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Paul Dunmall Quintet: Yes Tomorrow
by John Sharpe
Veteran British saxophonist Paul Dunmall helms a crew of talented graduates from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire on Yes Tomorrow. It's the second time they have appeared on disc with him in a unit as all four were part of the sextet responsible for Cosmic Dream Projection (FMR, 2021). While renowned as a peerless free improviser, Dunmall also composes, here presenting eight original compositions. Even though the majority incorporate accessible riff-based heads, sometimes evoking the spiritual jazz of his one-time employer ...
Continue ReadingPaul Dunmall & Mark Sanders: Unity
by John Sharpe
In spite of a decades long association, Unity constitutes only the second time British reed icon Paul Dunmall has appeared on disc in tandem with drummer Mark Sanders. And on the earlier occasion, Pipe And Drum (FMR, 2012), Dunmall restricted himself entirely to bagpipes of various species, so this outing is notable as the first documentation of the pair together on their primary instruments. The union of two of the country's premier improvisers doesn't disappoint. Dunmall increasingly wears ...
Continue ReadingPaul Dunmall - Matthew Shipp - Joe Morris - Gerald Cleaver: The Bright Awakening
by John Sharpe
British saxophonist Paul Dunmall reaffirms the transcendent power of free jazz with a muscular quartet convened for his triumphant appearance at the 2012 Vision Festival, for which he invited pianist Matthew Shipp, bassist Joe Morris and drummer Gerald Cleaver to join him. The pianist and reedman were well acquainted, having hooked up during a Shipp residency at London's Cafe Oto in 2010, with the group captured for posterity on Live In London (FMR, 2017). While Dunmall had not previously played ...
Continue ReadingPaul Dunmall, Percy Pursglove, Olie Brice, Jeff Williams: Palindromes
by John Sharpe
Bassist Olie Brice had an inkling that it might be worthwhile introducing two of his collaborators who had never played together before, British reed titan Paul Dunmall and American drummer Jeff Williams. It proves devastatingly correct on Palindromes. They unite, together with trumpeter Percy Pursglove, on a collective live album--recorded at London's Cafe Oto, in February 2020, during a short tour--which dazzles at every turn. Williams, a veteran of bands with the likes of Dave Liebman, Stan ...
Continue ReadingOctets and Octopi
by Patrick Burnette
Hooray—we've made it alive through 2020 and through eight seasons of this podcast, too. To celebrate the big “eighth" (the internet claims it's bronze and pottery for that anniversary, should you want to send gifts) we talk about half that many jazz octets, and throw in an album named after a funky sea-creature as a bonus. In pop matters, Harry Nilsson's alternate takes and Italian prog get brief look-ins.Playlist Discussion of Rod Levitt's album Dynamic Sound Patterns (Riverside) ...
Continue ReadingPaul Dunmall's Sunship Quartet: John Coltrane 50th Memorial Concert At Cafe Oto
by John Sharpe
If John Coltrane had lived he would have been 90 in July 2019. It's fair to say that there has been no saxophonist anywhere near as influential since his passing in 1967. To mark the 50th anniversary of his death, percussionist Mark Wastell organized a concert headlined by two affirmed devotees of the great reedman, namely Paul Dunmall, leading his Sun Ship Quartet, and special guest Alan Skidmore, at London's esteemed Cafe Oto. This splendid double CD captures the entire ...
Continue ReadingPaul Dunmall Brass Project: Maha Samadhi
by Alberto Bazzurro
Suite in cinque movimenti, per lo più generosi (quattro superano i dodici minuti), dedicata al mistico indiano del diciannovesimo secolo Sri Ramakrishna e incisa al conservatorio di Birmingham nel giungo 2016, Maha Samadhi vede l'iperproduttivo Paul Dunmall alla testa di un ensemble al cui interno il suo trio si abbina a una brass section di sette elementi, riandando (dichiaratamente) ad analoghe esperienze di quel John Coltrane che il tenorista inglese ha ripetutamente omaggiato in questi ultimi anni (spesso in compagnia ...
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