Woody Shaw Live Vol. 1

Woody Shaw was a major voice in jazz when this recording was made in 1977, a trumpeter with few equals who could balance bravura skills and saxophone-like fluency with inspired invention, whose every leaping solo was an amalgam of cool logic and emotive fire. While many had converted to fusion, Shaw remained loyal to acoustic postbop in its most advanced form, continuing to develop the mix of complex harmonies, modality, and demanding rhythms that had characterized the mid-'60s work of Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock. The tracks here are long--"Love Dance" is over 15 minutes, "Why" nearly 19--but there's no sense of sprawl. It's a band with an intense focus, and each piece is an exploration of a tune's possibilities, whether a dive into a deepening pool (pianist Larry Willis's "Light Valley") or a quest for a molten, expressive core (Shaw's high-speed "Stepping Stone"). Real camaraderie shows in the collective ability to shift direction and in the frequent dovetailing of Shaw's trumpet and Carter Jefferson's blistering tenor and soprano saxophones, the latter sometimes compressed to an oboe-like tone. The horns are driven along by the swarming, fluid detail in Victor Lewis's drumming, Stafford James's darting, propulsive bass, and Willis's insistent, prodding piano. Details of date and venue are missing from the CD, but the sound quality is very good. Only occasional applause and the spirit of the music testify to a "live" recording. --Stuart Broomer