Customer Reviews

Final Sessions

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A deep sensation of swinging urgency (so typical in the bebop style but with its original incarnation in Hope's playing) and uncompromising, unique rhythm made this pianist one of my favorites. Like Andrew Hill and Herbie Nichols he deserves an appreciation in a much larger scale. These recordings are the best example of his musical gifts.

Two discs-59 and 62 min. each approximately. Good sound,clean and open. These tracks were recorded in 1966 and stand as a fitting tribute to a musician who was admired by Bud Powell and other musicians of the day. Hope's understated arranging and playing is very lyrical yet not sweet. His playing certainly didn't call attention to itself(or to Hope),and therein lies the problem. Hope didn't play a lot of attention-grabbing notes,preferring to let the music unwind and flow at it's own pace. His career never really took off and he wound up playing in relative obscurity for most of his professional life. On these tracks he is accompanied by John Ore on bass,Clifford Jarvis or Philly Joe Jones(on five tracks)on drums. The absence of a horn player is a plus here because it lets Hope's compositions and playing shine. The up-tempo tracks show that Hope was indeed no slouch when it came time to deliver the notes that even at a fast pace are still lyrical and beautiful. It's on the slow to mid-tempo sides that Hope really shows his skills. The music is very fluid and clean and makes sense of his excellent dynamics. The fact that Hope's music is understated means that the listener will have to actively listen to this music which will reward him with a great deal of pleasure. This edition of Hope's last recordings includes several alternate and unedited takes,which were abbreviated on previous releases. That,along with the sound,makes this the edition to buy. It would be a shame if Elmo Hope's music disappeared into obscurity,for this is piano-trio-jazz at it's finest.