Customer Reviews

Live...Again

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Don Pullen encapsulates every emotion possible on this CD. He performs from a very fragile, and delicate thought to a thunderous, and almost frightening expression from his soul. One might ask themselves "Where on earth did this man get this kind of feeling?" Every tune is very clear, and precise, though quite liberated. Enjoy!!!

I bought this when it came out. All I knew about Don Pullen was his organ work with David Murray on "Shakill's Warrior", and this was well-reviewed, so what the heck. I loved it back then, and then somehow forgot about it. I got it out again recently, and it's appeal has held: I love this album. The ballads are poignant, the uptempo numbers infectious, and Pullen's playing is rhythmic and wild.

I was unfamiliar with the music of Don Pullen before the summer of '93, when I had the opportunity to play a couple of jazz festivals in Europe with my high school jazz band. The first was at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the Netherlands, where I first encountered Pullen and the African-Brazilian Connection. I was so enthralled by them that when I heard they were also playing the Montreaux Jazz Festival, some of my friends and I made sure to be there. We were very glad that we made the effort to see them again, because their performance was awe-inspiring.

Fast forward a year or so, when I was perusing the jazz section of a local music shop. I was shocked and amazed to see that they had recorded and released the Montreaux show on CD. I ended up buying five copies and giving them to the friends I'd been with that night in Montreaux.

The thing that strikes me most about this performance is that I had no idea until I read the liner notes that Pullen had been diagnosed with cancer sometime before this concert. Pullen's health was on the decline, and yet there was no hint of things being amiss that night. Instead, there is a sense of wonder and joy in his playing. Pullen plays like a man who was simply glad to be alive in this moment, for this night. His performance was both inspired, and inspiring. The vocals and percussion of Mor Thiam, the Senegalese djembe player in the group, only add to the joy of the faster songs.

Even though this album is long out-of-print, it is well worth the price to seek it out and buy it at any cost, since the chances of it returning to print are remote. I consider myself blessed and fortunate to have been able to witness this performance first-hand, and lucky that Blue Note recorded it and released it...

TRACK LISTING:

1. YEBINO SPRING (16:35)

2. AH GEORGE, WE HARDLY KNEW YA (18:21)

3. CAPOEIRA (13:17)

4. KELE MOU BANA (10:33)

5. ASEEKO! (Get Up And Dance!) (10:33)

Total Running Time - 73:12

Brilliant, Elegant, Sophisticated, Fun, Passionate, Soulfu