of the tracks. Heath and Kay are very strongly in evidence in their support, which amply shows their virtuosity.
On the fast-paced ``I’ll Remember April”, Jackson and Lewis follow up a ripping solo each with a series of brief exchanges punctuated occasionally by Kay. The brisk-paced ``Concorde” has another variation, opening with a solo bass intro into which the drums make an entry before Lewis takes the theme. The whole album leaves the discerning listener with the impression that the members of the quartet pull their weight equally even though one or two of them apparently have higher profiles.
JAZZEBEL
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