Jam Session Volume 2
Take five Steeplechase leaders (three of them bri 11 iant modern exponents of the electric guitar), have them bring some tunes they dig into the studio, roll the tapes, sit back and listen to a creative hour of spontaneous combustion. That's what producer Nils Winther did when he laid on a rendezvous for a trio of the label's top plectrists - Vic Juris, Dave Stryker and Tony Purrone.
To give this formidable "string section" the appropriate drive, two fellow Steeplechasers, drummer Keith Copeland and bassist Scott Col ley, both leaders in their own right, were pressed into service.
It turned out to be a convivial congress. The agenda was not to present perfectly-rehearsed interpretations, but free-wheeling, open-ended performances, capturing the essence of "music made in the moment". Here the fellows were obliged to react instantly to the immediate ad-libbing taking place
around them.
Guitars jam sessions are not the most common of recorded currency, and here the element of surprise was almost complete. While Dave Stryker and Vic Juris know each other well, are close neighbours who hang out to talk music and sometimes play it, they have never worked together i n a group.
Tony Purrone barely knew the other two. "I met Vic once when we were both playing a college gig up in New York State around 1977. And I think I'd met Dave one time in New York City, but had never played with him.
"The session was certainly an interesting experience. Not easy because you have to work things out on the spot when you aren't familiar with your colleagues. So it was a challenge. Of course the three of us had never sat down and played together which, I guess, made it a one-off thing. "
Vic Juris enjoyed the occasion. "/ had a wonderful time, and I think we worked well together. What I particularly remember is the tune I wrote especially for the date, 'Twenty Five', which as the title suggests, is 25 bars long. We shared out the melody as two eight-bar sections and one of nine.
"The other piece of mine was 'Subway' which I also recorded on a recording session with Ron McClure."
Keith Copeland has very positive feelings about this most unusual "holiday for strings". Hesays: "All three guitarists played good and impressed me a lot. It was a very swinging date, much different to the norm, and I thought it turned out really well.
"I remember that Scott Colley and myself had slight difficulty on one of the faster pieces, but it all came together eventually. I'm so pleased that music is being issued because it deserves to be heard. I give top marks to Vic, Dave and Tony for the way they played and interacted in true jam session spirit." Praise indeed, coming from a veteran of jams galore!
Producer Nils Winther recalls that there was plenty of good-humoured banter around the studio. "Atone point we all cracked up when Dave and Vic, accompanying the mercurial Tony Purrone, complained that the soloist should leave some room for their chords. 'What do you mean - play less - I've already slowed right down!' was Tony's response."
To the lay listener the wondrous aspect of the music is that five men can walk into a studio "cold" and turn out such a sustained outpouring of memorable sounds, finding a common, unified ground in the process. - album notes except
Tracks
01. Billie’s Bounce (Charlie Parker)
02. Strikezone (Dave Stryker)
03. Who Cares (George Gershwin)
04. Subway (Vic Juris)
05. Bluebird (Charlie Parker)
06. Twenty Five (Vic Juris)
07. Wee (Denzil Best)
VIC JURIS guitar
DAVE STRYKER guitar
TONY PURRONE guitar
SCOTT COLLEY bass
KEITH COPELAND drums
Recorded March 1996
SteepleChase SCCD 31523