What Elvin Jones CAN (could) do!!

[Prufrock]

All good examples of Elvin's playing so far. The duet with Larry Young on "Monk's Dream" is a favorite, and reminded me of another great duet he did with another Larry:

And here is Elvin playing with another great guitarist. This is my favorite Sonny Sharrock album, an underrated classic from 1991. The first track heads "out there" with solos by Pharoah Sanders and Sharrock before Elvin takes a turn.

 

[multijd]

Omg!! The Sonny Sharrock album!!! Yes!!

 

[multijd]

Love the whole gig of the thread, except it is....

"....COULD Do"

You know, you are absolutely right in the literal sense but the more I think of it, the more I believe he is still “doing it”, influencing us. Inspiring, setting a standard, providing a beacon.

 

[multijd]

What book is that? This one? View attachment 536865

This book is fantastic by the way.

 

[JDA]

"The search for perfection is all good and well... But to look for heaven is to live here in hell."
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Olé Coltrane - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

McCoy Tyner commented: "On 'Dahomey Dance' [Coltrane] had a record of these guys who were from Dahomey, which is why he used two bassists. He showed that rhythm to Art Davis and Reggie Workman. So the influence was there

 

[Prufrock]

I've also been digging on this track over the past year after picking up the album:

 

[multijd]

I love this entire collection. It sheds a different light on his playing. More “straight ahead” maybe? You can really dig his swing feel here. I especially love this tune because of his wonderful hihat phrasing. I don’t know of anything else like it!! And Lee Konitz!! This shows the understated side of Elvin. He could erupt with intensity when playing with Trane or Wayne. But he knows just where to go when confronted with the delicate phrasing of Lee.

The interplay between Lee and Elvin here causes me to shift back and forth listening to them in tag team. Sonny Dallas becomes a pivot point that their phrases are swiveling back and forth upon. During Sonny’s solo when Lee starts playing a walking bass the shift is sublime. And after the bass solo the uncertainty of where the arrangement is headed is handled with such poise that we can feel their masterful navigation as the poetic interplay that it is.

 

[multijd]

"The search for perfection is all good and well... But to look for heaven is to live here in hell."
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OLE 1961
Alto Saxophone – George Lane
Bass – Art Davis, Reggie Workman
Drums – Elvin Jones
Engineer – Phil Ramone
Flute – George Lane
Mastered By – Jean Ristori
Piano – McCoy Tyner
Producer – Nesuhi Ertegun
Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – John Coltrane
Tenor Saxophone – John Coltrane
Trumpet – Freddie Hubbard

ole

This is beautiful.

 

[multijd]

Priceless for the sound of the floor Tom alone.

 

[JDA]

scusi; bookmarked one more for that swinging Houndog

 

[RogersLudwig]

Yo, this one

 

[jim r]

My favorite are the 2 trio albums he did with Joe Farrell and Jimmy Garrison "The Ultimate Elvin Jones" and "Putting It All Together"

 

[JazzDrumGuy]

The Drum Thing.......game over! Oh, to have seen that be recorded........

 

[toddbishop]

Yo, this one

I transcribed about the first 8 minutes of that one. One of these days I’ll finish it.

I wouldn’t know how to talk about his abilities or non-abilities. He’s the ultimate drumming artist. To me there’s no such thing as being better/greater than Elvin, no matter a player’s abilities or career achievements.

 

[JazzDrumGuy]

Coltrane Live at the Village Vanguard is 36 minutes of pure Bliss!

 

[multijd]

This one is a bit of an oddball but Elvin starts it rolling with a characteristic tom flourish before setting the groove. I love the tempo change that is part of the structure of the tune and gets repeated every time.

 

[BlackPearl]

This has been a favorite of mine (the entire album) since I bought a cassette thirty something years ago. (The cassette is still going strong along with a used library vinyl copy). I love the fluidity and hybrid Latin feel he gets here. There are references to all kinds of jazz and Latin influences including his own signature rolling triplets. It’s all wrapped up in an intense and grooving 9/8 feel.

This is one of my all time favorite albums too. It was one of the first CDs I owned - I bought it out of a sale bin of Blue Note albums on CD, back in the late 80s. I picked it because I had heard of Wayne Shorter through Weather Report. I had heard of Elvin from Modern Drummer articles, but don't think I had ever heard him play. What a revelation ! I mean, I had no clue what was going on, but I knew I liked it. Just an incredible album start to finish. Thanks a lot for this thread !

 

[cribbon]

This one is a bit of an oddball but Elvin starts it rolling with a characteristic tom flourish before setting the groove. I love the tempo change that is part of the structure of the tune and gets repeated every time.

That is a little-known but GREAT album, each song is a gem. Very easily digested and maybe my favorite Elvin outing.

 

[slinginit]

What book is that? This one? View attachment 536865

YES!!! That's the book.

Ashley Khan also wrote about the recording of Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue." Great discussion of studio positioning, architecture, and Rudy Van Gelder's obsession with equipment (Telefunkin anyone?) and microphone placement.

 

[TrickRoll]

a little different environment for EJ -