''Heavy Spirits'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist

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 ...

, which was recorded in 1975 and released on the Arista Freedom label. The album features Lake playing in different settings: three quintet tracks with

Olu Dara Olu Dara Jones (born Charles Jones III, January 12, 1941) is an American cornetist, guitarist, and singer. He is the father of rapper Nas. Early life Olu Dara was born Charles Jones III on January 12, 1941 in Natchez, Mississippi. His mother, E ...

on trumpet, Donald Smith on piano, Stafford James on bass, and

Victor Lewis Victor Lewis (born May 20, 1950) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and educator. Early life Victor Lewis was born on May 20, 1950 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Richard Lewis, who played saxophone and mother, Camille, a pianist-vocalist ...

on drums, three more tracks with Lake backed by three violinists, a trio piece with trombonist

Joseph Bowie Joseph Bowie (born October 17, 1953) is an American jazz trombonist and vocalist. The brother of trumpeter Lester Bowie, Joseph is known for leading the jazz-punk group Defunkt and for membership in the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble. Career Bowi ...

and drummer Charles "Bobo" Shaw, and a solo sax piece.

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 ...

, Scott Yanow states "This will be one of the least accessible of altoist Oliver Lake's recordings for most people but repeated listenings reveal a great deal of beauty." ''

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 b ...

'' says "''Heavy Spirits'' seems, at this distance, like a relic of an exciting period in the American avant-garde.. Hit and miss, but untempered and often intriguing."

Track listing

:''All compositions by Oliver Lake except as indicated'' # "While Pushing Down Turn" – 11:50 # "Owshet" – 5:43 # "Heavy Spirits" – 2:55 # "Movements Equals Creation" – 1:33 # "Altoviolin" – 2:32 # "Intensity" – 2:23 # "Lonely Blacks" ( Julius Hemphill) – 3:45 # "Rocket" – 9:25 :*Recorded at C.I. Recording Studio, New York City on January 31, 1975 (tracks 1-3, 8) and Music Designer Studios, Boston on February 3, 1975 (track 4-7)

Personnel

alto sax 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 ten ...

–

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 ...

on 1, 2, 3 *Donald Smith -

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

on 1, 2, 3 * Stafford James – bass on 1, 2, 3 *

- drums on 1, 2, 3 *Al Philemon Jones –

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

on 4, 5, 6 *Steve Peisch – violin on 4, 5, 6 *C. Panton – violin on 4, 5, 6 *

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

on 8 * Charles "Bobo" Shaw – drums on 8

References

{{Authority control 1975 albums Oliver Lake albums albums produced by Michael Cuscuna Freedom Records albums