Caldera (Sam Rivers Album)

''Caldera'' is a live album by the Sam Rivers Trio, led by multi-instrumentalist and composer Rivers, and featuring double bassist and bass clarinetist Doug Mathews and drummer and saxophonist Anthony Cole. It was recorded on March 9, 2002, at the Freeport-McMoRan Theatre, Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was released in 2022 by NoBusiness Records as volume 6 of the Sam Rivers Archive Series.

The Rivers Trio with this lineup also appeared on '' Concept'' (Rivbea, 1995–1996 997, ''Firestorm'' (Rivbea, 2001), and ''Celebration'' (Posi-Tone, 2003 004. ''Caldera'' is based on material selected from Rivers' massive recorded archives, which are curated by writer and producer Ed Hazell, who spent a year reviewing tapes with the goal of choosing the best recordings for release by NoBusiness Records.

Reception

In a review for '' All About Jazz'', Mark Corroto wrote: "Rivers never stopped his music growing, both in large and small ensembles. With this trio, he found the most sympathetic partners... Rivers and company traverse energy systems and the outer stratosphere with an ease only available to the tightest working ensembles." ''AAJs John Sharpe stated that Rivers's music "confidently straddles the inside/outside dichotomy, a borderline which Matthews and Cole also navigate with thrilling ease. ''Caldera'' proves a fitting finale to a project which has amply reaffirmed Rivers' stature."

Kevin Le Gendre of '' Jazzwise'' commented: "this is arguably one of the most versatile trios you’ve probably never heard of... Rivers had a great ability to be as funky as free but he also wrote some sublime love songs, none more so than his alternative standard 'Beatrice', a perennial fan favourite that the group performs with exactly the right blend of tenderness and passion."

A writer for ''JazzBluesNews'' remarked: "it is noteworthy that Rivers' freely improvised saxophone solos do not run for as long as they once did... Rivers was seventy-eight when this album was recorded. Nonetheless, while he may have lost in quantity, he retained or even improved in quality... this sixth volume seems likely to reveal facets of Rivers' music that may not be familiar to all his devotees. Strongly recommended."

''Jazz Weeklys George W. Harris called the concert "spontaneously combustible," and asked: "Anyone transcribing this?"

Track listing

Composed by Sam Rivers.

# "Improvisation I" – 17:20
# "Bass solo" – 2:11
# "Unity" – 4:09
# "Beatrice" – 5:30
# "Drum solo" – 2:58
# "Improvisation II" – 11:19
# "Offering" – 8:47
# "Improvisation III" – 18:25

Personnel

* Sam Rivers – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute, piano, vocals
* Doug Mathews – double bass, electric bass, bass clarinet
* Anthony Cole – drums, tenor saxophone, piano

References

{{Authority control
2022 live albums
Sam Rivers (jazz musician) live albums
NoBusiness Records live albums