Command All Stars: Curiosities 1972

"But Insane" possesses positive kinetic energy, with the sheer volatility of Elton Dean's sopranino sax saying it all, in its way, though not to the detriment of Keith Tippett's rolling, boiling piano.

Harry Miller's African flute on "African Sunset" takes the music outside of every Anglo-American domain, as does Johnny Dyani's approach to the bass. His deployment of intervals is, again, the work of a distinctly African sensibility on the glibbest level; at a more profound one, a blueprint for how to maintain impetus even while being pensive.

Two basses and electric piano are hardly the likeliest combination, but somehow it works on "African Sunrise." Tippett has what it takes to realize that electricity makes a significant difference to what he has at his disposal. And whilst the very sound of the instrument might be redolent of the time, bassists Miller and Dyani take the music outside of that time, ensuring the music is digestible at any given moment, in a manner speculative of how the music was made.

When a seven piece band comes together for the lengthy "Roots And Wings," not one of those precious moments is wasted, despite the subversion of convention. The lengthy bass dialog between Miller and Dyani is not so much broken up as it is augmented by Mark Charig on muted cornet, his inherent lyricism to the fore even as he improvises in an environment of near complete freedom. Further on Dean is at his slightly fractious best; spinning lines out as though he's trying to reach an accommodation with the ether. Throughout, drummer Keith Bailey seems a little unfocused, but repeated listening is enlightening with regards to the pertinence of his contribution, and he honors the moment as much as any of his comrades.

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