Booker's Waltz

Listening to Eric Dolphy for the first time in a few months. I forgot about his brilliance on the Five Spot recordings from 1961. Ed Blackwell and Mal Waldron are unforgettably splendid here, although the inimitable sounds of Dolphy are the highlight. There has never been and never shall be another Eric Dolphy.

Tarik

A highlight from Dewey Redman's invaluable Tarik. Redman and Joshua Redman are proof that family dynasties in jazz can actually work. Ed Blackwell, famous for working with Ornette Coleman, brings Congo Square to Dewey Redman's Eastern-sounding musette playing. According to A.B. Spellman, Ed Blackwell actually collaborated with Ornette Coleman in the 1950s when the latter was trapped in New Orleans during a tour of the South before he moved to Los Angeles. Blackwell's New Orleans roots and interest in Cuban and African rhythms undoubtedly impacted Coleman and Redman, as well as Billy Higgins. Blackwell's drum solo here exemplifies how important New Orleans is livening up so many genres of music, from jazz to funk. 

Lost

Jackie McLean has long been one of my favorite jazz alto saxophonists. Like Dolphy, he has a singular voice that is utterly McLean. Unlike Dolphy or say Ornette, McLean was rarely venturing in free jazz territory, but always entertaining and thought-provoking. "Lost" is the highlight of A Fickle Sonance, and Billy Higgins, one of my favorite jazz drummers (up there with Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Ed Blackwell, Art Blakey, Max Roach), who apparently was partly educated in rhythms by Ed Blackwell, switches back and forth between a funky Latin beat and non-Latin swing. Even Butch Warren, an underrated bassist, gets a little time to shine, quoting what sounds like "Old Devil Moon" to my ears.