So, I found a beautiful copy of this masterpiece to replace my white label promo copy in lesser condition sooner than I was expecting. I couldn’t be happier with this copy. It’s in very nice shape, both the vinyl and the jacket. This album, together with “Waltz for Debby” on RLP 399, are my favorite jazz trio albums by far. There are of course other very nice trio sessions, but these two, for me, are a level or two above everything else I’ve come across. The empathic chemistry between Evans, LaFaro and Motian is something I haven’t heard anywhere else. And LaFaro’s double bass work is the best I’ve heard as well. The whole concept of letting the double bass take center stage on these albums is something I absolutely love. And LaFaro makes it so interesting with his technical and lyrical brilliance. I believe his playing is one of the main reasons this trio was so special.
Just put this record on the turntable, lean back and soak in the magic that happened live at the Village Vanguard in New York City on June 25th, 1961. Close your eyes and pretend you’re there in the club, sipping on a drink and just relaxing.
I have quite a few other Bill Evans albums on the want list such as “Explorations” on RLP 351 by the same trio. Also, his later trios with bassists Chuck Israels and Joe Gomez are great. There are many Evans albums worth seeking out.
At the moment I’m looking forward to spending some time with my family over Christmas. We have a vacation overseas coming up then and every penny will go to that, as well as a summer vacation. So, I will find it hard to purchase a lot of expensive albums for a while. Let’s see if any albums that are more moderately priced, like many of the Impulse! titles, shows up and maybe I will be able to squeeze one or two in before the summer.
In the mean time I have my little treasure of superb albums to enjoy. I was thinking of that actually this morning, when I saw an image of a huge collection, that my collection is small compared to many other collectors, but very nice indeed. And the amount of albums I have is enough for me to enjoy at the moment. I won’t ever find the time to listen to a 1000, 2000, 3000+ albums. There are just so many hours in a day. And I believe that keeping a massive collection with thousands of titles, many which are just collecting dust, is not for me. Also, all the albums I puchase has to be top notch music-wise to me, otherwise I don’t buy them. I’m never going to buy albums just to complete a series of a label for example. There are probably several titles in a series that I can do without, you know? I pick the titles I really enjoy and that’s that.
What do you consider a good number of albums in a collection, that you actually listen to and can enjoy? Would you consider to try and complete a series of a label? Maybe collect a whole discography of an artist? How do you collect is the question.. :-)
Enjoy the weekend folks. It’s cold, dark and damp here in Stockholm right now. Maybe I’ll crack open a nice porter or stout this evening… stay tuned for more vintage jazz albums.
Cheers!