Jaki Byard Quartet Live Vol 1 LP 1967 Mono UK Transatlantic rare

	A$		35
	$		22

Jaki Byard Quartet Live! Vol 1 LP 1967 Mono UK Transatlantic rare

Original UK Mono pressing on Transatlantic PR 7419, in flipback sleeve.

John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz pianist, composer and arranger who also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for his eclectic style, incorporating everything from ragtime and stride to free jazz.

Byard played with Maynard Ferguson in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and was a member of bands led by Charles Mingus for several years, including on several studio and concert recordings. The first of his recordings as a leader was in 1960, but, despite being praised by critics, his albums and performances did not gain him much wider attention. In his 60-year career, Byard recorded at least 35 albums as leader, and more than 50 as a sideman. Byard's influence on the music comes from his combining of musical styles during performance, and his parallel career in teaching.

From 1969 Byard was heavily involved in jazz education: he began teaching at the New England Conservatory and went on to work at several other music institutions, as well as having private students. He continued performing and recording, mainly in solo and small group settings, but he also led two big bands – one made up of some of his students, and the other of professional musicians. His death, from a single gunshot while in his home, remains an unsolved mystery.

    Bass – George Tucker

    Drums – Alan Dawson

    Piano – Jaki Byard

    Tenor Saxophone – Joe Farrell

A superb 1965 live session with Byard fronting a killer quartet with Joe Farrell on tenor and soprano sax, George Tucker on bass, and Alan Dawson on drums.

The late Jaki Byard was, arguably, the most versatile pianist in jazz, though he also played trumpet and was an excellent tenor saxophonist. Born in 1922, he grew up during the golden era, and while younger than Duke Ellington, he embraced, as had his predecessor, all of the changes the music went through, from its origins in New Orleans through the free improvisation era. Byard would, in a single solo concert, reveal his truly awesome mastery of the aforementioned styles, as well as R&B, stride, swing, funk, blues, honky tonk, and the extreme arpeggios of Art Tatum. But Byard's style was completely his own, developed from his early days playing with Earl Bostic in the late '40s and early '50s. After leaving Bostic, he played with Herb Pomeroy and Maynard Ferguson until he won a spot in the legendary Charles Mingus band of 1962-1964 along with Eric Dolphy. He also recorded with Dolphy and Booker Ervin, as well as Charlie Mariano and Rahsaan Roland Kirk.

One of his notable achievements was as the pianist in the Mingus band that tore apart concert halls all over Europe in 1964. Between 1961 and 1972, he issued a string of his own dates for Prestige (Hi-Fly, Here's Jaki, and Out Front! among them) and other labels; they embody his finest work, with a rhythm section that included Richard Davis and Alan Dawson, though he never made a bad record. Byard became an educator in the early '70s (after another collaboration with Mingus in 1970), teaching at Harvard, the Hart School of Music, and the New England Conservatory, and he recorded and performed intermittently the world over until his death from a gunshot wound in 1999. (© Thom Jurek, AMG)

Review

by Ken Dryden

Jaki Byard's live recordings during a 1965 stint at Lennie's-on-the-Turnpike are among his most exciting tracks recorded for Prestige. Live! At Lennie's, Vol. 1 features the eclectic pianist with a band including tenor saxophonist Joe Farrell, bassist George Tucker, and drummer Alan Dawson. Byard's galloping blues "Twelve" gets things off to a great start, with Farrell contributing hot solos on both tenor and soprano saxes, with the leader fueling him with wild progressions and shouting encouragement. His ballad "Denise" features just the rhythm section, with beautiful interplay between Byard and Tucker. Dawson composed "Thing What Is," a piece full of surprises. The drummer switches to vibes and Farrell to drums for this potent post-bop number. "Broadway," the one standard of the date, features Byard at his most playful and another high-energy solo by Farrell.

A1                        Twelve              12:00

A2                        Denise               9:40

B1                        Thing What Is               12:00

B2                        Broadway        12:25

CONDITION:

SLEEVE: VG++  Minor wear, laminate is very good, flipbacks are undamaged, 2 or 3 minor creases on spine.

RECORD: VG++ to EX--