Search - Tal Farlow :: Autumn Leaves

Excellent re-issue of long-unavailable material

01/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tal Farlow (1921-1997) was a superb bebop guitarist; he made his name in the 1950's, then retired in 1959 at the height of his powers. He made the excellent "The Return of Tal Farlow" in 1969, but otherwise did not return to active performance until mid-1970's.

This 2-disc set includes two of his last recordings: "Tal Farlow '78" (1978)and "The Legendary Tal Farlow" (1985).
This music is less well-mannered than "Sign of the Times", his initial Concord release.
Of particular note in this excellent set is "Mahoney's 11 Ohms", a Farlow original with a swirling backbeat and the guitarist's trademark lightning articulation . He is equally at home with ballads, as "Chelsea Bridge" and "I Got It Bad" demonstrate. He opens "Everything Happens to Me" with a lovely, awe-inspiring tidal wave of chords.

In summary, "Autumn Leaves" is a welcome addition to the Tal Farlow discography. Hats off to Concord Jazz for reissuing all of Farlow's work on the label. Hopefully, this will spur Verve to follow suit and reissue all of his earlier work."