Classic WSQ
Anthony Cooper | Louisville, KY United States | 05/07/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This World Saxophone Quartet CD was their second, and it has the classic lineup of David Murray, Julius Hemphill, Oliver Lake, and Hamiett Bluiett. "Sundance" seems like a statement of purpose. It's under three minutes long, and has a catchy groove. You immediately hear how the limitations of having four saxophones shapes the sound. Since there isn't a rhythm section to keep the song propelled, the saxes have to keep on playing. Grooves and ostinatos become more obvious because the saxophone is a lead instrument. If you're not hypnotised by it, you might dislike it. "Plainsong" is another catchy one, but more complicated. It has lines that weave in and out of each other. "Plainsong" is like plainsong in that it's unaccompanied voices, where these are saxophones, but this song is very jazzy. I would almost switch the titles of the first two songs, they'd be a little more descriptive. "Connections" starts with a long unaccompanied alto solo, then a Hamiett Bluiett baritone solo. It stays free and improvised throughout. The title track, "W. S. Q." has a repetitive figure on top, then a sinuous part underneath. "Pillars Latino" has something of a clarion call figure in the beginning, then gets to a mixture of written out and improvised sections. "Suite Music" packs a lot of good ideas into a short time. "Sound Light" is another free song. "Fast Life" has a good mixture of groove and improvised sections. At one point it sounds like all four of the band are improvising along, and it sounds great. This is highly recommended."
Track Listings (8) - Disc #1