Earthworks

Bill Bruford | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 30, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Editions Eg Records
• ASIN: B000003S36
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #105,939 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Thud

2. Making a Song and Dance

3. Up North

4. Pressure

5. My Heart Declares a Holiday

6. Emotional Shirt

7. It Needn't End in Tears

8. The Shepherd Is Eternal

9. Bridge of Inhibtion

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cerebral and funky, September 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Earthworks (Audio CD)

I, too, think the online reviewer is too uptight. Bruford's Earthworks work convincingly in several different musical languages: traditional jazz, free jazz, and a sort of world-music based fusion. No rock fusion here. That they can make these three idioms coexist and provide internal (albeit demanding) structure to each composition is a tribute to their musicianship. The real star is Django Bates--a virtuoso pianist and E flat horn player. He's up and coming, recently won the Vadpar Prize in Norway for best European jazz composer and arranger. Here's your chance to see what he's up to early on--and it'll knock your socks off.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Music., October 14, 2001

By 

eric morton (Brighton, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Earthworks (Audio CD)

I first heard this album 12 or so years ago. It was thrilling then, the ensemble playing is beautifully thought out and executed,and the solo playing is of the highest order. It remains as impressive now;the textural quality of the music is quite unlike any other at that time or since,and the flow of harmonic and rhythmic ideas is fascinatingly explored and resolved by some of the most gifted musicians on the planet.However , it is music first and last, and messrs Bruford,Ballamy and Bates would themselves not be keen on comparisons with, and reference to, rock, jazz, trad{are you sure?]etc by other reviewers.This great music stands up all by itself.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars True Modern Jazz - through and through, December 27, 2004

By 

L.A. Scene (Indian Trail, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Earthworks (Audio CD)

If you are a mainstream music fan, chances are you haven't heard of the name Bill Bruford. However, if you have followed Progressive Rock - Drummer Bill Bruford is one of the legendary names of the Progressive Rock movement. Bruford was associated with three of the greatest bands in Progressive Rock History: Yes (two tours of duty: 1968-1972 and 1991) , King Crimson (three tours of duty: 1972-1974, 1980-1984, and 1994-1997), and Genesis (provided drums when Phil Collins took over vocals 1976-1977). If you are a fan of Modern Jazz, chances are you have heard of Bill Bruford as well. It was in 1987 when Bill Bruford's Jazz Project "Earthworks" got off the ground. The debut album by Earthworks entitled "Bill Bruford's Earthworks" might seem like Bruford took a quantum leap from Progressive Rock to Modern Jazz, but when you closely examine things you discover this really isn't such a big jump. In a lot of ways, Progressive Rock is the true "Alternative Rock". Progressive Rock started when Rock artists wanted to move beyond the parameters of standard Rock and Roll. Progressive Rock artists also add a high level of sophistication to their music. Jazz, being a very sophisticated form a music is therefore not a quantum leap for the Progressive Rock artists. On "Bill Bruford's Earthworks", not only does Bruford make the leap from Progressive Rock to Jazz, but he makes a mark of epic proportions. I don't think it's unfair to say that this is one of the great Modern Jazz albums of all time.

It's worth noting that there are actually two incarnations of Bill Bruford's Earthworks. This collection represents the debut work of the first incarnation. The first incarnation consistsed of Bruford on Drums and Percussion, Iain Bellamy on Sax, Django Bates on Keyboard and Bass, and Mick Hutton on Acoustic Bass. This first incarnation would be together from 1986 through 1993. After that, Bruford went back for a tour of duty with King Crimson. Following that tour of duty, Bruford would form a new lineup for Earthworks.

I don't think Modern Jazz should be confused with Smooth Jazz. "Bill Bruford's Earthworks" was released in 1987 which many consider the time where the Smooth Jazz movement began to get off the ground. However,I don't think it's Smooth Jazz. Many may argue whether Smooth Jazz is really Jazz or not. Whether you believe the term "Jazz" belongs in Smooth Jazz or not, I do believe this genre has established itself on the music scene. I look at Smooth Jazz as primarily an instrumental music style that is an incorporation and fusion of several instrumental styles. Some of the fusion may be classic Jazz brass sounds, but others may be modern music styles of electric guitar or synthesizers. Because of the wide range that this genre can encompass, I feel many artists fall into this category. Although some simularities to Smooth Jazz, I don't feel that "Bill Bruford's Earthworks" falls into this category.

As you listen to "Earthworks", the core of the music you will hear is Jazz - complete with polyrhythms and all. Yes, there is some fusion of other elements - after all, Bruford does come from a Rock background. However, unlike the latter Smooth Jazz artists that would follow, this work still remains true to Jazz. Good examples of this are found in the third and fourth tracks. The third track "Up North" has a progressive rock feel in many parts of the song. The horn work even reminds me of some of the horn work found in Phil Collins' solo work. At the same time, "Up North" does have a solid Jazz feel to it. The fourth track "Pressure" also has a progressive rock feel - particularly in the opening. But the Sax work shows that the Jazz factor is alive and well.

The first two tracks of the collection show how Bruford and Earthworks remind me that it is Jazz I am listening to. The first track, "Thud" is probably the most catchy track of the collection. This was an Iain Bellamy penned tune - and it has a very lively Jazz feel to it. This isn't going to be a 1940s Jazz tune - it is a very modern sounding tune. However, there isn't a point when I felt that this wasn't Jazz. The second track "Making a Song and Dance" isn't quite as catchy - this is going to be one of those tracks that grow on you. The first 2 1/2+ minutes of the song start out with a soft intro with almost a light African sounding percussion to it. It then goes into a more uptempo bridge that sounds a lot like John Tesh's work. That bridge will be followed with some nice horn work that once again makes me realize that it's Jazz I'm listening to. The fifth track, "My Heart Declares a Holiday" also has some great horn work (as well as percussion) that also spell out Jazz.

Finally, the 8th and 9th tracks are worth mentioning. These are terrific tracks. The 8th track "The Shepherd is Eternal" is a short two minute number that is a very soft track. It is probably the least Jazz sounding track on the album, but it is a perfect segue into the 9th track "Bridge of Inhibition". "Bridge of Inhibition" starts as a very bold track. It makes some use of electronic keyboards, but then it mellows down- and much like the story above, you will hear Jazz sounding horn and percussion in it.

One thing to note is that the co-producer of is Dave Stewart (Bruford himself is the other co-producer). This is not to be confused with the Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics. The liner notes of this collection have a very nice writeup by Simon Puxley who discusses how Bruford and Earthworks launch into the world of Jazz. Overall, this is a great collection of modern Jazz music. I highly recommend it.