''Bells'' is a live album by American free jazz saxophonist

Albert Ayler Albert Ayler (; July 13, 1936 – November 25, 1970) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist, singer and composer. After early experience playing R&B and bebop, Ayler began recording music during the free jazz era of the 1960s. Howev ...

recorded at The Town Hall in New York City in 1965 and first released as a single sided LP on the

ESP-Disk ESP-Disk is a New York-based record company and label founded in 1963 by lawyer Bernard Stollman. History Though it originally existed to release Esperanto-based music, beginning with its second release (Albert Ayler's ''Spiritual Unity''), ESP b ...

label.Albert Ayler discography
accessed October 29, 2014 The album was released in many variations including clear and coloured vinyl and with a variety of colored covers and most recently on CD combined with ''

Prophecy In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or prete ...

''.

Reception

The

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

review by Michael G. Nastos states: "As Albert Ayler recorded several definitive recordings before or after this one, and due to the very short length of ''Bells'', it cannot be considered a magnum opus. But it does contain music played by his most powerful unit, a small window into the mind and heart of the most iconic maverick in the free jazz movement, and a magnet for discussion that lingers on well past his death".Nastos, M. G.
Allmusic Review
accessed October 28, 2014 The authors of ''

The Penguin Guide to Jazz ''The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' is a reference work containing an encyclopedic directory of jazz recordings on CD which were (at the time of publication) currently available in Europe or the United States. The first nine editions were compiled by ...

'' awarded the album 3 stars, stating that it was "a token that here was music so powerful you'd probably only manage 20 minutes of it before switching off the hi-fi and taking deep gulps of air."

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

commented: "Part of the lasting brilliance of ''Bells'' is that the group is much more roughshod at this early stage, the ensemble not yet formed into a cohesive, balanced whole but a rickety patchwork, its seams (and therefore process) showing proudly through".Allen, C.
Albert Ayler: Prophecy/Bells Review
July 14, 2005

Track listing

''All compositions by Albert Ayler'' # "Bells" - 20:03

Personnel

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

Donald Ayler Donald Ayler (October 5, 1942 – October 21, 2007) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was best known for his participation in concerts and recordings by groups led by his older brother, saxophonist Albert Ayler. An obituary in The Wire praised his ...

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

Charles Tyler Admiral Sir Charles Tyler, GCB (1760 – 28 September 1835) was a naval officer in the British Royal Navy who gained fame during the Napoleonic Wars as a naval captain that fought at the Battle of Copenhagen (1801) and Battle of Trafalgar, beco ...

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

Lewis Worrell Lewis Worrell (born November 7, 1934) is a jazz double bassist best known for his work during the 1960s with Albert Ayler, the New York Art Quartet, Roswell Rudd, and Archie Shepp. Biography Worrell was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and be ...

- bass * Sonny Murray -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

References

{{Albert Ayler 1965 live albums Albert Ayler live albums ESP-Disk live albums