Lenox Avenue Breakdown

Lenox Avenue Breakdown

ASIN: B00000DBVL

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
You could easily call this reissue a lost treasure, as it came and went after its 1979 release, not even seeing much light after bandleader Arthur Blythe and his six colleagues reached critical acclaim and success. Blythe counts this loose session as a paean to Harlem, where the assemblage of sounds and rhythms along Lenox Avenue translates into an amalgam not unlike the mix of James "Blood" Ulmer's funk-painted guitar strum backed by the twin engines of drummer Jack DeJohnette and percussionist Guillermo Franco, each of whom makes a sky-crying racket. They do so, surely, in a fit of inspiration, sitting as they are behind a potent frontline: Blythe on alto sax; James Newton on flute; and Bob Stewart on tuba. A tuba on the frontline? Well, in truth, these chaps are all playing the frontline, really. Newton's so revolutionary on the flute that his Rahsaan Roland Kirk-isms make for great rhythm, and his intricate Eric Dolphy-isms cut sharp harmony. Blythe takes his notes seriously as little living things, but his art is in the web work and the melodies. Stewart plays the chameleon, doing tempo a while and then showing slippery riffs galore to the band. Very little in jazz--much less major-label jazz, which this was--around 1979 could match this recording. And now it's back. --Andrew Bartlett

Tracks:

Down San Diego Way
Lenox Avenue Breakdown
Slidin' Through
Odessa

Amazon.com

You could easily call this reissue a lost treasure, as it came and went after its 1979 release, not even seeing much light after bandleader Arthur Blythe and his six colleagues reached critical acclaim and success. Blythe counts this loose session as a paean to Harlem, where the assemblage of sounds and rhythms along Lenox Avenue translates into an amalgam not unlike the mix of James "Blood" Ulmer's funk-painted guitar strum backed by the twin engines of drummer Jack DeJohnette and percussionist Guillermo Franco, each of whom makes a sky-crying racket. They do so, surely, in a fit of inspiration, sitting as they are behind a potent frontline: Blythe on alto sax; James Newton on flute; and Bob Stewart on tuba. A tuba on the frontline? Well, in truth, these chaps are all playing the frontline, really. Newton's so revolutionary on the flute that his Rahsaan Roland Kirk-isms make for great rhythm, and his intricate Eric Dolphy-isms cut sharp harmony. Blythe takes his notes seriously as little living things, but his art is in the web work and the melodies. Stewart plays the chameleon, doing tempo a while and then showing slippery riffs galore to the band. Very little in jazz--much less major-label jazz, which this was--around 1979 could match this recording. And now it's back. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews:

do the breakdown, baby.......2007-04-30

probably no more than a name, but if not, hopefully, someone who knows for sure will provide information, the breakdown first occurred, at least in my collection of jazz, with louis armstrong's recording of chicago breakdown.

the recording at hand. blythe's recording is just outrageously great. the lineup is great and worth the purchase, james newton, cecil mcbee, jack dejohnette, bob stewart who was a member of lester bowie's brass fantasy, james 'blood' ulmer, and guillermo franco. the songs are great,written, every one of them, by arthur blythe. and the title song, had it no jazz name tradition (the poet, amiri baraka, dedicated a poem, entitled: in the tradition, to arthur blythe) lenox avenue breakdown would still stand, does still stand, a great piece of music on a recording of great music.

Flawless, Inspiring, Essential.......2006-01-16

This is one of my all-time favorite recordings. It's rare when concept and execution so perfectly meet. Arthur Blythe had been playing the New York loft scene for some years before this album, exploring a wide range of musical settings (tuba and conga, quintet featuring cello, etc.) and avant-garde stylings. He said he used the tuba because it reminded him of old New Orleans music, and he saw it as a way to stayed rooted in the tradition while pushing forward musically. Blythe's playing itself was/is very individual, a fat, warm sound that seems impossible to get out of an alto, with a lot of Coltane inspiration but he definitely has his own voice--you could pick him out in a blindfold listening test in about two seconds. Anyway, on this album he got to take his explorations a bit further and managed to get some big name players to help out, like Jack DeJohnette, James Blood Ulmer, James Newton and Cecil McBee. The result is less austere than the albums Blythe made before this (Metamorphosis, Bush Baby), still true to an avant-garde exploratory spirit, but often melodic and lush, full of the blues, eminently accessible to almost any jazz fan.

The first two songs are great, but it's songs three and four that make this album transcendent. "Slidin' Through" has an earthy blues theme that's complemented by a slightly atonal riff by Ulmer, a wonderful McBee solo right after the head, played while the band keeps a subdued vamp going, DeJohnette doing some of that great bob-and-weave rhythm-keeping that's his trademark, then Bythe comes in and opens it up, and from there the song builds and builds, with passionate, rapid-fire interaction between Blythe and DeJohnette, and DeJohnette taking the song out with so much power, pushing everyone in the band--there's no tension/release when the song's theme is played at the end, things aren't over--it keeps a blistering amount of energy going through all the way to the fade-out.

This song was cited by Rafi Zabor in his novel "The Bear Comes Home" (recommended in its own right) as an example of why mere mortal musicians feared the prospect of playing with Mr. DeJohnette. He wasn't an accompanist, he was a force of nature, kicking everyone's musical behinds until they were all playing their utmost.

The next song, "Odessa", is very loose, Blythe melodically soloing over a meter-less rhythm section, kind of like Coltrane, with a slow, deep, almost mournful feel--for years I have hit the "repeat" button to hear that solo over and over, it's so emotionally enagaging...

Anyway, this is definitely a desert-island disc for me. I've played it for jazz fans of all stripes and everyone has found something to like in it.

Superb, soon to be classic recording.......2005-09-28

When I first got this LP in '79 I wore it out. From its opening notes this release makes an impression with an air of textural sophistication and swing. It's an outing by players completely at ease with their virtuosity. Nothing is pressed or forced here. It's simultaneously adventurous in composition and soloing and unpretentious. The arrangements feel organic. DeJohnette, Ulmer, McBee, Franco and Newton all acquit themselves really well. Bob Stewart's tuba playing is rock steady and funky and makes you wonder why more ensembles bottoms aren't anchored by a tuba. The focal point of it all, Blythe, solos crisply and smartly and leads one of the great group efforts of the last 30 years.

All In A Name.......2003-08-01

Like the sun, Blythe's hot joyous sax boils up and flares, but the flute refreshes, the rhythms crackle, and there're enough hooks here to fill a curtain rod. You just gotta love this kind of breakdown -- not since college English have you heard such radical deconstruction. And not since Armstrong's Hot Seven have you heard such great tuba. Welcome back, Black Arthur, the blithe.

A Perfect Breakdown.......2003-02-08

Despite its much too long in coming reissue, Lenox Avenue remains a largely unknown jazz classic, at least to those too young or too old to have followed the scene close enough when it originally came out. In my mind, it's a must have, an essential CD. No jazz lover should be without this magical send up. The unusual instrumentation and the harmonic awareness of these musicians melds groove and melody with the seemless free improvisation that marked the era to form the most cogent piece of late '70s jazz now available.

Customer Reviews:

blythe with strings.......2007-05-26

this is a basic quartet, led by arthur blythe on alto, john hicks on piano, anthony cox on bass and bobby battle on drums, backed up by a string ensemble. most jazz artists in a string setting either lean toward an european concert sound or work against the strings in the manner of jazz orchestration. the arrangement here backs up the quartet without altering the quartet's thumping jazz sound.

i have the vinyl copy in front of me, not the cd recording. listed on side one, are autumn in new york (part one), lenox avenue breakdown, heart to heart, and as of yet. heart to heart is by john hicks. as of yet and lenox avenue breakdown are by arthur blythe. the version of lenox avenue breakdown, here, is a shorter version by almost seven minutes of the version from the recording of the same name, released in 1978, a decade earlier than the version on basic blythe. the basic blythe version has the differing tone of a gloved fist of a professional fighter opposed to the solid bare knuckled blow of the earlier recording.

side two contains ruby my dear, faceless woman, and autumn in new york (part two). ruby my dear is, of course, the monk composition. faceless woman is another blythe original which according to the linear notes 'is one of blythe's most beautiful and haunting compositions. played in 6/8 time with a tremulous swing on alto, piano and strings...'.

both renditions of autumn in new york are unique. i greet every autumn by playing them, and the rest of the album.

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