Bop's premier bassist finds himself at the precipice. By the mid-50s several different stylistic directions had emerged. "Post-bop" would become the favoured term to describe music that still contained recognisable elements of classic bebop, while at the same time offering something new. Mingus offered intensity and sound-effects.
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Liberation Music Orchestra Charlie Haden 1969 [Impulse!]
It was 1969 and bassist Charlie Haden decided to speak out about Vietnam by making an album about, of all things, the Spanish Civil War. The lineup of avant-garde luminaries he assembled includes Gato Barbieri, Carla Bley, Don Cherry and Dewey Redman. Guitarist Sam Brown shines on the 21-minute centrepiece track.
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Conference Of the Birds Dave Holland Quartet 1972 [ECM]
Apart from Holland's amazing bass playing - this early ECM classic features some fine work from reed players Anthony Braxton and Sam Rivers. While the music here is undeniably free, it is not directionless. Holland is a disciplined and inventive composer and Conference is his defining statement. Not typical of the later ECM sound.
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Jaco Pastorius Jaco Pastorius 1976 [Epic/Legacy]
Made before he joined fusion outfit Weather Report, Pastorius' debut album is a treasure trove of adventure and imagination. Playing his trademark fretless electric bass, Pastorius works through this set of mostly original compositions. Serious mental illness would eventually lead him to a life on the streets and a tragically premature death.
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Sci-Fi Christian McBride 2000 [Verve]
There is probably no finer acoustic bass player in mainstream jazz today than Christian McBride. Sci-Fi proves there is substance to the hype, with more seriously good hard bop than has any right to be on one record. The support includes the likes of Herbie Hancock, James Carter, Diane Reeves and harmonica legend Toots Thielemans.
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Not for Nothin' Dave Holland Quintet 2001 [ECM]
Bassist Holland presents five original compositions and one each from the rest of the quintet on this highly listenable record. The other shining star here is saxophonist Chris Potter, while vibes-man Steve Nelson adds some distinction in places. Everything from the exotic to the cosmic is on display. Postmodernism at its best.
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O'Neal's Porch William Parker Quartet 2000 [Centering]
Avant-garde luminary William Parker almost sounds conventional in places on this fine record, although by 'Leaf' the freedom is well and truly flowing. Released on his own label, on O'Neal's Porch the bassist is joined by a formidable horn section in Rob Brown (alto) and Lewis Barnes (trumpet), with regular sideman Hamid Drake on drums.
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Buzz Ben Allison & Medicine Wheel 2003 [Palmetto]
Cited by Downbeat magazine as one of 25 rising jazz stars for the future, double bassist Ben Allison continues to impress with this adventurous set. A few of the Medicine Wheel faces are different to 2001's superb Riding the Nuclear Tiger, with trombonist Clark Gayton and drummer Mike Sarin fitting like a glove.
