* Jackie McLean / Junko Onishi: Hat Trick (Blue Note)
Forget pretty young sax players sporting an earring or two. At 64 Jackie McLean is still playing with that same mixture of love, pain and fuck-you defiance which characterised his performances in the early Sixties. Three decades on, he has many more life songs to sing, and ‘ thank God ‘ the breath and fingering to still do it, not to mention that beautiful alto tone. Pianist Onishi is a worthy partner: a tough, inventive, Monkish player, moving with ease from straightahead blues to an acid, fractured phrasing which adds poignancy to ballads like Left Alone and mischief to her own composition, Jackie’s Hat. Bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Lewis Nash support with flair ‘ but this is Jackie Mac’s album; a triumphant and deserved return to centre-stage. Buy it.
* John Scofield: Quiet (Verve)
On his acoustic debut, Scofield is backed by a large (eight-horn) ensemble including Wayne Shorter on a collection of the guitarist’s originals plus one by bass player Steve Swallow. Only ‘quiet’ in the sense that it eschews raucous electrified chords, this is highly assertive, individual music. Scofield’s playing shouldn’t need praise by now ‘ but new as his unplugged touch is the flair he shows in arranging colours from a big sound palette. Closest parallel is probably Gil Evans’ delicate touch on Birth of the Cool. And Shorter is wonderful, displaying a disciplined yet inventive sax voice which leaves the listener wanting much more.
Three South African releases which flirt with jazz idioms in much the same way as much US fusion does. Most successful is Laka’s, which reveals a fresh side of this accomplished keyboard player and producer. The compositions are catchy and the arrangements stylish ‘ what kills the album is the dead tone of studio-engineered rhythm. Give him a real band to work with and something truly impressive could emerge. Mabuse, as usual, produces a curate’s egg of an album. The very good things include his own flute playing; thoughtful, textured arrangements using talented and varied guests and some moving compositions ‘ plus his ever-acute ear for what people like to dance to. Less successful are some songs and ideas now long past their sell-by date. Will Hotstix’s talented eclecticism sink him, or finally give birth to the consistent personal voice we’re waiting for? The jury’s still out. Stompie Mavi sings African jazz in the tradition of Victor Ndlazilwane and composes arresting themes. He has an attractive voice, which we’ve missed since the demise of the band Umbongo. However, many songs are marred by dated, deeply naff pop arrangements. Who else does what I can’t say, because the record company didn’t bother to identify them in either inner notes or press release.