SPEAK NO EVIL

Wayne Shorter is loved on these Archives for his work on "In A Silent Way" and with Weather Report. Other than that, however, his only solo output that gets any attention here is his modal/post-bop era and style "Speak No Evil". This is, after all, the solo work of his considered the finest by jazz aficionados, and comparable in quality and position to Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage". Speaking of which, Herbie lays down some of his piano magic on this record. In the end, while not even as prog related as "Time Out" and "Time Further Out" from Brubeck and friends, or "Maiden Voyage" in its special sense, "Speak No Evil" is a masterpiece, and I will review it as such. So Shorter, ever the great composer, leads his backing band well, as he plays his tenor sax with smooth majesty. Herbie lays down some beautiful piano, as is his MO, rounding out the sound; think of an even better take on the interplay between McCoy Tyner's piano and Trane's saxes on "My Favorite Things". The rhythm section is just wonderful at backing this mix of soloists. The whole album is a relaxing trip that makes you forget about evil, forget about everything ill and stressful. Highly recommended to jazz fans, and an interesting listen for any other interested listeners.

An upbeat post-bop album with Shorter backed by a fine range of sidemen, including Herbie Hancock. The sessions for this album took place on Christmas Eve, 1964, which seems to have put the participants in a positive and happy mood, because the album is decidedly uplifting in flavour. The combination of the album title and the cover shot of Wayne and his first wife Teruko Nakagami - the duo having split up prior to the album sessions - suggests some sort of resentful hidden message here, but thankfully that doesn't come out in the playing and perhaps when Wayne called it "Speak No Evil" he meant it, celebrating the happy memories rather than lingering on the bad.