eddie harris - silver cycles
atlantic records lp
1968. style: jazz
disclaimer: i know
nothing about jazz.
1. Free at Last 2. 1974 Blues
3. Smoke Signals 4. Coltrane's View
5. I'm Gonna Leave You by Yourself 6. Silver Cycles
7. Little Bit 8. Electric Ballad 9. Infrapolations
This record opens unassumingly enough with the latin shuffle of "Free at Last". Harris's sax is prominent and enjoyable enough here although somewhat unrevelatory, particularly in comparison to Coltrane, whom he pays tribute to on this album more than once. And while "1974 Blues" features a nice horn section and more of Harris's smooth tones, it doesn't get us much farther. So far, so average.
It is on Silver Cycles' third song, "Smoke Signals", that the plot finally thickens. Backup singers intone wordless flights of fantasy mixed with an echoey (electric?) saxophone for a truly bizarre sound, focused in its rhythm yet wild at heart. Perhaps because of the echoplex, the sound seems quite distant, with the sax buried in the mix. This only serves to make the song even more mysterious.
Unfortunately, after this revelation, the next track returns to the more traditional sax-in-front style of the first two songs, although now at a slower and more ponderous pace (on the titular Coltrane tribute). Harris is freer and more searching here, with the percussion rolling in waves, bringing A Love Supreme to mind.
On "I'm Gonna Leave You By Yourself", the backup singers return while the rhythm section and string accompaniment make for a more soul/r'n'b feel. Then, when side two and the album's title track start, you might really think you are listening to a psychedelic piece, as echoed guitar and bossa-nova-like "click" percussion give way to Harris's slow and echoed sax. The echoplex is on full tilt here, creating a truly eerie effect, although the high notes on the sax keep it from turning too dark. Soft, wah-wahed guitar drops in with the sax to build the echo effect. Deeper sax tones and the more r'n'b drumming set against the ever-reverberating high sax notes makes quite an interesting highlight here.
The structure of the next song is more traditional but it is helped by the electric and slightly again echoed sax which goes on diverting flights of fancy. On "Electric Ballad", Harris again turns toward the psychedelic with the electric sax accompanying itself via the echoplex. The album closes out with a more standard jazz run, albeit with good percussion and of course, saxophone.
This album is highly recommended for non-jazz people who like early electronics and experimental (non-rock) psychedelic music. The "sax choir" achieved here has rarely been done elsewhere and probably never better. Excellent!