A double disc's worth of a 1976 concert featuring a trio who have all since departed this life: Mike Osborne on alto sax, Harry Miller on bass and Tony Levin on drums.
From a distance of some 36 years, leaving aside nostalgia or one's regret at the early departures of any or all of the musicians, it's interesting how relatively seamlessly the music fits into what was going on in the avant jazz world at the time, especially in relation to the AACM and emerging free-bop movement. None of the three were ever particularly in the extremes of the jazz avant garde, Osborne possibly reaching his limit with The Brotherhood of Breath, Levin with Mujician and Miller with various ensembles composed of fellow South African ex-pats and here, they play a set that one can reasonably align with, say, an Arthur Blythe performance of the same period. They mix standards from Rollins, Monk and Coltrane with originals, most pretty jaunty and the structures are as straightforward as Ornette from 15 years prior to the date. That is to say, not free improvisation but reasonably free soloing on themes with generally respected breaks for solos. Osborne occasionally inches towards a more pinched and incisive, Roscoe Mitchell-esque attack, but by and large remains quite fluid.
And that fluidity is one of the chief attractions here. Osborne clearly wields a strong and supple command of his horn, rippling through the pieces with joyful ease. Fans of his work have an abundance of previously unheard sounds to delve amongst. This reviewer derives the most pleasure from Miller, always an under sung bassist who provided the grounding for any number excellent sessions, and who possessed a beautiful, singing tone and the ability to cohere any ensemble, straight or out. His playing here is imaginative throughout, wonderful work.
That said, the sheer mass of the 110 or so minutes of trio recording, wherein there's really not a huge amount of variation can be something of a slog. There's not so much in the way of fascinating conception going on, simply good solid playing, rarely taking chances. The same set in 1960 might be thrilling due to the extra frisson that would no doubt be in place due to the stepping out into the then-unknown. In 1976, it's a more workmanlike affair, enjoyable but, save for serious Osborne aficionados, not tremendously memorable.
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