This inconsistent 1976 release from the mighty
Elvin Jones
is most successful when it draws on the high-energy, advanced
hard bop
style of the drummer's post-
Coltrane
period. It's a different story when it comes to the date's superfluous accommodations to
fusion
.
Ryo Kawasaki
's squelchy wah-wah guitar serves as the date's chief
device. At times,
Kawasaki
functions usefully in a role somewhat based on
John McLaughlin
's approach with
Miles Davis
in the late '60s. Mostly, he comes across as an additional flavor calculated to skew the music's appeal to the
rock
audience. Still, the opening track,
's
"Salty Iron,"
is wonderful, funky,
jazz fusion
, but it's not a track that calls for
Jones
' peerless gifts.
"Philomene"
and
"Mini Modes"
are in a more
vein, but their potential is undermined by
's trendy licks and the tinny chime of
Al Dailey
's electric piano. The highlight is
Gene Perla
"Sweet Mama."
Here, guest saxophonist
Dave Liebman
fires up some tasty, apocalyptic mayhem over a roiling, rhythm-section tempest. There's also a magical solo spot from
. This track is helped considerably by
Dailey
more suitably playing an acoustic piano and bassist
Dave Williams
setting aside his electric in favor of his upright. As for the 16-plus-minute
"Song of Rejoicing,"
this marathon of collective, percussive noodling, including extensive pad slapping from reed players
Pat Labarbera
Frank Foster
, is simply an ill-conceived shamble. ~ Jim Todd