Michael Brecker might seem like an odd subject for a reverential obit here at Bagatellen. Along with his brother Randy, he rode the lucrative surf of mainstream jazz popularity for much of his career, churning out a litany of albums and garnering 11 Grammys along the way. A long-practicing Trane disciple, his cyclopean chops were a magnet to followers hungry for virtuosity, sometimes seemingly at the expense of soul. I never really paid much attention to his music, recognizing him more as a name than an identifiable sound, but this past year brought me into contact with two of his recent sideman releases: brother Randy’s unfortunately-titled Some Skunk Funk and Odean Pope’s stellar Locked & Loaded. The former is packed typical crowd-pleasing pyrotechnics, bombast and sometimes painfully obvious grooves. Taped prior to the saxophonist’s diagnosis of leukemia, it also finds the brothers in playful and spirited form, fronting a small combo that is at times augmented by the horn section of a German big band for extra (and largely unnecessary) firepower. The Pope date features Brecker as guest soloist in the Saxophone Choir along with other big guns James Carter and Joe Lovano. His solos on “Prince Lasha” and “Coltrane Time” are standouts on the date and ideally suited to the sax-heavy surroundings. Much has been written about his activities as a jazz educator and figurehead and 57 is too youthful an age to die by any estimation. Here’s toasting Brecker’s memory and the strong legacy he leaves behind.
Posted by derek on January 14, 2007 7:30 AMVery sad to hear that. I'll play his solo on Donald Fagen's "Maxine" right away, followed by "Some Skunk Funk".
Posted by: Dan Warburton at January 14, 2007 7:57 AMDon't have much MB in my collection, but maybe it's time to put on "The Purple Lagoon", off Lather....
Posted by: nd at January 14, 2007 9:18 AMBrecker's pyrotechnical chops aside, he definitely took Coltrane's approach (post-bop and modal Trane, that is) and moved it up another notch. Unlike the hordes of Berklee-trained wannabes that followed in the wake, Brecker was a player of substance, though for the most part his best work was on the records of other musicians. He wasn't much of a writer, and yes, in the end his incredible chops probably undermined his artistry--it seemed as if he could just turn on a switch and let it rip. I saw him with McCoy once and this was the case; they kicked into a Monk tune, and once the solos began the tune was lost in the flurry of Brecker's fingers (McCoy, of course, solos the same way on every tune as well). It's a problem many younger players face, as they seek speed and harmonic "complexity" (mostly via a pattern-oriented approach) but not musicality.
But some of his earlier efforts, such as Hal Galper's "Speak with a Single Voice," Chick Corea's "Three Quartets," and the early Steps records ("Smokin' in the Pit" and "Paradox Steps") are keepers. Avant-oriented players would be wise to pay heed to some of this stuff...
I had a good experience with Brecker when his horn broke on a gig many years ago and I happened to have mine in the car. He grafted a piece from my tenor to his, let us take prime seats for the second set, and bought a round of drinks. He gave me his phone number, and $20 (which I didn't want to take) for the part from my horn. I'll always remember it.
Posted by: Paul B at January 14, 2007 11:14 AM"Maxine"
best song on the record, "Goodbye Look" second then "Green Flower Street"
we'll meet at Lincoln Mallllll
Posted by: Michael Schaumann at January 14, 2007 12:51 PM"Escher Sketch" on "Now You See It Now You Don't" is also another cool Brecker track. And thanks for mentioning the Corea "Three Quartets" too Paul - Corea, Brecker, Gadd, Gomez.. what a line up.
Well, Schau, every track on Nightfly is a total drop dead masterpiece as far as I'm concerned (fwiw my son Max prefers "Ruby Baby")
"I know a fellow with a motor launch for hire
A skinny man with two-tone shoes
Cause tonight they're arranging a small reception just for me
Behind the big casino by the sea"
Paul B: "But some of his earlier efforts, such as Hal Galper's "Speak with a Single Voice," Chick Corea's "Three Quartets," and the early Steps records ("Smokin' in the Pit" and "Paradox Steps") are keepers."
That Corea album was a big, big favorite of mine as I was getting into jazz, along with Brecker's own eponymous quintet record on Impulse from the mid-80s, esp. the track "Choices".
Posted by: Jason Guthartz at January 16, 2007 4:25 PMHi- I was checking out Brecker's discography on his website today (www.michaelbrecker.com) and was surprised to see a number of relatively recent small group recordings under his name with Charlie Haden, Jack DeJohnette, Elvin Jones, Pat Metheny, Herbie Hancock, etc. Does anyone have a take on these small group sessions?
peter breslin
www.peterbreslin.blogspot.com
No, but I'm as intrigued as you are Peter - will look into it
A very nice record:
Directions In Music - Celebrating Miles Davis & John Coltrane (Live At Massey Hall)
w/ Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker, Roy Hargrove, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade.
Posted by: Reuben Radding at January 17, 2007 6:50 AMThe Pat Metheny record 80/81 with Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden and Dejohnette was a very good Record from what I recall..
Posted by: alden at January 17, 2007 9:22 AM"A very nice record:
Directions In Music - Celebrating Miles Davis & John Coltrane (Live At Massey Hall)
w/ Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker, Roy Hargrove, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade."
- I saw that band with Scott Colley and Teri Lynn Carrington instead of Patitucci and Blade.
Hargrove's solos were utterly forgetable - the rest of the band was amazing especially Brecker.
Seems like he'd been sick for so long. Must have been very hard.
RIP
Posted by: walto at January 17, 2007 12:48 PMThis is an incredible loss (spent the weekend listening to Alice C and Brecker and blowing off my writing, as usual). Brecker was one of the first guys that really spoke to me in the early/mid 80's when I was getting into this music as a young musician. As noted above, his take on Coltrane was his own and his influence on countless players since is immeasurable (but I would argue people are too afraid of acknowledgement for fear of it not being the hippest name to drop, you dig?).
Though my tastes do run the gamut and I probably reserve what few precious hours I have for "fun listening" for music with more dirt on it, I'd have to say that there are a few Brecker-related records I revisit frequently:
Brecker Bros - Heavy Metal BeBop
Corea - Three Quartets
Metheny - 80/81
Self-Titled first release (yeah, the EWI sucks, but his solos are great, especially on Syzygy with DeJohnette)
Mel Lewis And Friends
Hal Galper - Reach Out!
Joni Mitchell - Shadows And Light
Plus a few session compilation tapes that I wore the shit out of in high school which I subsequently transferred to CDr once the technology was there (as in, 15 years later).
Good stuff. Again, a loss to the community. Despite his "success," he remained an incredibly humble person (as I can attest to, having spoken with him a few times).
back to my hiding place. . .
Posted by: Jay at January 17, 2007 4:11 PMI agree about the "Michael Brecker" album on Impulse--it's very good. It was the first album he made as a leader, I think, and probably his best in that role. I transcribed parts of "Syzygy" many years ago; if you want a basic primer on Brecker's style and approach, it's all in that tune. Fantastic stuff to work through and study.
Another album on which he plays beautifully is "Double Double You," a Kenny Wheeler album on ECM.
I too was really into him when I was younger, later moving on to other players that I find more compelling for various reasons. But I'll always admire his work and talent, even if I don't listen to him much anymore. And he'll definitely be in the history books...
Hello- I heard Brecker doing My One and Only Love with DeJohnette/Metheny/Haden yesterday on the radio, from 1987. The DJ, a local traditionalist musician named David Parlato, introduced the piece by saying that Brecker "keeps his technique in the background..." Then the piece started with an extended cadenza by Brecker with unbelievable technique, impeccable sound, and phrasing lifted directly from Coltrane. Instantly you can identify the Coltrane influence on timbre, scalar complexity, arpeggios of chord substitions, etc. Lacking (to my ears, of course): any sense of drama going into the head with the entry of the band. Not a particle of grit. Timbral extension all smoothed out and shiny, metallic. The heart and soul of the song itself, lost in a flurry of overstatement. This is the repeated fate of the work of great sound innovators who transform their instruments: successors come along who manhandle the mechanics and turn the molasses into refined sugar.
Just my .02. I still admire Brecker's playing. And I wouldn't dream of speaking ill of the dead.
PB
Posted by: peter breslin at January 23, 2007 7:39 AMEven back in the day when I was listening to nothing but mainstream stuff--back before Wynton Marsalis persuaded me that I ought to start checking out Cecil Taylor--Brecker wasn't one of my top favorites, but there were at least two exceptions. One was the Hal Galper record that Jay mentions.
The other was Mike Nock's "In Out and Around" (with George Mraz & Al Foster). I always thought that one was terribly underrated (by, e.g., the Penguin Guide). Anybody else remember that record? Anybody else like it?
Posted by: Bill R at January 31, 2007 10:20 PM.................................................. © 2003 - 2006 bagatellen ..................................................