This is a remarkable album on several levels. Recorded at a performance by the Billy Bang Quintet at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts in Grand Rapids, MI on April 28, 2003 and captured using a laptop running ProTools, it was to be the last recorded appearance of tenor sax great Frank Lowe, who died four months later from lung cancer. While it is obvious at times during the evening that wind is a priority for Lowe (he only had one lung at this point), this is far from a shaky outing for him, and his short, lyrical lines are central to this stunning set. Bang and Lowe were unknowingly at the endgame of their long collaboration together (they first began working together in the mid-'70s) during this two week tour, and the whole unit (Andy Bemkey on piano, Todd Nicholson on bass, Tatsuya Nakatani on drums) is sharp and focused, easing into each selection gently, allowing the musicians to find a center, then building and growing the improvisations in a natural flow before gliding back to the main theme for compositional resolve. The result is a kind of free jazz moving with -- as opposed to against -- a melodic center, and even when these selections slide to the atonal side, it all fits and manages to be both surprising and expected at the same time, which means this set is wonderfully accessible. Bang's violin work is as fresh and vital as always, and one quickly forgets the oddity of a violin at the center of a jazz combo as Bang and Lowe play off of and around each other with a sharp but free flowing precision that only comes with a deep respect and familiarity for each other's talent and range. The powerful "Dark Silhouette" is the emotional center of this performance, but all four selections are a tangible part of a whole, and it is a disservice to this album to look at it any other way. The show may have been a swan song for Lowe, but it is still full of a delightful, gentle joy, and the music is uplifting, natural and -- in the best sense -- logical. Lowe on his deathbed asked Bang to make sure this performance was released. One can hear why. It's magnificent. - Steve Leggett
It can be a tough thing to witness an aging musician head toward (or past) the point of no return. For me, the worst example was Miles. Sure he played that concert with Quincy at Montreux but the power behind the man with the horn just wasn't there.
There are counterexamples out there. Ornette Coleman's Sound Grammar was a stunner. Frank Lowe's final recording with violinist Billy Bang is right there as well. What makes Above and Beyond (recorded in 2003) that much more amazing is that Lowe had been suffering from lung cancer for quite some time; he succumbed to the disease later that year.
Listening to these long form compositions, you would never know that Lowe was in a state of physical decline. On his own “Nothing But Love," Lowe's sax maintains a warm and burnished tone throughout. On The opening “Silent Observation," Lowe and Bang take a quick unison turn through the main theme before Lowe splits off to build a long solo that slowly builds in intensity. Lowe employs sounds that manage to span an almost Paul Desmond-like hush all the way to some upper register squeals. Bang is certainly Lowe's equal here, taking a solo that almost comes apart at the seams with its ferocity.
The closing “At Play In The Fields Of The Lord" can be heard as a companion piece to “Silent Observation." With somewhat similar tempos and harmonic development, the two compositions are fine and inspiring examples of what this pair could do, not only on that night but on their many previous collaborations.
It's “Dark Silhouette" that's the centerpiece of this concert. Pianist Andrew Bemkey ratchets up the tension by beginning with a lengthy (five minutes or so) solo section that at points heads into Cecil Taylor territory. This gives way to the snakey theme layed down by bassist Todd Nicholson before Bang launches his elegant and bluesy solo. Lowe runs with that motif but soon leaps into the land of extended technique with interval jumps, more upper register righteousness, and even some textured valve clatter.
It was Frank Lowe's wish that this concert recording see the light of day. Obviously, he knew that something special happened that night in 2003. Many thanks to Billy Bang, who himself passed last April, for championing this idea.
The jazz world misses Frank Lowe but at least we have this document of the man's creative powers. - Mark Saleski
Tracks
1. Silent Observation
2. Nothing But Love
3. Dark Silhouette
4. At Play in the Fields of the Lord
BILLY BANG violin
FRANK LOWE tenor saxophone
TODD NICHOLSON bass
TATSUYA NAKATANI drums
ANDREW BEMKEY piano
All music by Billy Bang and Frank Lowe
Recorded live on 28 April 2003 at The Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, Grand Rapids, MI.
Dedicated to Frank Lowe (1942-2003)
Justin Time – JUST 208-2 (Canada)