Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Bob Downes Open Music: A Blast From The Past

3

Bob Downes Open Music: A Blast From The Past

By

View read count
Bob Downes Open Music: A Blast From The Past
The only (slight) problem with this album is its rather whimsical title which considerably undersells its significance. In his long career, Bob Downes has made some substantial contributions to jazz and improvised music, and this album is an important addition to his discography. Comprised of previously-unreleased archival pieces dating back to the 1970s, Downes can be heard on a variety of instruments including tenor saxophone, as on "Apparition," where—as on two other tracks—he is accompanied by virtuoso bassist and composer Barry Guy and drummer Denis Smith. Benefitting from a keen bass vamp, there is an alternative version of "Brasilian Beauty," to the one found on his album Flashback (Openian, 2009).

Nearer to Open Music (Esoteric, 2010) and Diversions (Vocalion, 2007) than to the rock-infused Deep Down Heavy (Esoteric, 2013) or Electric City (Esoteric, 2010), there are some true gems here. The mesmerising live version of "On The Wing," with the lone Downes soloing on soprano saxophone, is one such example.

But the centrepiece of the album is undoubtedly the twenty-minute "Chain Reaction" with Guy and Smith in attendance. Here Downes explores a veritable panoply of sounds, initially emanating from strident tenor sax and developing in tandem with Guy's resonant pizzicato bass. Downes, in what must be a jazz first, can also be heard gargling with water, then playing slide flute and uttering wordless vocals before an ostinato bass riff restores a less unconventional framework, with Downes now seamlessly migrating to flute. Smith, incidentally, offers some tightly rumbustious drumming here. The final segment of the track sees Guy moving to plaintive arco bass over which Downes plays gracefully, initially on flute then reverting to tenor saxophone, and a reprise of the opening statement. For Downes fans this welcome rarity ranks as unequivocally essential.

Track Listing

Apparition; Shadows Of Shadows; Brasilian Beauty; On The Wing; Chain Reaction; Desert Haze; Journey With The Blues.

Personnel

Bob Downes: flute, alto flute, bass flute, slide flute, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, wordless vocals; Barry Guy (1,3,5), Neville Whitehead (6): bass; Denis Smith: drums.

Album information

Title: A Blast From The Past | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Openian

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.