I saw Arthur Blythe play only once in my life, at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in the 1980s. I was blown away by his sound...rich, elusive, powerful and confident, but also by the inventive compositional aspect of his playing, as his long solos told marvelous stories. So it is a pleasure to hear this archival set of Blythe and his quartet of the time at Studio Rivbea, recorded July 6, 1976.
The venue contributes immensely to the soulfulness of the four tracks, as Sam Rivers' Lower East Side loft was the focal point of a historically significant creative music scene in NYC. Musicians and audiences alike know what the vibe of a venue can contribute to the performance, and Studio Rivbea, from the evidence on this CD, was a magical place where sublime music happened.
The set opens with two longish solos by Blythe on his alto saxophone, the first a searching and entrancing piece called "Spirits in the Field," while the second sets up a 17-minute-long medley of "Unidentified Titles," all compositions by the saxophonist. A nearly 20-minute "Miss Nancy" and a shorter "Lower Nile" complete the set. Remarkable are Blythe's aforementioned confidence and inventiveness and beautiful sound, but also his creation of a language all his own.... he sounds nothing like his illustrious forebears like Johnny Hodges, Charlie Parker or Cannonball Adderley, except in the lyricism of his approach and in the robustness of his sound.
Blythe developed his talent in his native Los Angeles, for a while in the Pan-African People's Arkestra, the legendary community band led by pianist-composer Horace Tapscott, before heading east to NYC in 1974. There he hooked up with his quartet partners (Juini Booth, bass; Muhammad Abdullah, conga; Steve Reid, drums) who added up to a unique rhythm section, sympathetically supporting, responding to and enhancing Blythe's inspired flights, while having stylistic voices of their own.
The results of that evening at Studio Rivbea in 1976 are definitely worth rehearing, not only for the historical significance of the venue, but just for musical pleasure of a high order, pure and simple. An added bonus to this release is the accompanying booklet, with savvy notes by Ed Hazell.
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