''Windward Passages'' is a live album by
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 ...
pianist
Dave Burrell
Herman Davis "Dave" Burrell (born September 10, 1940) is an American jazz pianist. He has played with many jazz musicians including Archie Shepp, Pharoah Sanders, Marion Brown and David Murray.
Biography
Born in Middletown, Ohio, United Sta ...
that is considered "a widely acclaimed jazz-opera."
It was recorded on September 13, 1979 in Sweden and released by hatART Records in 1980 on double-LP. hatART released the album again on LP in 1986 and then on CD in 1994.
The album was Burrell's first collaboration with his wife, Monika Larsson, who was a Swedish writer and
librettist
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...
at the time. Burrell conceived this full-length operatic album as his reply to land development in Hawaii, which was where he was raised.
The live performance included various vocal singers, a 21 piece orchestra, dancers and a chorus. At first, Burrell had trouble convincing some vocalists to perform with him because of how fast he played as a jazz pianist; one such example was
Hilda Harris of the
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...
who told him "I can sing it, but you're playing much too fast."
Reception
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 ...
notes that Burrell "so thoroughly a pianist, composer, and improviser that the three are inseparable in him" and that this album is the proof.
Reviewer Thom Jurek marvels at how, performing live, Burrell is able to provide "lyrical invention and harmonic sense of balance" and how if what he "heard was possible, let alone true."
Track listing
#"Overture Windward Passages" (Burrell, Larsson) — 5:32
#"Punaluu Peter" (Burrell, Larsson) — 7:12
#"Stepping Out (Or, Monday Night Death Rehearsal)" (Burrell, Larsson) — 3:59
#"On a Saturday Night" (Burrell, Larsson) — 5:54
#"Sarah's Lament" (Burrell, Larsson) — 5:35
#"Menehune Messages/Heritage/Carnival" (Burrell, Larsson) — 4:48
#"Teardrops for Jimmy" (Burrell) — 5:16
#"I Want to See You Everyday of Your Life" (Burrell, Larsson) — 5:11
#"Black Robert" (Burrell) — 5:19
#"My Dog Has Fleas/Polynesian Dreams/Popolo Paniolo" (Burrell, Larsson) — 13:19
#"A.M. Rag" (Burrell) — 4:55
Personnel
*Dave Burrell — piano
Production:
*Klau Baumgärtner — cover art
*Walter Bosshardt, Robine Clignett — design
*David Crawford — mastering
*Craig Johnson — production coordination
*Peter Pfister — engineer, editing, recording
*Peter Rolle — photography
*Pia Uehlinger — producer
*Werner X. Uehlinger — producer, editing
References
{{Dave Burrell
Dave Burrell albums
1979 live albums
Hathut Records live albums
Solo piano jazz albums