Paul Motian[6 CD Boxset]

This six-CD set, with recordings from 1972 to 1984, includes the albums Conception Vessel, Tribute, Dance, Le Voyage, Psalm and It Shouldve Happened A Long Time Ago. Paul Motians innovative drumming with the great trios of Bill Evans and Paul Bley had already assured him of a place in jazzs history books, but Motian had not considered life as a bandleader until ECM proposed a recording session under his own name. Conception Vessel opened floodgates of creativity. Through these recordings we hear not only the evolution of several outstanding Motian ensembles and the birth of the enduring Motian/Frisell/Lovano trio, but also the growth of confidence of a unique jazz composer. In Pauls music, memories of Turkish and Armenian melodies he had heard as a child were filtered through a love of jazz. Early in his career, Paul had played with Thelonious Monk, and Monks wayward sense of dynamics remained a reference for him, but he also loved the free expressive possibilities of the new jazz. Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden, regular partners in Keiths trio and quartet, encouraged Pauls creative flight on, respectively, Conception Vessel and Tribute. With Dance and Le Voyage, the trios with Charles Brackeen recorded 1977 and 1979, Motian shaped a sound world entirely his own, and a blueprint for the future. This box set includes extensive liner notes by pianist Ethan Iverson and rare historical photos of the musicians.