This was the first real indication to the world that
Keith Jarrett
was an ambitious, multi-talented threat to be reckoned with, an explosion of polystylistic music that sprawled over two LPs (now squeezed onto a single CD). Using his classic quartet (
Dewey Redman
,
Charlie Haden
Paul Motian
) as a base,
Jarrett
occasionally adds the biting rock-edged electric guitar of
Sam Brown
and always-intriguing percussionist
Airto Moreira
, and indulges in some pleasant string and brass arrangements of his own, along with some grinding organ smears and acceptable soprano sax.
again turns his early rampant eclecticism loose -- from earthy gospel-tinged soul-jazz to the freewheeling atonal avant-garde -- yet this time he does it with an exuberance and expansiveness that puts his previous solo work in the shade.
"Common Mama,"
a spicy Latin workout with brass punctuations,
"Take Me Back,"
driving soul jazz with streaks of electric jazz-rock, and the lengthy, nearly free
"Nomads"
are the most invigorating tracks. ~ Richard S. Ginell