''Four Now'' is an

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by the

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

group the

World Saxophone Quartet The World Saxophone Quartet is an American jazz ensemble founded in 1977, incorporating elements of free jazz, R&B, funk and South African jazz into their music. The original members were Julius Hemphill (alto and soprano saxophone, flute), ...

, released by the Canadian Justin Time label. The album features performances by

Hamiet Bluiett Hamiet Bluiett (; September 16, 1940 – October 4, 2018) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. His primary instrument was the baritone saxophone, and he was considered one of the finest players of this instrument. A membe ...

, John Purcell,

Oliver Lake Oliver Lake (born September 14, 1942) is an American jazz saxophonist, flutist, composer, poet, and visual artist. He is known mainly for alto saxophone, but he also performs on soprano and flute. During the 1960s, Lake worked with the Black Art ...

and David Murray, with guests

Chief Bey James Hawthorne Bey (April 17, 1913 – April 8, 2004)Associated Press"Chief Bey, 91 Jazz Drummer."''The New York Times'', April 13, 2004. Retrieved October 28, 2016.Jenkins, Todd S"Chief Bey: Master of African drums."''www.jazzhouse.org.'' Retr ...

Mor Thiam Mor Dogo Thiam (born May 22, 1941) is a Senegalese drummer, cultural historian, and entertainment consultant. His surname is pronounced "Chahm". Career Thiam recorded his first album, ''Ndende Safarra'', in 1974 with B.B. King and Nancy Wilson ...

, and Mar Gueye on African drums.

Reception

The authors of the ''

Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings ''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 ...

'' noted that, in relation to the earlier recording titled ''

Metamorphosis Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops including birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation. Some inse ...

'', which features the same three African drummers, ''Four Now'' is "the better album because the elements seem to work together rather than in strict parallel... There are also fewer avant-garde gestures from the WSQ itself." A reviewer for

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 ...

wrote that, in contrast with ''Metamorphosis'', "the group explores more rhythmic freedom on ''Four Now'', juxtaposing the cross-continental interplay of drum improvisation and horn improvisation. The results of this American-African cultural fusion are dramatically successful." A ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' reviewer praised Purcell's contributions, commenting: "If the future of the World Saxophone Quartet was cast into doubt by the passing of Julius Hemphill, fans can now rejoice."

Track listing

# "Dou Dou N'Daiye Rose" (Gueye) - 8:42 # "Dakar Darkness" (Lake, Murray) - 8:28 # "Suga" (Thiam) - 6:50 # "Colors" (Purcell) - 6:57 # "For Now" (Bluiett) - 5:24 # "What a Dream" (Lake) - 7:21 # "Sangara" (Thiam) - 10:40

Personnel

—

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...

contra-alto clarinet The contra-alto clarinet, E♭ contrabass clarinet, is a large clarinet pitched a perfect fifth below the B♭ bass clarinet. It is a transposing instrument in E♭ sounding an octave and a major sixth below its written pitch, between the ...

* John Purcell —

saxello The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

alto flute The alto flute is an instrument in the Western concert flute family, the second-highest member below the standard C flute after the uncommon flûte d'amour. It is the third most common member of its family after the standard C flute and the ...

english horn The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...

, alto and C flutes *

—

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 ...

, vocals * David Murray —

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 ...

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...

— African Drums *

— African Drums *Mar Gueye — African drums

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1996 albums World Saxophone Quartet albums