Andrew Hill - Nefertiti (1976)

One of the most mindless quirks of some jazz listeners is major label prejudice. Take for example those vaguely familiar with pianist Andrew Hill's albums 'Blue Black' and 'Nefertiti', both recorded for the semi-obscure East Wind label, an imprint only in existence from 1974-77. If you have most of Hill's Blue Note albums and some of his more recent output and feel that is most of what is worth hearing, are you ever wrong. These albums are stunning. They can almost be considered companion pieces, each different enough in its own right to justify owning the pair. Nefertiti is a trio done two years later after 'Blue Black'. It has Roger Blank (drums) and Hill's most frequent bassist, Richard Davis. It starts out with the song "Blue Black", oddly enough nothing to do with the title cut of the other disc, Hill starting with a simple figure based on a scale. After about six and a half minutes, just when you think he's wrung all he can out of it, the rhythm section comes in, hard. On this and every other piece, the band plays together with stunning creativity and empathy. Hill has great energy throughout and a beautifully fat, full tone. Other high points include Davis' gorgeously imaginative arco work on the title cut and Blank's anomalous drum pattern on "Mudflower. This album is not only highly entertaining, but continue to fascinate with repeated listenings. ~ Extract by Kevin Ray, AAJ. 

East Wind, EW-8032, 1976
Inner City Records, IC 6022, 1979
East Wind, UCCJ-9162, 2015
Recorded 25th January, 1976 at Vanguard's 23rd Street Studios, New York 

Musicians:
Andrew Hill - Piano
Richard Davis - Bass
Roger Blank - Drums 

Tracks:
1. Blue Black (14:10)
2. Relativity (5:29)
3. Nefertiti (8:08)
4. Hattie (3:47)
5. Mudflower (7:32)
6. Unnatural Man (3:23) 

All Compositions by Andrew Hill 

Total Time: 42:31 

Credits:
Producer - David Baker
Executive-Producer [1976] - Toshinari Koinuma
Executive-Producer [2002] - Hirotoshi Nabetani
Supervisor - Kiyoshi Itoh, Yasohachi Itoh
Mastering - Hideaki Nishimura
Mastering Supervisor - Kikuo Niikura
Photography [Back] - Tadayuki Naitoh
Photography [Front] - Shinya Fujiwara
Design - Eiko Ishioka, Motoko Naruse
Liner Notes - Kazunori Harada 

Nefertiti

Greg Osby - The Invisible Hand (2000)

Though chock full of Osby's signature brand of dissonance, The Invisible Hand is one of the altoist's mellower, more contemplative offerings. Its most novel aspect is the inclusion of pianist Andrew Hill and guitarist Jim Hall, two of jazz's fascinating elder statesmen. Hill's piano style is fractured and fragmented, yet suffused with its own ornamental beauty. Hall is a master of the understated, perfectly chosen phrase. Both have worked with Osby on more than one occasion. But The Invisible Hand is an historic first: prior to its recording, Hill and Hall had never played together. Disappointingly, the two are paired only on Hill's "Ashes" and Hall's "Sanctus"; otherwise, they appear separately. In fact, Hall is present only on three of the album's ten tracks, giving listeners only the briefest glimpse of his talents. Hill, appearing on six numbers, is utilized more effectively; the pianist is especially brilliant on Fats Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz." Gary Thomas, an Osby contemporary, overdubs multiple woodwinds to create thick orchestration on "Nature Boy," "With Son," and a couple of others. Bassist Scott Colley and drummer Terri Lynne Carrington provide reliable rhythmic support throughout. But overall the record suffers from a discontinuity brought about by repeated personnel shifts. In a sense, The Invisible Hand sounds like three different albums, and Osby's production seems unnecessarily convoluted. ~ by David R. Adler, AMG. 

Blue Note, 7243 5 20134 2 5, 2000
Recorded 8th-9th September, 1999 at Systems Two Recording Studios, Brooklyn, New York 

Musicians:
Greg Osby - Alto Saxophone, Clarinet
Gary Thomas - Flute, Flute [Alto], Tenor Saxophone
Andrew Hill - Piano
Jim Hall - Guitar
Scott Colley - Bass
Terri Lyne Carrington - Drums 

Tracks:
01. Ashes {Andrew Hill} (8:02)
02. Who Needs Forever? {Howard Greenfield, Quincy Jones} (5:10)
03. The Watcher {Greg Osby} (5:40)
04. Jitterbug Waltz {Richard Maltby, Jr., Fats Waller} (7:40)
05. Sanctus {Jim Hall} (7:39)
06. [Back Home Again In] Indiana {James F. Hanley, Ballard MacDonald} (4:32)
07. Nature Boy {Eden Ahbez} (8:44)
08. Touch Love {Andrew Hill} (6:00)
09. With Son {Greg Osby} (7:29)
10. The Watcher, No. 2 {Greg Osby} (4:22) 

Total Time: 65:20 

Credits:
Producer, Liner Notes - Greg Osby
Co-producer - Kay Vaughn
Recording & Mixing Engineer - Joseph Marciano
Engineer [Assistant] - Nancy Marciano
Mastering Engineer - Nicholas Prout
Photography [Session] - Jimmy Katz
Art Direction, Design - Burton Yount
Liner Notes - Ted Panken