Straight Lines is an album by the American jazz reedist Ken Vandermark, recorded in 1998 and released on Atavistic. The Joe Harriott Project, a pianoless quartet with four members of the Vandermark 5, plays the music of the Jamaican saxophonist Joe Harriott, transcribed and arranged by Vandermark. Three tunes are from the album Free Form and four from Abstract.[1]
| Straight Lines | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Ken Vandermark | ||||
| Released | 1999 | |||
| Recorded | September 3, 1998 | |||
| Studio | Airwave, Chicago | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 55:36 | |||
| Label | Atavistic | |||
| Producer | John Corbett | |||
| Ken Vandermark chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz | [3] |
In his review for AllMusic, Tim Sheridan states: "The tunes are filled with odd time signiatures, quirky stops and meaty lines that make for excellent improvisation on the part of Vandermark, Jeb Bishop on trombone, Kent Kessler on bass and Tim Mulvenna on drums. A strong tribute."[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz says that "the record is under-rehearsed and unfinished in feel ... It could be that the group are a shade too respectful of Harriott's themes, since their playing feels a bit stiff and uncertain, something that a Vandermark record has never been in the past."[3]
Track listing
edit- All compositions by Joe Harriott
- "Tonal" – 6:59
- "Shadows" – 6:17
- "Straight Lines" – 11:39
- "Abstract" – 6:27
- "Idioms" – 8:13
- "Pictures" – 9:01
- "Formation" – 7:00
Personnel
edit- Ken Vandermark – tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet
- Jeb Bishop – trombone
- Kent Kessler – bass
- Tim Mulvenna – drums
References
edit- ^ Original Liiner Notes by Steve Beresford
- ^ a b Sheridan, Tim. Ken Vandermark – Straight Lines: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
- ^ a b Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2002). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (6th ed.). London: Penguin. p. 1488. ISBN 0140515216.