''Pieces of Jade'' is a posthumously-released album by jazz bassist

Scott LaFaro Rocco Scott LaFaro (April 3, 1936 – July 6, 1961) was an American jazz double bassist known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio. LaFaro broke new ground on the instrument, developing a countermelodic style of accompaniment rather than playing ...

. It consists of five tracks dating from 1961 featuring LaFaro in a trio format with pianist

Don Friedman Donald Ernest Friedman (May 4, 1935 – June 30, 2016) was an American jazz pianist. He began playing in Los Angeles and moved to New York in 1958. In the 1960s, he played with both modern stylists and more traditional musicians. Early life Fr ...

and drummer

Pete La Roca Pete "La Roca" Sims (born Peter Sims; April 7, 1938 – November 20, 2012, known as Pete La Roca from 1957 until 1968) was an American jazz drummer and attorney. Born and raised in Harlem, New York City, Harlem by a pianist mother and a stepfath ...

, a 23-minute recording of LaFaro rehearsing with pianist

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...

in 1960, a 1966 interview with Evans, and a Friedman solo piano piece dedicated to LaFaro, recorded in 1985. The album was released in 2009 by

Resonance Records Resonance Records is an independent jazz record label established in 2008 as the centerpiece of the Rising Jazz Stars Foundation, a non–profit organization dedicated to preserving the art and legacy of jazz. The label is based in Los Angeles, Ca ...

. According to Friedman, who briefly roomed with LaFaro in 1957, the recording of the 1961 trio tracks was unplanned: the three musicians happened to be in a studio, and the engineer said "Why don't you guys play and I'll record you." These five tracks were initially released on Friedman's album ''Memories for Scotty'', issued in 1988 by the Japanese label Insights. 2009 also saw the publication of the LaFaro biography ''Jade Visions'', written by the bassist's sister Helene LaFaro-Fernandez, and published by

University of North Texas Press The University of North Texas Press (or UNT Press), founded in 1987, is a university press that is part of the University of North Texas. External links * Press North Texas, University of 1987 establishments in Texas Publishing companies e ...

as part of their Lives of Musicians Series.

Reception

In a 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 databas ...

, Michael G. Nastos wrote: "that this recording exists is nothing less than a miracle, and an event in the annals of jazz... It's a rare window into the soul of Scott LaFaro... and a complement to the book written by his sister." Larry Taylor of ''

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 ...

'' stated: "The greatness of LaFaro is reestablished here as he once more excels in the trio format. In this context, it's possible to further appreciate LaFaro's improvisational skill and full bass sound... it's very fortunate to have another recording to add to his legacy." AAJ's

Stuart Broomer Stuart Broomer is a Canadian editor, music critic, pianist, writer, jazz historian, and composer. He is a former editor with ''CODA'' magazine and currently works as an editor at Coach House Books. As a music critic he has written articles for Am ...

called the album "a fitting tribute to an essential musician, a complement to the masterpieces LaFaro created with Evans." Ron Hart, writing for ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

'', commented: "''Pieces of Jade'' offers a rare glimpse into LaFaro's creative process." ''

The Absolute Sound ''The Absolute Sound'' (TAS) is an American audiophile magazine which reviews high-end audio equipment, along with recordings and comments on various music-related subjects. History ''The Absolute Sound'' was founded in 1973 by Harry Pearson, ...

Bill Milkowski Bill Milkowski (born September 26, 1954) is an American jazz critic, journalist, and biographer. Since the 1970s he has written thousands of articles for magazines and album liner notes.. He has written for '' DownBeat'', ''JazzTimes'', ''Jazziz' ...

praised LaFaro's "melodic ingenuity along with his uncanny speed and facility," and noted that, in the trio pieces, his "ability to spontaneously and effortlessly interject contrapuntal ideas against the flow of each piece marks him as a revolutionary accompanist in a piano trio setting." In an article for ''Elsewhere'', Graham Reid wrote: "This is classic piano trio jazz... An interesting, valuable and unexpected one from the archives for those deeply into this kind of seminal jazz."

Track listing

# "

I Hear a Rhapsody "I Hear a Rhapsody" is a 1941 pop song that became a jazz standard, composed by George Fragos, Jack Baker, and Dick Gasparre. Written in 1940, in 1941 it was a top 10 hit for three separate artists, Charlie Barnet, Jimmy Dorsey and Dinah Shore. � ...

" (Dick Gasparre, George Fragos, Jack Baker) – 6:17 # "Sacre Bléu (take 1)" (Don Friedman) – 6:11 # " Green Dolphin St." (

Bronisław Kaper Bronisław Kaper (; February 5, 1902 – April 26, 1983) was a Polish film composer who scored films and musical theater in Germany, France, and the USA. The American immigration authorities misspelled his name as Bronislau Kaper. He was also var ...

Ned Washington Ned Washington (born Edward Michael Washington, August 15, 1901 – December 20, 1976) was an American lyricist born in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Life and career Washington was nominated for eleven Academy Awards from 1940 to 1962. He won the Bes ...

) – 6:36 # "Sacre Bléu (take 2)" (Don Friedman) – 6:18 # "

Woody 'n' You "Woody 'n' You", is a 1942 jazz standard written by Dizzy Gillespie as an homage to Woody Herman. It was one of three arrangements Gillespie made for Herman's big band, although it was not used at the time; the other two were "Swing Shift" and "Down ...

" (

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

) – 5:38 # " My Foolish Heart - Rehearsal Tape: Bill Evans and Scott LaFaro - 1960" (

Victor Young Albert Victor Young (August 8, 1899– November 10, 1956)"Victor Young, Composer, Dies of Heart Attack", ''Oakland Tribune'', November 12, 1956. was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. Biography Young is commonly said to ...

, Ned Washington) – 22:44 # "Interview with Bill Evans by George Klabin 1966" – 13:39 # "Memories for Scotty" (Don Friedman) – 6:23 * Tracks 1–5 recorded in 1961. Track 6 recorded in 1960. Track 7 recorded in 1966. Track 8 recorded in 1985.

Personnel

– bass (tracks 1–6) *

– piano (tracks 1–5, 8) *

Pete LaRoca Pete "La Roca" Sims (born Peter Sims; April 7, 1938 – November 20, 2012, known as Pete La Roca from 1957 until 1968) was an American jazz drummer and attorney. Born and raised in Harlem by a pianist mother and a stepfather who played trumpet, ...

– drums (tracks 1–5) *

– piano (track 6)

References

{{Reflist 2009 albums Jazz albums by American artists Resonance Records albums