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Charles Lloyd: Love-In
ByIt is possible that more joints were rolled on Love-In's cover than on that of any other jazz LP of the era, with the exception of John Coltrane's A Love Supreme (Impulse!, 1965) and Pharoah Sanders' Tauhid (Impulse!, 1967). Chet Helms, a key mover and shaker in the West Coast counterculture, spoke for many when he hailed the Lloyd quartet as "the first psychedelic jazz group."
The counterculture's embrace was triggered by Lloyd's media savvy, sartorial style and sheer nerve in playing jazz in the temples of rock culture as it was by his music. He took the quartet into the Fillmore West three years before Miles Davis played the Fillmore Eastas documented on Live at the Fillmore East, March 6 1970: It's About That Time (Columbia, 2001)by which time Lloyd's pianist, Keith Jarrett, and drummer, Jack DeJohnette, were members of Davis' band.
In purely musical terms, Love-In is not Lloyd's strongest Atlantic-era album, and even with Wally Heider at the board it shows up some of the limitations of contemporary live recording. But it still has legs. Lloyd's vocalized tenor (and flute on two tracks) has muscle; Jarrett's solos, particularly on his 07:55 showcase, the gospel-ish "Sunday Morning," his two featured originals ("Sunday Morning" and the soul jazz-ish "Is It Really the Same?"), and his playing the strings of the piano directly with his hands, all remain compelling; DeJohnette and bassist Ron McClure are solid and inventive.
Originally released on Atlantic in 1967, Love-In has been reissued by vinyl-only label Pure Pleasure. It is good to have it back. It would be even better to have the musically superior Dream Weaver (Atlantic, 1966) back.
Track Listing
Tribal Dance; Temple Bells; Is It Really The Same; Here There & Everywhere; Love-In; Sunday Morning; Memphis Dues Again/Island Blues.
Personnel
Charles Lloyd
saxophonePersonnel: Charles Lloyd, tenor saxophone, flute; Keith Jarrett: piano; Ron McClure: bass; Jack DeJohnette, drums.
Album information
Title: Love-In | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Pure Pleasure
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About Charles Lloyd
Instrument: Saxophone
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