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| Layers |
| Les McCann |
első megjelenés éve: 1972
45 perc |
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| (1999)
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CD |
| 4.624 Ft
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| 1. | Sometimes I Cry
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| 2. | Lets Gather
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| 3. | Anticipation
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| 4. | Dunbar High School Marching Band
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| 5. | Soaring (Part 1)
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| 6. | Harlem Buck Street Dance
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| 7. | Interlude
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| 8. | Before I Rest
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| 9. | Lets Play
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| 10. | It Never Stopped In My Home Town
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| 11. | Soaring (Part 2)
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Jazz / Soul-Jazz, Hard Bop
Les McCann - Conductor, Synthesizer, Arp, Piano (Electric), Percussion, Tympani [Timpani], Arranger, Liner Notes, Drums, Clarinet, Clavinet, Piano
Becky Wisdom Production Coordination
Bob Liftin Liner Notes, Engineer, Remixing
Buck Clarke Bongos, Bells, Percussion, Conga, Blocks
Donald Dean Drums, Percussion, Bells
Gene Paul Mastering, Remastering
Jack Shaw Associate Producer
Jimmy Rowser Percussion, Bass (Electric), Bells, Bass, Violin, Guitar (Bass)
Joel Dorn Producer, Liner Notes
Page Simon Graphic Design
Ralph MacDonald Conga, Percussion, Bells
Les McCann plays every instrument except percussion on this 1972 album which features memorable moments including 'Sometimes I Cry', 'Before I Rest' and 'Never Stopped In My Hometown'.
This groundbreaking jazz synthesizer record is really unlike any other Les McCann ever made. Aside from a three-man percussion section and electric bassist Jimmy Rowser, Layers is entirely electronic, one of the first jazz albums with such an emphasis. According to the liner notes, McCann's ambition was to be the entire orchestra he heard in his head, and to that end the record explores the sonic possibilities of the new ARP synthesizer in great detail, though McCann also overdubs himself on electric piano in spots. The variety of tones on the ARP gives McCann a lot to play with, and he mimics woodwinds, horns, strings, slapped bass, and even the intonations of human speech. McCann's kaleidoscopic array of tonal colors and contrasts gives the album a rich, full sound, as does the recording process -- Layers was the first album ever to be recorded in 32-track format. But what really gives Layers its surprisingly warm, human dimension is how emotionally engaged McCann sounds. He laid most of his parts down in only one take, and allowed different sections to flow directly into one another, producing two side-long continuous suites. The resulting stream-of-consciousness feel -- not to mention the near-one-man format -- seems to free up McCann's sense of personal expression; there's a pronounced mood of reflection and nostalgia on the slower, spacier pieces, and on the funkier groove numbers, McCann works his new instrument like a kid in a candy shop. It's true that in some places, Layers is more about texture than theme development, so traditional jazz fans likely won't find it much more than a curiosity. In truth, it's pretty avant-garde -- not in its sound (we're not talking Sun Ra's Atlantis), but certainly in its sensibility; this music is truly forward-looking and ahead of its time. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
Les McCann
Active Decades: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s
Born: Sep 23, 1935 in Lexington, KY
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Hard Bop, Jazz-Funk, Post-Bop, Soul-Jazz
Les McCann reached the peak of his career at the 1968 Montreux Jazz Festival, recording "Compared to What" and "Cold Duck Time" for Atlantic (Swiss Movement) with Eddie Harris and Benny Bailey. Although he has done some worthwhile work since then, much of it has been anti-climactic.
McCann first gained some fame in 1956 when he won a talent contest in the Navy as a singer that resulted in an appearance on television on The Ed Sullivan Show. After being discharged, he formed a trio in Los Angeles. McCann turned down an invitation to join the Cannonball Adderley Quintet so he could work on his own music. He signed a contract with Pacific Jazz and in 1960 gained some fame with his albums Les McCann Plays the Truth and The Shout. His soulful, funk style on piano was influential and McCann's singing was largely secondary until the mid-'60s. He recorded many albums for Pacific Jazz during 1960-1964, mostly with his trio but also featuring Ben Webster, Richard "Groove" Holmes, Blue Mitchell, Stanley Turrentine, Joe Pass, the Jazz Crusaders, and the Gerald Wilson Orchestra. McCann switched to Limelight during 1965-1967 and then signed with Atlantic in 1968. After the success of Swiss Movement, McCann emphasized his singing at the expense of his playing and he began to utilize electric keyboards, notably on 1972's Layers. His recordings became less interesting to traditional jazz fans from that point on, and after his Atlantic contract ran out in 1976, McCann appeared on records much less often. However, he stayed popular and a 1994 reunion tour with Eddie Harris was quite successful. A mid-'90s stroke put him out of action for a time and weakened his keyboard playing (his band began carrying an additional keyboardist) but Les McCann returned to a more active schedule during 1996 and was still a powerful singer. His comeback was solidified by 2002's Pump It Up, a guest-heavy celebration of funk and jazz released on ESC Records.
---Scott Yanow, All Music Guide |
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