Gary Bartz (JID006)
Ali Shaheed Muhammad & Adrian Younge
Released April 1, 2021
AllMusic Favorite Jazz Albums 2021
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mjEZN2Zy69y9D-4znT4VUCIdsBj-AYYU0
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About:
The shadow that Gary Bartz casts over the last six decades of progressive Black music, and his continued dedication to same, makes him a logical and very welcome contributor to the Jazz Is Dead label. An alto saxophonist steeped in the history and tradition of his instrument who is also restlessly experimental and not prone to purism of any kind, he enjoys both the respect and admiration of his peers and the hero worship of several generations after him – including Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, which inevitably led to Gary Bartz JID 006.
A look at his body of work reveals dalliances with bebop, hard bop, free jazz, spiritual jazz, soul jazz, jazz-funk, fusion and acid jazz, all while resolutely remaining unmistakably Gary Bartz. There’s early work with Eric Dolphy and McCoy Tyner in Charles Mingus’ Jazz Workshop, work with Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln, a stint in Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, and also one with Miles. There’s his groundbreaking and highly influential Ntu Troop albums of the early ‘70s and his jazz-funk work including two classic albums with the Mizell Brothers, one of which supplied A Tribe Called Quest with a sample that was smooth like butter. And while on the subject of samples, the Bartz catalog has provided hip-hop and other genres with a rich source of them, and artists who have gone to his well when producing beats also include Black Sheep, Jurassic 5, Casual, RPM, Warren G, Photek, Statik Selektah, Chi-Ali, 3rd Bass, Showbiz, Z-Trip, Young Disciples, and many others.
The socio-political content of much of Bartz’s work, particularly during the early ‘70s, is another factor that has captured the attention of and influenced many. He was wide awake to the pressing issues of his day, which sadly haven’t changed much in a half-century—long before the term “woke” was ever coined—which adds continued relevance and resonance to albums like the two Harlem Bush Music LPs. Speaking his mind and expressing thoughts and feelings lyrically and vocally were a consistent aspect of his work during this era, but even with all this there’s always still a space within Gary’s oeuvre for the celebration of simple and beautiful basic truths.
“Working with Gary Bartz epitomizes the ethos behind Jazz Is Dead,” says Younge. “He’s a luminary that has contributed so much to music culture, for decades. His musical ability is expanding with age and we’re honored to be a part of his world.”
“Day By Day” brings Bartz full circle by placing him in a more modern context which he contributed to creating in the first place. It takes certain sonic cues from Muhammad’s old group, A Tribe Called Quest, while also calling to mind neo-soul a little bit. But the icing on the cake is the unexpected and gorgeous vocal chorus which is like the sun coming out and which once again harks back to an element familiar to Mizell fans.
With its propulsive bassline steadily prodding the track along, “The Message” is strongly rooted in classic ‘70s modal jazz and serves as the spiritual and emotional centerpiece of the album. The instrumental interplay and textures would have been perfectly at home on the Black Jazz label even though there’s also a certain almost intangible postmodern, 21st century approach to that style, perfectly in keeping with Bartz’s well-known tendency to look forward, not backwards.
The main thrust of “Black And Brown” is an immersion in classic jazz-funk, a short blast of vintage fusion riffing that ultimately feels like one of those classic extended ‘70s jams condensed down to its most intense just-under-three-minutes with Bartz blowing freely over very familiar musical territory and sounding like he’s having an amazing time doing it.
If “Spiritual Ideation” calls anything immediately to mind, it’s the overall vibe and atmosphere of the compositions on 1975’s classic Mizell-produced The Shadow Do album. Its chords seem to move along in similar fashion to a few of the tracks on that album, but they’re transposed on to what has quickly become the JID signature sound. Bartz’s tone and phrasing is instantly recognizable and sits on top of the Younge/Muhammad-produced backing as snugly as it did on the Mizells’ groove 45 years ago.
Bartz brought his historically busy touring and recording schedule into the new millennium, re-establishing his deep jazz credentials even as another generation of DJs and hip-hop producers discovered the untold riches contained in his back catalog. He remains spry, fit and energetic at age 80 and his new collaboration with Jazz Is Dead’s Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad is the glorious proof. This is what Gary Bartz brings to this Jazz Is Dead collaboration, and as can be expected, his questing spirit fits the Jazz Is Dead style like a glove and has produced an album that’s a cutting-edge addition to his immense canon as he effortlessly interfaces with the next generation.
Track Listing:
1. Spiritual Ideation (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 03:57
2. Visions of Love (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 03:28
3. Black and Brown (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 02:49
4. Blue Jungles (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 03:11
5. Day by Day (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 04:55
6. Distant Mode (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 03:05
7. The Message (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 04:10
8. Soulsea (Gary Bartz / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge) 02:00
Personnel:
Ali Shaheed Muhammad: grand piano (1), Hammond (1-5, 7), Fender Rhodes (2, 3, 5-8), electric bass (1-8), synthesizer (1-8), mellotron (1, 2, 7, 8), vibraphone (1-7), electric guitar (2-4, 6, 7), flute (4, 5), tubular bells (5), percussion (6), autoharp (7)
Adrian Younge: grand piano (1), Hammond (1-5, 7), Fender Rhodes (2, 3, 5-8), electric bass (1-8), synthesizer (1-8), mellotron (1, 2, 7, 8), vibraphone (1-7), electric guitar (2-4, 6, 7), flute (4, 5), tubular bells (5), percussion (6), autoharp (7)
Gary Bartz: alto saxophone (1-6, 8), soprano saxofone (7)
Greg Paul: drums
Anitra Castleberry, Elgin Clark, Loren Oden, Saudia Yasmein: vocals (2, 5)
Recorded at Linear Labs Studio, Los Angeles, CA
Produced, Recorded and Mixed by Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammad
Mastered by Dave Cooley
Photography by The Artform Studio
Graphic Design: Julian Montague
Associate Producer: Adam Block
Executive Producer: Andrew Lojero
Review:
The Jazz Is Dead project curated by producer/multi-instrumentalists Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge operates with a particular m.o. The duo enlist a revered jazz musician whose work and influence have reached past the genre. They surround him with players — including themselves — and the same vintage equipment used on their storied catalog dates to create new music. Alto giant and composer Gary Bartz checks all the boxes. In addition to early stints with jazz masters Miles Davis and McCoy Tyner, Bartz cut a series of groundbreaking albums under his own name and with his N.T.U. Troop between 1969 and 1980. To varying degrees, they wed spiritual and post-bop jazz to funk, soul, gospel, disco, and the blues. Many of those recordings have been heavily sampled by hip-hop and EDM producers.
The setup employed here includes drummer Greg Paul (Kamaal Williams), the producers on a variety of instruments, and a four-voice backing chorus — Bartz regularly used vocals on his N.T.U. Troop and funky dates for Capitol. These eight tunes, composed by everyone but Bartz, register a scant 27 minutes, but the quality of the content more than compensates. Opener “Spiritual Ideation” is introduced by a harpsichord and a funky snare shuffle. A gently bumping bassline welcomes Bartz’s alto. He enters on the modal melody, and immediately begins to embellish, append, and expand it. The backing singers wordlessly create an ethereal dimension. It recalls work Bartz did with producers Larry and Fonce Mizell on 1975’s underrated The Shadow Do! On “Visions of Love,” amid a wrangling bassline, elliptical keyboards, and soulful singing, Bartz and Paul (whose phone should never stop ringing after this date) engage and propel one another to ecstatic heights. “Blue Jungles” is offered as nocturnal soundtrack funk. Wah-wah guitars vamp across the bassline and Mellotrons and synths as Bartz and Paul journey through the humid melody. “Day by Day” is spiritual soul-jazz that uses an elliptical Rhodes piano atop a languid bassline and a martial snare vamp to set the groove. Bartz is its hub. He leans deeply into the melody and drives it as funky breaks and soaring chorus vocals envelop him. Paul’s clattering snare and ticking rim shots initially sound looped on “Distant Mode.” Add a shimmering Rhodes and bassline that engages the drum kit under Bartz’s knotty soloing, and the piece builds in tension until it explodes into a wall of passionately distorted sound behind a filthy wah-wah guitar riff. “The Message” juxtaposes electronic and soundtrack funk with modal blues. It moves toward open spaces thanks to the pulsing guitar vamps and the saxist’s breathtaking upper-register solo. In 2020, just before his 80th birthday, Bartz cut the wonderful Night Dreamer Direct-to-Disc Sessions with Brit jazz-funk ensemble Maisha. This collab with Paul and the Jazz Is Dead crew adds heft to that performance. Here, he is showcased not as a composer but as a soloist and groove interpreter of unparalleled creative imagination, skill, and sensitivity.
Thom Jurek (AllMusic)
