''Piccolo'' is a 1977 release by the Ron Carter Quartet. The quartet consists of Ron Carter on

piccolo bass A piccolo bass is either an electric bass or acoustic double bass which has been tuned to a higher frequency, usually one octave higher than conventional bass tuning. This allows bass players to use higher registers during soloing while retaining ...

, Kenny Barron on

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 ...

, Buster Williams on

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...

, and Ben Riley on drums. The album was recorded live at

Sweet Basil Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also kno ...

in New York City on March 25–26, 1977. Piccolo is considered one of Ron Carter's best albums from the late 1970s due to its excellent recording, live-club feel, and exquisite musicianship. After being brought together by Carter and playing in his quartet for a few years, Barron, Williams, and Riley went on to form

Sphere A sphere () is a geometrical object that is a three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three-dimensional space.. That given point is th ...

with

Charlie Rouse Charlie Rouse (April 6, 1924 – November 30, 1988) was an American hard bop tenor saxophonist and flautist. His career is marked by his collaboration with Thelonious Monk, which lasted for more than ten years. Biography Rouse was born in Was ...

Reception

The

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 ...

review by Scott Yanow stated "This double album is mostly recommended to lovers of bass solos ..These performances, which are well-played, are almost all quite long, so listeners who prefer more variety in their music are advised to look elsewhere."

Track listing

''All compositions by Ron Carter except as indicated'' # "Saguaro" – 18:25 # "Sunshower" (Kenny Barron) – 15:17 # " Three Little Words" (

Harry Ruby Harry Rubenstein (January 27, 1895 – February 23, 1974), known professionally as Harry Ruby, was an American actor, pianist, composer, songwriter and screenwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Bert Kalmar Bert Kalmar (February 10, 1884 – September 18, 1947) was an American songwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. He was also a screenwriter. Biography Kalmar, a native of New York City, left school at an early ag ...

) – 8:46 # "Laverne Walk" (

Oscar Pettiford Oscar Pettiford (September 30, 1922 – September 8, 1960) was an American jazz double bassist, cellist and composer. He was one of the earliest musicians to work in the bebop idiom. Biography Pettiford was born in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, United ...

) – 12:24 # "Little Waltz" – 8:15 # "Tambien Conocido Como" – 12:59 Note : The original double LP vinyl issue also included the track "Blue Monk" – 6:13 as track 3. This was omitted from CD issues due to time constraints, but does appear on the Milestone label's compilation of 70's Carter material entitled ''Standard Bearers''.

Personnel

* Ron Carter –

* Kenny Barron –

* Buster Williams – bass * Ben Riley – drums

References

{{Authority control 1977 live albums Ron Carter albums Milestone Records live albums Albums produced by Orrin Keepnews