George Russell: Bent Eagle

Track

Bent Eagle

Group

George Russell Sextet

CD

Stratusphunk (Riverside OJCCD-232-2)

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Musicians:

George Russell (piano), David Baker (trombone), Chuck Israels (bass),

Al Kiger (trumpet), Dave Young (tenor sax), Joe Hunt (drums)

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Composed by Carla Bley

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Recorded: New York, October 18, 1960

Albumcovergeorgerussell-stratusphunk

Rating: 96/100 (learn more)

Jazz in 1960 was at a crossroads. Which way to go? Follow Ornette Coleman down the newly opened expressway of free jazz, sandblasted clean of musical tradition, or hazard George Russell's toll road inconsiderately littered with such obsolescent obstacles as theory, individual discipline and group cohesion. At 22, composer Carla Bley chose Russell's route. Her irresistible "Bent Eagle," at once deceptively simple and structurally complex, propels Russell and his unrenowned accomplices to a graceful liftoff and soaring flight. Sadly, most jazz artists ignored Russell's direction, careening instead down the One Way, Dead End alley of unconstrained cacophony. We prefer "Bent Eagle."

Reviewer: Alan Kurtz

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  • 1 samit mukergee // Dec 23, 2008 at 12:11 AM
    Alan Kurtz should be renamed Alan Klutz regarding his comments about Coleman. As composers, George Russell (eg his "Electric Sonata") and some of Carla Bley's works have been more influenced by Ornette Coleman than this pathetic psuedo expert would ever know.
  • 2 Alan Kurtz // Jan 31, 2009 at 05:27 AM
    Samit Mukergee? Sir, I am too much the gentleman to respond in kind by making fun of your name. But you have missed the point of my 100-word review. George Russell's "Electric Sonata for Souls Loved by Nature" did not appear until 1970, a full decade after "Bent Eagle." Whether or not it was influenced by Ornette Coleman is irrelevant to this review. Moreover, as a theoretician, Russell was decades ahead of Coleman. The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization was first published in 1953. Coleman's The Harmolodic Theory is rumored to have been in preparation since the 1970s, but has yet to surface. With that in mind, try listening to "Bent Eagle" back to back with Ornette's "Free Jazz," which was recorded a mere two months later. I submit that the greater musical intelligence resides in "Bent Eagle," not "Free Jazz."