Undercurrent

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The execution of these tunes couldn't be more minimal - just Evans' piano and Hall's guitar vibing off each other. Neither musician is trying to dominate the conversation but just attempting to enhance each others playing in a quiet sensitive way. On Skating in Central Park that chiming guitar sound becomes a dominant feature and, set against it, Evans is wittily wistful and melancholy, each piano note precise and clear cut until he smoothly recedes into the background and lets Hall take centre stage. I can not fathom why a label which is considered to be an audiophile label would put out such a bad sounding record.

Later, the album was reissued on the Blue Note label; both Blue Note and United Artists Records have been part of the same catalog for many decades. Evans and Hall had first recorded together in July of 1959, during the making of John Lewis’ LP Odds Against Tomorrow, and the two musicians also participated on Gunther Schuller’s Jazz Abstractions (recorded in December of 1960).But there was a danger attached to their proposed recording; as Peter Pettinger points out in his Bill Evans biography, How My Heart Sings, both the guitar and piano are chordal instruments and a duet presented the risk of overcrowding and acoustic collision. If not for an inspirational collaboration of tremendous creative outpouring, one wonders what fate may have befallen Evans. I simply can't stop playing this disc and have made a copy for the car and also put it on my iPad, sitting, walking or driving I'm thrilled by it and always hear something new. Dream Gypsy shows them separating again, fashioning fragments and jigsaw puzzle-pieces of a tune, scattering them for the listener to assemble. Bill Evans and Jim Hall in particular were kindred spirits, sharing a love of chamber jazz, and Hall had already demonstrated his skill in Jimmy Giuffre’s trio.

While Evans managed to sit down for a few one-off takes between LaFaro's passing and these April-May 1962 dates, he largely remained on hiatus and abstained from recording. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. Già la perfetta fattura e la cura nel dettaglio dell'intera copertina lascia presagire qualcosa di eccellente che si comprende appieno dopo aver ascolto anche solo il primo brano del side 1. Even though it only features two instruments for the whole duration, it never ever becomes one-dimensional or repetetive. Occasionally during UNDERCURRENT one expects the other shoe to drop: the growl of a bass entering in half time, wire brushes falling patiently into place on a sizzle cymbal.No other version outside of this analogue copy brings you face-to-face with these two jazz giants’ sonic communion, a kind of spiritual musical summit on which Evans’ deft keyboard touches and Hall’s reliably subtle phrasings seamlessly mesh and wonderfully dance, the compositions streaked with natural instrumental decay, full-frequency extensions, and poignant emotionalism that, on this LP, you can feel.

Evans' underlying playing is complete mastery and when he takes the lead Hall somehow makes the guitar sound like a bass and drums! The record is noise free, but does an impressive job of capturing musical nuance and delivering a deep emotional experience. The first of two meetings on record in a duo format with guitarist Jim Hall, the collaborations are often exquisite. Whether it owes to the intimate pairing, he and Hall’s brotherly chemistry, or the exquisite selection of program material, the results consistently come across as the equivalent of a private meditation – such is the level of introspective depth and quietly shaded interplay throughout. I am not generally a fan of Bill Evans (wash your mouth out with soap and water) but have always admired Jim Hall.I am slowly building up my jazz collection, which includes classics from Coltrane, Miles Davis, Mingus, Adderley and others.

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab has been the undisputed pioneer and leader in audiophile recordings since the company's inception in 1977.I was chilling to this disc the other day, nodding my head to this oh-so-natural music and wishing I had half of Evans' talent. It gets all the stars because is is a great modern jazz album performed as only the late, lamented Mr Evans could arrange and do. Indeed, even the album’s cover – an iconic photograph by Toni Frissell – exhibits the surreal, almost-hallucinogenic properties of the fare contained within.