''Year of the Iron Sheep'' is an album by American jazz musician Ken McIntyre.

Background

''Year of the Iron Sheep'' was Ken McIntyre's third album, and his first for

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

."Special Merit Picks" (February 9, 1963). ''Billboard''. p. 29. It was named after his birth year in the

Tibetan calendar The Tibetan calendar (), or Tibetan lunar calendar, is a lunisolar calendar, that is, the Tibetan year is composed of either 12 or 13 lunar months, each beginning and ending with a new moon. A thirteenth month is added every two or three years, s ...

Recording and music

The album was produced by Alan Douglas and recorded at Sound Mixers, New York City.Fitzgerald, Michael (June 26, 2011
"Makanda Ken McIntyre Discography"
Jazzdiscography.com. All of the tracks except " Laura" were composed by McIntyre. The final track, "Someday", was taken from a June 11, 1962 session involving trombonist John Mancebo Lewis, but although he is mentioned on the sleeveMcIntyre, Ken "Year of the Iron Sheep" (LP liner notes). United Artists. UAS 15015. this was in fact the only track from that session on which he did not play. A second session, on August 31, yielded "Cosmos", played by McIntyre with

Jaki Byard John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (; June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. Mainly a pianist, he also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for hi ...

(piano),

Ron Carter Ronald Levin Carter (born May 4, 1937) is an American jazz double bassist. His appearances on 2,221 recording sessions make him the most-recorded jazz bassist in history. He has won three Grammy awards, and is also a cellist who has recorded nu ...

(bass), and

Louis Hayes Louis Hayes (born May 31, 1937) is an American jazz drummer and band leader. He was with McCoy Tyner's trio for more than three years. Since 1989 he has led his own band, and together with Vincent Herring formed the Cannonball Legacy Band. He i ...

(drums). For the final session, four days later, Hayes was replaced by

Ben Riley Benjamin Alexander Riley Jr. (July 17, 1933 – November 18, 2017) was an American jazz drummer known for his work with Thelonious Monk, as well as Alice Coltrane, Stan Getz, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Ahmad Jamal, and as a member of the group Sp ...

, and the remaining four tracks on the album were recorded.

Releases

''Year of the Iron Sheep'' was released on LP by United Artists. It was later combined with another album and additional tracks on the 2-CD set ''The Complete United Artists Sessions''.Pekar, Harvey (December 1, 1997
"Makanda Ken McIntyre: The Complete United Artists Sessions"
''JazzTimes''.

Reception

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 ...

'' selected the album as a "special merit pick", commenting that "McIntyre's work on alto and flute is exciting and lyrical, and worth hearing as a new direction in scored jazz."

Track listing

All compositions by Ken McIntyre except where noted. # "Say What" – 5:00 # "Arisin'" – 10:10 # " Laura" (

David Raksin David Raksin (August 4, 1912 – August 9, 2004) was an American composer who was noted for his work in film and television. With more than 100 film scores and 300 television scores to his credit, he became known as the "Grandfather of Film Music ...

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallich ...

) – 3:25 # "96.5" – 4:10 # "Cosmos" – 5:15 # "Someday" – 8:47

Personnel

Tracks 1–4 * Ken McIntyre – alto sax, flute *

– piano *

– bass *

– drums Track 5 *Ken McIntyre – alto sax *Jaki Byard – piano *Ron Carter – bass *

– drums Track 6 *Ken McIntyre – flute *Ed Stoute – piano *

Ahmed Abdul-Malik Ahmed Abdul-Malik (born Jonathan Tim, Jr.; January 30, 1927 – October 2, 1993) was an American jazz double bassist and oud player. Abdul-Malik is remembered for integrating Middle Eastern and North African music styles in his jazz music.Kelsey ...

– bass * Warren Smith – drums (Trombonist John M. Lewis was erroneously credited on the sleeve)

References

{{Authority control 1962 albums Makanda Ken McIntyre albums