Now Is the Hour

Charlie Haden | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 2, 1996)
• Original Release Date: April 2, 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B00000471A
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #172,276 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Consumate Musicianship, June 27, 1998

By 

Deano Cox ([e-mail]) (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Now Is the Hour (Audio CD)

The Emap review above undersells this album, which is a continuation of Quartet West's succession of discs which seamlessly blend historic compositions with timeless-sounding originals. Unlike the previous two albums, "Haunted Heart" and "Always Say Goodbye", there are no remastered vintage recordings woven in; instead, strings are added to make this venture lusher and more nostalgic. Together, the three recordings are the jazz jewel of my 800+ CD collection. I have seen Quartet West perform live several times here in L.A. in both large and intimate settings, and heard this entire album performed with strings at the beautifully-small Ford Amphitheater for the most memorable concert evening in recent years. The individual musicianship of Haden, Watts, Broadbent, and Marable is amazing in its scope and emotion. There isn't a better, tighter combo working today.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Take a Listen..., April 21, 2000

By 

DXR "The Eyeful" (San Francisco Bay Area) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Now Is the Hour (Audio CD)

I started getting to know the 1940's romanticist themes of Haden (Broadbent, Watts et al) when I bought "The Art of The Song", their most recent outing. It quickly became one of my favorites. It is impeccably produced along every dimension, so my first couple of listens to "Now Is The Hour" left me indifferent; it seemed comparatively dull at first, with some of the tracks sounding funeral. The recording's sound is not as luminescent as "Art" and it is vocal-less. Still, it offers a nice range of musical motifs and captures some top rate musicianship. The set meanders in tone and manner much like a film score, and offers up some interesting twists and turns along the way. "Now Is The Hour" will resonate to some, confound, bore or annoy others - such is music. For romantics, for those whose sense of melancholy dances easily with joy and introspection, this CD is worth the price...

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you play accoustic bass, you should listen to this album..., December 31, 2005

By 

R. Willis "wheee!" (St. Paul, MN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Now Is the Hour (Audio CD)

Charlie Haden has a very subtle but I feel profound concept of time, which is artfully displayed on this album. Being a tenor sax player, this is one of those albums that sounds very easy to play, until you really get into breaking it down and looking at what each part/player is doing.

One of the reasons jazz and classical music fares so poorly with listeners nowadays is that you pretty much have to be a player or understand music above 'I took recorder for a year in 1st grade' to really appreciate all of the subtle timings and years of formulation to arrive at the ability to form a concept for a piece and then see it through to fruition.

The 2nd track, for example, should be a must for aspiring bass players, as the sense of time and rythme is superb.

I wouldve given this 5 stars, but alas, being a tenor player in the coltrane/chris potter school, I am not the biggest fan of Ernie Watts' sound (I think his ideas are sound, but that, at times, his sound could use some new ideas!!!)

In saying that, if you are a bass player, you should own this album, if nothing more than to study how to play slowly, its harder than you think.