Customer Reviews

Tail Spinnin

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There was a time when each new Weather Report album was eagerly anticipated as a major event by jazz and jazz/rock listeners. Each new album would reveal new facets of creativity, surprising and superb compositions, and would extend the boundaries of electric music in new, creative ways. At some point, that ended, and Weather Report's new albums began to seem routine, interchangeable, ho hum, like almost everyone else's. "Talespinnin'" was squarely in that period when Weather Report was exciting, creative, and each new album was a major event of the year. It is warmer in mood than "Sweetnighter", more focused than "Mysterious Traveller". Each composition is interesting. Zawinul and Shorter play excellent solos. There are third world sounds and elements which were exotic in their day, and which still sound fresh. "Talespinnin'" also features some flat out jazz blowing, which became less prevalent on later Weather Report albums. This album represents a great band at its peak. For my money, Alphonso Johnson was the perfect bassist for the band. His soulful sound, and slightly akilter lines, added both warmth and intriguing variety to the sound. This album should not be overlooked.

When I first bought the vinyl I back in 1975 I was hoping for the same great energy as Mysterious Traveler and was initially disappointed. It took almost a year before I revisited this album Perhaps I had matured enough to appreciate it by then, but it became one of my favorite CDs, and it still ranks up there with my absolute favorite Weather Report recordings.

This was a transitional period for the band. Miroslav was out and Alfonso Johnson's funkier bass was now driving the bottom, enabling the band to move in a whole other direction. It's a great blend of wild jamming and tight compositions. Starting right out of the gate, The Man with the Green shirt is one of the great Zawinul compositions. It is Joy itself, an unselfconscious ecstatic celebration of Life. There are no fillers here. Luisitanos, a quintessential Shorter composition exhibits all the classic Shorter touches, angular and emotional yet cooly logical in its phrasing. It features Joe in a (then) rare acoustic piano solo, simultaneously at his most relaxed and most burning. 'Between the Thighs' is a loose, rambling space-funk romp, yet is it also full of complex tutti passages and rhythmic depth .It's got a lot of thorny ensemble writing, yet it unfurls as naturally as a peacock spreads its feathers. It's as though the whole band is hooked up here, interacting and relating as one. It takes the listener on a journey to the swamplands of the Mississippi Delta, the high desert in north africa, and winds up in a party somewhere in the tropics on Mars. I have taken that trip a thousand times, yet every time they play that dreamy part with the tubular bells it takes my breath away. I think Stravinsky (as well as Ellington) would've gotten a kick out of this music.

Badia is an incredibly prescient view into areas musicians would be exploring some thirty years hence, but this was 1975(!), and these gentlemen were already masters of world jazz, a genre yet to be named and in many ways never surpassed. 'Freezing Fire' is another burning Shorter composition, and in it's afterglow, the album winds down with the reflective and intriguing, ''Five Short Stories', another great Zawinul composition.

Because of the joy and affirmation it communicates, I play this CD on special occasions, when I am feeling like I need a boost, or when I feel most alive, and embarassing as it might be to admit it, sometimes I'll put on candles, turn off the lights and dance to it! For this is a CD that embodies the Dance of Life.

(NOTE: Please note that the cover depicted here is of the inferior Columbia reissue. However, on close inspection I see that the CD offered here is the sonically superior Sony reissue. That's the only edition you want! The Sony version is a quantum leap ahead of the original Columbia release in terms of sound quality. It is truly a revelation for those of us who thought we knew this recording and had to live with its glaring sonic limitations. This remastered Sony Legacy edition is a pleasure to listen to.)

After recording "Mysterious Traveller", Wayne Shorter and Josef Zawinul move from NYC and make LA their new home base. Apparently the move made a profound effect on the keyboard technology available to Josef Zawinul. If one listens to "Tale Spinnin' today the synthesized sounds don't sound dated at all. It's really hard to believe this album was recorded in 1975, over 25 years ago. Consequently, this is the first fusion album Weather Report made that really SOUNDS like modern jazz-rock fusion as we know it today.

The keyboard palettes, though, are not the entire reason for this. Alphonso Johnson plays with more of a funk influence than he did on "Mysterious Traveler" and three of the tunes on "Tale Spinnin'" are approaching "jam session" status (cuts 1,3,and 5). So the sound is dramatically different from any of WR's earlier efforts. The difference is almost mind-boggling when you compare this CD to "Sweetnighter" which was recorded only 2 years earlier (acoustic to electric bass makes a difference too!).

The CD's other hallmark is this is perhaps the only Weather Report album where Wayne Shorter plays as much as he really deserved to. He takes lengthy solos on 4 of the 6 pieces (2 each on Soprano and Tenor) and his playing is among his very best. In fact, it could be argued 1975 was the high point in Wayne's career with the success of this album coupled with his "Native Dancer" release that same year with Bazilian vocalist Milton Nascimento. Down Beat readers from the seventies may remember that the two recordings came in #1 and #2 in the Readers Poll for Best Album of the Year in 1975, what an accomplishment!

With regard to compositional quality, the standard dipped just slightly from their prior year effort. All are at least very good and two pieces especially stand out (the chilling "Lusitanos", what a masterpiece!-and the exotic Middle Eastern cultural flavor sampled in "Badia"). Zawinul's choice of synthesized sounds and effects on both of these tunes was especially good.

The only real criticism I have of "Tale Spinnin'" is Leon Chancer's obsession of over-utilizing cymbal and hi-hat techniques (keep the sticks low, Leon!). Thankfully, Alyrio Lima's fine auxillary percussion work somewhat makes up for that liability.

All in all, a very successful follow up to Mysterious Traveler that has a very different character to it. Only a handful of bands made two albums this good back to back, but Weather Report was the only band in this writer's opinion that made FOUR 5-star albums in a row. Two more masterpieces were yet to follow.

In 2007, the main 16 Weather Report Columbia titles were re-released in Japan with new DSD remastering in mini-sleeve format. From an audio quality standpoint, the DSD versions now supercede all the earlier standard-CD-audio U.S. releases (some of the WR catalog are available as SACD's).

Additionally, the Japan editions feature a welcome 2CD restoration of "8:30" to the original 13-track double-LP album configuration, with the proper inclusion of "Scarlet Woman", which had been edited off all domestic editions to allow for a cheaper, single-disc release.

So far, the WR DSD catalog is only available in mini-sleeve format, and all `sleeves are limited edition. If it is your desire to own the latest/greatest audio, then don't delay in picking these up, although it is always possible that Sony Japan will release them again as less expensive jewel case editions somewhere down the road. However, for the true WR fan and vinyl nut, it's great to have the wonderful mini-LP replicas of the original LP covers!

I wanted to provide links for each 2007 `sleeve edition, but unfortunately, Amazon only allows 10 per review. But, by linking to the 2007 DSD remaster of the first Weather Report album, you should be able to use the "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought" tool to locate the rest of the 2007 DSD titles (just make sure you verify the release date and Product Description).

Also, of note: In this same release were updated DSD remasters of the following WR-member solo albums, also as mini-sleeves:

Jaco Pastorius (1st album)
Wayne Shorter "Native Dancer"
Joe Zawinul "Di-a-lects"

And, the two Havana Jam albums, both where WR appeared live, also as `sleeves:

Havana Jam 1
Havana Jam 2

And, FINALLY: 2007 witnessed John McLaughlin finally relenting to release the full Trio Of Doom studio & live recordings, the awesome line-up of McLaughlin, Pastorius and Tony Williams, which could only be found previously on the Havana Jam albums, albeit in edited form.

WHAT IS A JAPAN "MINI-LP-SLEEVE" CD?

Have you ever lamented the loss of one of the 20th Century's great art forms, the 12" vinyl LP jacket? Then "mini-LP-sleeve" CD's may be for you.

Mini-sleeve CDs are manufactured in Japan under license. The disc is packaged inside a 135MM X 135MM cardboard precision-miniature replica of the original classic vinyl-LP album. Also, anything contained in the original LP, such as gatefolds, booklets, lyric sheets, posters, printed LP sleeves, stickers, embosses, special LP cover paper/inks/textures and/or die cuts, are precisely replicated and included. An English-language lyric sheet is always included, even if the original LP did not have printed lyrics.

Then, there's the sonic quality: Often (but not always), mini-sleeves have dedicated remastering (20-Bit, 24-Bit, DSD, K2/K2HD, and/or HDCD), and can often (but not always) be superior to the audio on the same title anywhere else in the world. There also may be bonus tracks unavailable elsewhere.

Each Japan mini-sleeve has an "obi" ("oh-bee"), a removable Japan-language promotional strip. The obi lists the Japan street date of that particular release, the catalog number, the mastering info, and often the original album's release date. Bonus tracks are only listed on the obi, maintaining the integrity of the original LP artwork. The obi's are collectable, and should not be discarded.

All mini-sleeve releases are limited edition, but re-pressings/re-issues are becoming more common (again, not always). The enthusiasm of mini-sleeve collecting must be tempered, however, with avoiding fake mini-sleeves manufactured in Russia and distributed throughout the world, primarily on eBay. They are inferior in quality, worthless in collectable value, a total waste of money, and should be avoided at all costs.

From the 1st percolating sounds on the synth to the last smooth saxophone passage, put this disc on and dare to enter the kingdom of musical heaven. This is so amazingly energetic and uplifting it should be played in every public place for eternity. It's so good and overlooked it is only for the gods and those who dare! Joe Z plays my favorite piano and synth solos here and Wayne S adds some of the sweetest and soulful sax you will ever hear. The rest of the group is top notch and so tasty. If you don't like this please consider a career in custom reupholstery, streetlight inspecting or accordian repair!

I find it hard to be objective about this album, as it was the first Weather Report LP I heard or bought. It is an altogether more delicate record than the one it followed (Mysterious Traveller), and it may have disappointed some of the rock fans because it didn't have the spacy sound effects or thundering rhythms of its predecessor. The album is also neglected by new fans working backwards through the canon because it is both post-Vitous and pre-Pastorius. But the bassist here -- Al Johnson -- was equally effective, if less celebrated, and went on to produce an excellent solo album in "Yesterday's Dreams", which has never been transferred to CD. It was Pastorius, not Zawinul, who shoved Shorter out of the limelight. On this album, the balance of power in the Zawinul-Shorter partnership is still 50:50, and it works exceedingly well. There is one filler track -- sorry, I cannot remember which -- but the remainder are all fine examples of WR's output.

I swear the Weather Report HAS to be the most underrated of all the jazz bands of the 70's. One consistently enjoyable album after another, most of which have been completely forgotten by this point in time (except for Heavy Weather of course, and perhaps Mysterious Traveller to a lesser extent).

"Man in the Green Shirt" indicates the band is heading in a more commercial direction, because the jazz doesn't feel nearly as complex or, dare I say, as challenging as before. However, you don't necessarily have to go in expecting a challenging listen in order to appreciate a jazz album. If the notes feel right, by all means, *enjoy* it. That's the case here. I love the song regardless, but there's no secret that the song only took me around 4 listens to get into it, and previous Weather Report compositions took a lot longer than 4 listens.

"Lusitanos" feels extremely moody and creepy, putting images in my head of some crazy man hiding behind a tree waiting to jump out and attack, haha. That's definitely the atmosphere I feel here, and it's awesome. The keyboard solo in the middle is WAY ahead of its time too- not many bands sounded like that back in the mid 70's, if any. Alright, I suppose Santana sort of did, but he was never a jazz musician at heart (though I guess some would argue he was, but for me, Carlos Santana is a genius for the way he blended jazz with latin rock and rhythms).

"Between the Thighs" is somewhat dated because of the obvious melodic synth sections that make an appearance every so often throughout this 10-minute monster jam, however the actual saxophone jamming is really spectacular on this track, so it's my favorite song on the album. Then you have weird experiments like "Badia" that feel distinctly Asian and focused more on atmosphere. Still, I like it. It's a nice break from all the jazz work.

The rest of the album is pretty sweet as well, so I highly recommend Tail Spinnin' to absolutely everybody, especially those who are attempting to build a jazz collection and need something melodic to kick things off right.

Just doesn't expect the very best Weather Report has to offer here- that would probably be... well to be honest, I STILL don't know what my favorite Weather Report album is. I guess if forced I'd pick Mysterious Traveller, but... well. That could change any day.

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I think because Heavy Weather and Black Market (their 6th & 7th releases respectively) were such landmark recordings, Tale Spinnin' tends to get overlooked a lot. It is their 5th record, and really, in my opinion, the record where the classic WR sound really gelled. Popping rhythms with intricate harmonies and beautiful melodies, this release took them from being an obscure fusion band dabbling in funk and world rhythms, to a strong, muscular unit that grabbed your attention with mature compositions like "Man In the Green Shirt" and "Badia". Not a bad cut on this one. It was a breakthrough release, with Ndugu Chancler on drums and Alphonso Johnson on bass giving the Zawinual/Shorter team the collective kick the in the a@# that, in my humble opinion, is what needed to happen to lay the groundwork for the magic that happened in the late '70s with Jaco Pastorius, Alex Acuña, and Peter Erskine. If you're new to WR, start with Black Market, Heavy Weather, or 8:30. If you've got a few WR cd's and want to explore further into their music, this is definitely one to own.

My dad has a couple of Weather Report albums at home (not this one) and a few years ago when I was starting to get into fusion jazz (esp. Jean Luc Ponty) I listened to a few tracks on them and they were really weird so I didn't think about it. Then last year, when I was working in the school library, I looked in their mass collection of records. They had lots of jazz albums, I discovered, but no Jean Luc Ponty! However, I saw quite a few Weather Report albums, and so I just chose this one to listen to while I studied. The first song I heard blew me away, and I kept listening, and every track is awesome! I recommend this album for anyone who just wants a Weather Report album.