''Equal Interest'' is an album by Equal Interest, a collaborative project by saxophonist

Joseph Jarman Joseph Jarman (September 14, 1937 – January 9, 2019) was an American jazz musician, composer, poet, and Shinshu Buddhist priest. He was one of the first members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians and a member of the ...

, pianist

Myra Melford Myra Melford (born January 5, 1957) is an American avant-garde jazz pianist and composer. A 2013 Guggenheim Fellow, Melford was described by the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' as an "explosive player, a virtuoso who shocks and soothes, and who can m ...

and violinist Leroy Jenkins, which was recorded in 1999 and released on the OmniTone label.Joseph Jarman discography
accessed January 16, 2018 The three musicians first came together during an AACM concert, after which they participated in the recording of the album '' Out of the Mist''. According to Jenkins, during a rehearsal, they discussed continuing as a trio, and

Muhal Richard Abrams Muhal Richard Abrams (born Richard Lewis Abrams; September 19, 1930 – October 29, 2017) was an American educator, administrator, composer, arranger, clarinetist, cellist, and jazz pianist in the free jazz medium. He recorded and toured the Uni ...

proposed the name Equal Interest.

Reception

In his review for

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 databa ...

, Michael G. Nastos states: "these three brilliant musicians come together in continually surprising ways. The depth of their collective spirituality is most impressive, but the music virtually bursts with passion and vibrancy ... Following up the prelude to this recording, '' Out of the Mist'' (Ocean), this trio has exploded into a most impressive improvising unit that will hopefully continue to bring us miracles like this highly recommended CD". Writing for the Cleveland Scene, Aaron Steinberg commented: "this eponymous debut from Equal Interest keeps a surprisingly meditative mood throughout. Difficult free music gestures are skillfully submerged in airy themes and folkish melodies, unison passages, and regular pulses. And even when one of the three musicians takes a solo into outer space, the other two temper the sound with defiantly sweet and calming accompaniment." In a review for

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growt ...

, Peter Margasak wrote: "Rarely has the phrase 'sum of its parts' applied so accurately to an all-star jazz gathering as it does to Equal Interest... On its eponymous debut the group doesn't merely pool its collective experience... but it brings a startlingly wide world of sounds to the table. While members of the AACM routinely trafficked nonchalantly in diverse styles, the range delivered by Equal Interest is stunning nonetheless, adding to the expected fusion of jazz, boogie woogie and blues with a complement of international sounds that never sounds like a lazy hodgepodge."

Track listing

# "B'pale Night" (Leroy Jenkins) – 6:19 # "Rondo for Jenny" (Joseph Jarman) – 7:13 # "Over This/Living Music" (Myra Melford) – 10:46 # "Poem Song" (Jarman) – 13:24 # "In the Moment" (Jenkins) – 6:05 # "The Beauty We Love" (Melford) – 5:30 # "Everything Today" (Melford) – 3:36 # "Apricots from Eden ("Sourmaloui Jerk")" (Traditional Armenian) – 6:20

Personnel

– flute, alto saxophone, Turkish hand drum, Vietnamese oboe, wind chimes * Leroy Jenkins – violin, viola *

– piano, harmonium

References

{{Authority control 1999 albums Joseph Jarman albums Leroy Jenkins (jazz musician) albums Myra Melford albums