I'll respectively disagree that Undercurrent is not a sideman gig for Bill. On the inside of the gf it lists his name first and in larger letters and Bill made at least one more album on UA so this might be under his contract. I like the album but the sound on the original lp is not very good. I bought my copy from an old friend and he wrote the date he purchased it on the inside of the gf which was August 1962. It is disappointing for a first press. There's an interesting story on the London Jazz Collector website about his quest for a good sounding pressing and discovered that Toshiba-EMI is the one to get. Story is here. Bill Evans Jim Hall: Undercurrent (1962) Toshiba-EMI I've never heard that pressing but would snap it up if the price wasn't scary.
And what about this one ? They're 2 of my favorite jazz players, but I rarely grab this one. Evans seems to agree: "Both Stan and I had a mutual desire to do a record together but when it was over, we both felt that we had not got to the level we wanted. Stan had a clause in his contract that would prevent the release of anything that he did not approve and so the record was not issued. However, later, Verve released it without approval. I am not so unhappy about it now but this is the sort of thing that record companies do without reference to the artists involved.”
As I'm more of a George Russell fan than of Bill himself, and as it hasn't yet had a mention, I'll go for this. Includes the wonderful Concerto For Billy The Kid which Russell wrote for BE. And wow! Never seen this before!
I would think Bill's albums with Getz, Jim Hall and Tony Bennett would not be classified as Sidemen gigs, but more of Co-Leader or Duets.
I owned that for a very short time. The music wasn't very inspiring and the sound was merely ok. For completists only. There was a live one released much later with the two of them in Europe that is very good so there isn't much reason to own the one posted here if you merely want to hear what these two jazz giants sounded like together. On the album posted here they were both Verve artists at the time so I don't know who was actually the leader since it wasn't supposed to be released, meaning there wasn't much released about it until the cd came out. I would still consider both as co-leaders. I think of duos as being a recording by two artists who are equally billed. Once other musicians are added changes it to being co-led. Whether I'm right or not, I don't know but that is my definition.
I have the Evans/Getz session as part of this twofer. I've barely listened to the Evans session but the Corea (Sweet Rain) is a good record.
I still have Bill Evans Trio - Blue in Green (Take 3) in my regular rotation of incredibly diverse music.
I just listened to some of this session. Not too hard to hear why they didn't approve it (Evans and Elvin Jones was a weird combination) but it's worth hearing for a more aggressive bop style from Evans than you usually hear on his trio recordings.
I like this record. Even if it wasn't up to their standards, it's still pretty darn good - to my ears anyway. Although I definitely wouldn't classify it as Evans = sideman.
Love that album cover. It's currently the wallpaper on one of my laptops. Anyway, I love Bill's work. Have a Spotify list of his stuff I created that I like to listen to at night when hitting the hay. I will also offer my vote for his work on Kind of Blue as a sideman.
I hope this is not considered a thread crap but didn't want to start a brand new thread and the thread I wanted to post in is closed. Anyway, I am looking for the best digital (CD, SACD, download, In print, OOP, whatever) of the following titles: Everybody Digs Bill Evans: ? Portrait In Jazz: I assume the forum favorite would be the DCC gold disc. Yes, no? Explorations: ? Sunday At The Village Vanguard: I understand the JVC XRCD JVCXR-0051-3 (mastered by Alan Yoshida at A&M in Hollywood) is the preferred version. Know What I Mean: I assume the forum favorite is the DCC gold disc Moonbeams: ? How My Heart Sings: ? Waltz For Debbie: I understand the Analogue Productions gold CD CAPJ 009 (mastered by Doug Sax) is the forum favorite. Interplay: I assume the DCC gold is the forum favorite for this one. Empathy: ? Thanks!
Hey, I will answer for the ones that I know about: Everybody Digs Bill Evans - XRCD Portrait In Jazz - The OJC is damn good. I saved my money and went with that one. Explorations - XRCD Sunday At The Village Vanguard - XRCD Know What I Mean - DCC Moonbeams - XRCD Waltz For Debbie - AP gold CD CAPJ 009 Interplay - DCC
But if you bought the Complete Riverside edition that was issued on CD in Japan, you would have excellent and better sound than the American box, and everything NOW to enjoy while you decided whether to search out more editions as time goes by. There is no time to waste while exploring the Riverside Recordings of Bill Evans.
You have to confirm with a dealer that it is the Japanese issue. Case is red (not Blue as in USA), catalog is VICJ-61291~302. Issued in 2005.
Great one. Some excellent Bill Evans on the following 2 recordings, which I'd wager many haven't heard but they are worthy of investigation, little gems (and on these Evans is truly in a sideman role but gets plenty of exposure): McKusick is sorely under-appreciated for both his alto sax work and his arranging, and this one, maybe his finest album overall, also features Art Farmer on some tracks. And: Nice piano/vibes quartet. Evans digs in pretty hard on this one, matching Pike's fiery vibes work.
Anyone. How do they compare to the XRCD and DCC releases? Close or no contest with one being much better then the other (better tapes, mastering, etc.)?
This is the "trio of the moment" (due to recent releases) This one probably the most famous: An important duo: ... He had great working units throughout his career. Tell us which one do you think was the best. And if possible why.
See if this helps, Bill Evans Trio members: Teddy Kotick (bass, 1956, 1966), Paul Motian(drums, 1956, 1959-62, 1963), Sam Jones (bass, 1958), Philly Joe Jones (drums, 1958-59, 1967, 1978), Paul Chambers(bass, 1959), Scott LaFaro (bass, 1959-61), Chuck Israels(bass, 1961-66), Gary Peacock (bass, 1963), Larry Bunker(drums, 1963-65), Eddie Gómez (bass, 1966-77), Arnold Wise(drums, 1966, 1968), Shelly Manne (drums, 1966), Alex Riel(drums, 1966), Joe Hunt (drums, 1967), Jack DeJohnette(drums, 1968), John Dentz (drums, 1968), Marty Morell(drums, 1968-74, 1975), Tony Oxley (drums, 1972), Eliot Zigmund (drums, 1975-77), Michael Moore (bass, 1978), Marc Johnson (bass, 1979-80), Joe La Barbera (drums, 1979-80) As for working units I favor his trios by far. And although there are albums I like in all his trios (probably even more than with the following trio), I'll pick this one: The last trio with Marc Johnson and Joe Labarbera. It all came together with those two. It fells that Bill let him self go. He was playing with his heart open, and that was only possible because he felt truly comfortable with those two.