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It is curious, and unexplained, why this 1998 recording has just been issued. In a trio with tenor
David Murray and bassist Fred Hopkins,
El’Zabar has crafted a strong if not truly distinguished recording of free jazz with an underlying beat, almost (at times, and variably) a dance pulse. Not an explicit dance meter, but a dance pulse.
Because Kahil El’Zabar
is like a heart, beating with the greatest of variations but a life-giving strength.
Why is this recording strong yet not distinguished? Because, for the most part the compositions are echoes of others’ works or variations on head arrangements. Strong, first, because David Murray, whose recent work has disregarded free jazz for a tremulous balladry and mainstreaming, speaks in tongues and breathes fire. And strong because, at least occasionally, the music is distinguished, most notably on the mesmerizing "Meditation for the Celestial Warriors," a duet for marimba and horn that recalls the heady achievements of Pharaoh Sanders in its spirituality and potency.
El’Zabar is an exemplary percussionist. Hearing this music live would be refreshing, if not enduring. And there is enough here to still put it head and shoulders above the tepid jazz that often is heard today.
Release Date: 27 August 2002
Kahil El'Zabar:
Love Outside of Dreams (Delmark)
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last update 18 November 2002