Jazz Rock Fusion Albums of 2007

One 2006 release, which didn't take off until earlier this year.

 

Limited to albums which have charted in the specialist jazz press/media. If you go to Abstractlogix's site, for instance, and you could easily double that number, just with releases from N America  and I've omitted a couple of German albums, several French, a couple of Austrian, Japanese? etc.. Could have broaden to nu.fusion, e.g. Eivind Aarset (Sonic Codex) or EST (Live In Hamburg), Supersister..... For jazz fusion fans of various hues, a good year!

I'll admit there's three I haven't heard , but I've read independent reviews stating that others think the respective albums are excellent, e.g Stanley Clarke, Corea/Fleck, Vital Information - and so on my pending order list (in fact just ordered the Stanley Clarke, at a stupidly cheap price at Amazon. UK in last 10 minutes). Every other one I've either had as promos or purchased, and  all have given pleasure. Personally I can't differentiate between the Machacek/Sipe/Garrison and the Hellborg as the best for me. The Hornsby/DeJohnette/McBride was a very good surprise, for an acoustic set by Bruce Hornsby. T Latvitz's  album is also largely acoustic, apart from Jerry Goodman's violin on 3 tracks and the occasional electric bass from John Patitucci. Jean Luc Ponty's is a sort of return to form but IMHO not one of his top 5, straight jazz rock albums - but worth it for his pushing Holdsworth on one track. Machacek's [sic] is perhaps the most musical complex, wrt to complex rhythms employed. Theo Travis is demonstrating himself to be one of the best 'woodwind' players (sax and flute) around in the UK, with his new solo album and stepping in Elton Dean's shoes in Soft Machine Legacy.  There was considerable praise for Hectic Watermelon's first album earlier this year on this site - and perhaps this is one of  three albums listed that is in the newer American jazz rock style: also Gary Willis's , Uncle Moes Space Ranch's (use of drum'n'bass, sampling/turntablism etc.). Tal Wilkenfield is the 18 years Aussie lady currently touring with Jeff Beck, but on her solo album has the most excellent  Wayne Krantz on guitar (check his own site for some excellent melodic jazz rock improv) - and Iranian born guitarist Ahmad Mansour has produced a live album, listed in the poll,  which strongly reminds me of  Wayne Krantz. Hiromi is great alone but here  has Fuze on board playing guitar, which is even better. Finally really enjoyed Alan Pasqua's album over the last few weeks - great old fashioned (?) Fender Rhodes playing, plus the presence of avant fusion guitarist  Nels Cline, in the territory of late 70's Miles Davis or Ian Carr's Nucleus, but still sounding fresh and new. (Pasqua and Holdsworth at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall in May was my favourite gig in 2007, plus their DVD Live At Yoshi's my favourite DVD - least favourite gig: Metheny/Mehldau at Birmingham Symphony Hall in June).

 

One I left out, Afsar Sirkis & Inner Noise The Song Within, (Sirkis is an Israeli drummer based in London), featured an English church organ of the sort that can be heard in many Anglican churchs (and therefore nothing like those monster pipe organs  Wakeman occasionally plays), and gave this jazz fusion quite an unusual sound.

 

Medeski Scofield Martin Wood- Out Louder (MMW are great, but with Scofield this is insane!

Mclaughlin Pastorius Williams- Trio of Doom (nothing like this will ever happen again)

I saw Mclaughlin and the 4th Dimension but I havent heard the bootleg, but judging by my concert experience I am sure its awesome.

 

Of those three, Uncle Moe's Space Ranch and Hectic Watermelon standout. (with the thrid being Trio Of Doom)

 

I won't cast an offical vote though.

 

Thanks for your comments - as one of the older members here (goodness I became a grandddad on Tuesday!!!), I do feel some responsibility to encourage a progressive community to do  more progressing with some of their music .

 

Personally I believe jazz rock and  the broader area of jazz fusion, have managed to develop/progress very well over the last 15 years with some stunning albums - but admittedly not at the output rate of stunning albums released originally in the early 70's. The introduction of nu.jazz and nu.jazz  over the last decade has enlivened the scene, as well as those musicians still evolving the more traditional forms of jazz fusion that appeared in the late 60's. Problem is that too many bands nowadays are forced to either independently release their own records or reliant on underfunded small record labels, both lacking good (worldwide) distribution and the associated media attention. Fortunately one beneft of the WWW is that like-minded folks can be concentrated together to exchange news and views, and tell others what good music is being released in their part of the world. So ironically while the hardcore jazz rock fusion community is small, if you know where to look on the web, you can find far more info on jazz rock fusion than ever before. Plus, the specialist webstores set up - US-based Abstractlogix is the one many people in the jazz rock fusion fraternity mention nowadays. However, I'm always amazed that Amazon.UK have 80% of the jazz fusion records I read about, and through their marketplace deals, often can be imported into the UK at remarkably low prices (cf. import costs up until about 5 years ago).