Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Ray Russell Quartet: Turn Circle

344

Ray Russell Quartet: Turn Circle

By

Sign in to view read count
Ray Russell Quartet: Turn Circle
Vocalion has done it again, with a long overdue reissue of Ray Russell's first album Turn Circle (originally released in on the CBS Realm series), and superbly remastered by Michael J. Dutton. Russell is probably the most heinously undervalued jazz guitarist in the world, which is ironic because he is undoubtedly one of the best. His style is his own, sounding like no other guitarist.

This album, recorded in 1968, is quite beautiful and the rather quaint cover art adds to its overall charm, showing Russell sporting a Burns Bison solid electric guitar, a singularly unorthodox choice of axe for a singularly unusual jazz guitarist. Two excellent covers of Wayne Shorter's "Footprints" and Charles Lloyd's "Sombrero Sam" join six Russell-penned compositions, the first three—"Bonita, "Peruvian Triangle" and "The Fry and I —are solid, well-arranged and performed, the last three comprising a three-part suite entitled "A Day in the Working Life of a Slave of Lower Egypt. Parts I ("Dormancy ) and II ("Tremendum ) are nearer to Russell's later freer work, whereas Part III ("Path") is a more straight-ahead modal piece introduced and concluded by an initial bass figure.

Throughout the album, Russell's guitar work never fails to engage, and his accompanying rhythm section is simply top-notch, with sumptuous piano inventiveness by the late Roy Fry, typically deft bass from Ron Mathewson, who has played with everyone from Ronnie Scott to Tubby Hayes to Ian Carr's Nucleus, and fine drumming from Alan Rushton. This modest yet masterly recording warrants urgent reevaluation as it offers essential and hitherto missing evidence of the truly talented craftsmanship of Ray Russell.

Track Listing

Footprints, Bonita, Peruvian Triangle, Sombrero Sam, The Fry and I, A Day in the working Life of a Slave of Lower Egypt: Part I ("Dormancy"), Part II ("Tremendum"), Part III ("Path").

Personnel

Ray Russell
guitar, electric

Ray Russell: electric guitar; Roy Fry: piano; Ron Mathewson: double bass; Alan Rushton: drums.

Album information

Title: Turn Circle | Year Released: 2007 | Record Label: Vocalion

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Fiesta at Caroga
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
Fellowship
David Gibson
Immense Blue
Olie Brice / Rachel Musson / Mark Sanders

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.