I’ve only started to scratch the surface of Archie Shepps’ body of work. This is my only album of his to date. So, I have a lot to discover, which is very exciting. I’ve been close to acquiring his debut as a leader on Savoy together with Bill Dixon and also the “New Thing at Newport” and the “…Live in San Franscisco” albums on Impulse!. His debut on Savoy is great, and I should have pulled the trigger when I had the chance. But I’ll keep my eyes open for another copy.
“Hambone” kicks off this fiery album. There’s plenty of interesting changes, choice of notes and I get an overall feeling of excitement when I listen to this stuff. It’s like nothing else really. Nothing that I have in my collection anyway. It’s a flavor all of it’s own. The sound of this vintage 1st pressing on Impulse! is superb. Like all of my other Impulse! albums it has a very revealing, organic and detailed sound.
I’ve been drawn to the more experimental or freer kind of jazz for quite a while. But I’m digesting things slowly. Coltrane’s later period on Atlantic and Impulse!. Enjoying the work of Mingus and Eric Dolphy. Also some of the Ornette Coleman output on Atlantic. Time to check out some more Archie Shepp albums for sure.
I think this Shepp record is quite beautiful and accessible. If you haven’t listened to it before I can highly recommend it. If you’re interested in something other than your regular hard bop session. Something with a lot of fire and passion. There’s even some poetry in there so look out. Favorite tune is “Prelude to a Kiss”. It’s beautifully haunting. Another favorite is a very nice rendition of “The Girl from Ipanema”.
Questions for my readers: I’m hoping that you guys can give me some tips on some great Archie Shepp albums. Could you give me your top 5? What’s your take on this particular album on display?
I’ve been able to purchase a variety of great albums lately. Several that have been very high on my want list. Very happy to have been able to add them to the collection. Excited to post them here on the site soon. Stay tuned for those coming up.
Stay safe and have a great rest of the week. Cheers!