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A top sideman with Monk and Herbie Mann, bassist
Ahmed Abdul-Malik must have realized that if he
remained parochial it would result in complacency.
Early in his career, he chose to explore his Sudanese
roots and an association with pianist Randy Weston,
known for his own Afro-Jazz blending, perhaps
nourished this inclination. During these inquiries, he
mastered the oud (a stringed instrument for the Arab
world which is the equivalent in popularity to the
guitar and piano combined for us here in the West),
and in 1958 released Jazz Sahara, the first of six LPs
that are primordial examples of Mideastern/African
infused jazz.
Subsequently, Abdul-Malik was
recruited for the 1961 Village Vanguard sessions to
augment the Eastern essence of John Coltrane's
"India." That same year, The Music of Ahmed Abdul-
Malik was released, followed by 1962's Sounds of Africa.
Engineered by Rudy Van Gelder, both sessions are
packaged together here as Jazz Sounds of Africa.
The '61 session is the more majestic for its
deceptive simplicity. Commencing with the crisp
sound of "young" Brooklyn drummer Andrew
Cyrille's cymbals and snare, an intriguing rhythm is
set up for the captivating instrumentation of "Nights
on Saturn." Bilal Abdurrahman plays an unknown
Korean reed instrument off the still modern sounding
percussion to alert the listener of things in store. "La
Ibkey" has Cyrille drumming in 7/4 while oud,
trumpet and cello
alternatively solo in a disparate signature. "Oud Blues"
is as its title suggests, while "Don't Blame Me" places Scott
front and center over a wonderfully restrained drum
and bass rhythm for an uncommon example of early
jazz cello. "Hannibal's Carnivals" and "The Hustlers"
begin with a West African Highlife welcome that
soon gives way to the straight ahead sax of Basie tenor
man Eric Dixon. Both pieces stylistically oscillate and
present a multicultural celebratory feast.
Remaining cuts continue the previous year's
explorations with a greatly expanded rhythmic feel,
courtesy of percussionists Montego Joe and Chief Bey.
"Communication" bears special mention for its
extended trance-like percussion workout, while
"Suffering," the CD closer, is timeless. A hypnotic
brass and percussive rhythm is joined by Abdul-Malik's driving bass as Calo Scott plays an
out-of-tune
violin. Rupert Alleyne's flute lends a distinctive
African feel and then gives way to a halting oud and
ensuing trumpet. Scott then brings things full circle in
more ways than one. With this release, these
historically important and presently influential
sessions have finally been given their due.
This review originally appeared in
All About Jazz-New York.
~ Elliott Simon
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Track Listing: 1. Nights on Saturn (Abdul-Malik) - 7:34
2. The Hustlers (Abdul-Malik) - 5:34
3. Oud Blues (Abdul-Malik) - 4:09
4. La Ibkey (Abdul-Malik) - 5:52
5. Don't Blame Me (Fields/McHugh) - 7:28
6. Hannibal's Carnivals (Abdul-Malik) - 4:40
7. Wakida Hena (Abdul-Malik) - 3:53
8. African Bossa Nova (Abdul-Malik) - 6:00
9. Nadusilma (Abdul-Malik) - 4:00
10. Out of Nowhere (Green/Heyman) - 5:00
11. Communication (Abdul-Malik) - 9:46
12. Suffering (Abdul-Malik) - 5:13
Personnel: Andrew Cyrille - Drums;
Tommy Turrentine - Trumpet;
Montego Joe - Bongos, Conga;
Bilal Abdurrahman - Clarinet, Percussion, Reeds, Darbouka;
Ahmed Abdul-Malik - Bass, Oud;
Rupert Alleyne - Flute;
Chief Bey - African Drums;
Taft Chandler - Tenor Sax;
Rudy Collins - Drums;
Eric Dixon - Tenor Sax.
Calo Scott - Violin, Cello
Richard Gene Williams - Trumpet
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