DON RENDELL / IAN CARR QUINTET – BBC Jazz Club Sessions 1965-1966
Rhythm and Blues Records RANDB 064
Don Rendell (tenor soprano flute); Ian Carr (trumpet, flugelhorn); Michael Garrick (piano); Colin Purbrook (piano); Dave Green (bass); Jeff Clyne (bass); Trevor Tomkins (drums)
The Don Rendell Ian Carr Quintet was admired by many who came of age in the 1960s. It is not hard to see why. Their music was original, literate, measured and not a slavish copy of the latest trend from New York. The group wore their influences lightly and they were bright enough to forge their own path. The discovery recently of tracks of the group performing at the BBC Jazz Club in 1965 1966 is going to please everyone who appreciates good music from a group that was establishing a unique style. The disc, at nearly eighty minutes, will also extend our knowledge of this important group.
Over the years the group's original vinyl records have reached almost legendary status in the collector's world. LPs had been selling for around £5000 to collectors. Copies of the vinyls were released in 2018 as ‘The Complete Lansdowne Recordings 1965 - 1969’. The box contained the five albums; ‘Shades Of Blues’ (1965), ‘Dusk Fire’ (1966), ‘Phase III’ (1968), ‘Change Is’ (1969) and ‘Live’ (1969). The reissue, limited edition box was sold out on the first day.
It was the mix of the group that has given it such a long lasting appeal: the spark of different personalities. The bass of Dave Green gave the music a solidity. Trevor Tomkins drumming was never dominant but tasteful and fluent. Ian Carr felt that the band became stronger after pianist Michael Garrick joined replacing Colin Purbrook. Trumpeter Ian Carr felt it wasn’t hard-driving like a lot of American Jazz of the time. ‘We had different kind of focuses than the Americans. We were into texture and different rhythms. And Michael Garrick was steeped in Indian Music as well. We found we could do so many things that we never thought of before. There was something uniquely poetic about the group’s music. ‘I think that was one of the reasons people liked it so much.’
The influence of Michael Garrick was crucial. It is a pity that no way was found to include him in the name of the group: he was that important. Garrick’s playing revealed his influences from India, the liturgy and Cecil Taylor. He was an exciting player, you were never quite sure where he would go. Don Rendell before forming the group had played with Billie Holiday (just briefly), Stan Kenton and Woody Herman. His influences ranged from Lester Young to Coltrane. Ian Carr was the intellectual of the group and he was irritated at the confines of the current jazz formulas. Probably the track that illustrates this best is ‘Les Neiges D’Antan’ based on a poem by Francois Villon. His playing on both trumpet and flugel was incisive and expressive.
Many of the compositions played on the broadcasts are new. Some are ones that were issued later on the vinyls: ‘Dusk Fire’, ‘Jubal’, ‘Hot Rod’, ‘Spooks’, and ‘Les Neiges D’Antan’ (‘Snows Of Yesteryear’). The exigencies of radio means that many of the tracks are shorter.
There are many great moments on this disc. ’Blues Row’ by Howard Riley, an off centre blues typical of the adventurous side of the quintet. The relaxed swing of Garrick’s ‘Webster’s Mood’, Carr’s vehement solo on ’Torrent’ which moves the audience to cheers. Michael Garrick’s idiosyncratic solo on ‘Hot Rod’ indeed any of his solos and Don Rendell on every piece.
The quality of the sound on the original LPs recorded at the Lansdowne studios was spectacular: the clarity, the spaciousness is startling. These recordings from the BBC are not quite in the same class but they are good enough for the virtues of the music to shine through. A nostalgia bonus is included because some of the urbane introductory announcements from Humphrey Lyttelton are included.
The chronicler of the jazz scene, Simon Spillett, contributes an essay that reveals much that is new about the band and its constituent parts. Spillett writes with some faint ambiguity about the group. He praises the group but observes that some of their material ‘might have got laughed off the stand at Ronnie Scott’s’ as if that is a criteria.
This is an important album and an exciting extension to the work of this band.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
Rhythm and Blues Records RANDB 064
Don Rendell (tenor soprano flute); Ian Carr (trumpet, flugelhorn); Michael Garrick (piano); Colin Purbrook (piano); Dave Green (bass); Jeff Clyne (bass); Trevor Tomkins (drums)
The Don Rendell Ian Carr Quintet was admired by many who came of age in the 1960s. It is not hard to see why. Their music was original, literate, measured and not a slavish copy of the latest trend from New York. The group wore their influences lightly and they were bright enough to forge their own path. The discovery recently of tracks of the group performing at the BBC Jazz Club in 1965 1966 is going to please everyone who appreciates good music from a group that was establishing a unique style. The disc, at nearly eighty minutes, will also extend our knowledge of this important group.
Over the years the group's original vinyl records have reached almost legendary status in the collector's world. LPs had been selling for around £5000 to collectors. Copies of the vinyls were released in 2018 as ‘The Complete Lansdowne Recordings 1965 - 1969’. The box contained the five albums; ‘Shades Of Blues’ (1965), ‘Dusk Fire’ (1966), ‘Phase III’ (1968), ‘Change Is’ (1969) and ‘Live’ (1969). The reissue, limited edition box was sold out on the first day.
It was the mix of the group that has given it such a long lasting appeal: the spark of different personalities. The bass of Dave Green gave the music a solidity. Trevor Tomkins drumming was never dominant but tasteful and fluent. Ian Carr felt that the band became stronger after pianist Michael Garrick joined replacing Colin Purbrook. Trumpeter Ian Carr felt it wasn’t hard-driving like a lot of American Jazz of the time. ‘We had different kind of focuses than the Americans. We were into texture and different rhythms. And Michael Garrick was steeped in Indian Music as well. We found we could do so many things that we never thought of before. There was something uniquely poetic about the group’s music. ‘I think that was one of the reasons people liked it so much.’
The influence of Michael Garrick was crucial. It is a pity that no way was found to include him in the name of the group: he was that important. Garrick’s playing revealed his influences from India, the liturgy and Cecil Taylor. He was an exciting player, you were never quite sure where he would go. Don Rendell before forming the group had played with Billie Holiday (just briefly), Stan Kenton and Woody Herman. His influences ranged from Lester Young to Coltrane. Ian Carr was the intellectual of the group and he was irritated at the confines of the current jazz formulas. Probably the track that illustrates this best is ‘Les Neiges D’Antan’ based on a poem by Francois Villon. His playing on both trumpet and flugel was incisive and expressive.
Many of the compositions played on the broadcasts are new. Some are ones that were issued later on the vinyls: ‘Dusk Fire’, ‘Jubal’, ‘Hot Rod’, ‘Spooks’, and ‘Les Neiges D’Antan’ (‘Snows Of Yesteryear’). The exigencies of radio means that many of the tracks are shorter.
There are many great moments on this disc. ’Blues Row’ by Howard Riley, an off centre blues typical of the adventurous side of the quintet. The relaxed swing of Garrick’s ‘Webster’s Mood’, Carr’s vehement solo on ’Torrent’ which moves the audience to cheers. Michael Garrick’s idiosyncratic solo on ‘Hot Rod’ indeed any of his solos and Don Rendell on every piece.
The quality of the sound on the original LPs recorded at the Lansdowne studios was spectacular: the clarity, the spaciousness is startling. These recordings from the BBC are not quite in the same class but they are good enough for the virtues of the music to shine through. A nostalgia bonus is included because some of the urbane introductory announcements from Humphrey Lyttelton are included.
The chronicler of the jazz scene, Simon Spillett, contributes an essay that reveals much that is new about the band and its constituent parts. Spillett writes with some faint ambiguity about the group. He praises the group but observes that some of their material ‘might have got laughed off the stand at Ronnie Scott’s’ as if that is a criteria.
This is an important album and an exciting extension to the work of this band.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
