Chick Corea (with Dave Holland and Barry Altschul- SONG OF SINGING (1970)

Chick Corea-SONG OF SINGING (1970)

From the album cover (enclosed):

all which isn't singing is mere talking
and all talking's talking to oneself
(whether that oneself be sought or seeking
master or disciple sheep or wolf)

gush to it as deity or devil
toss in sobs and reasons threats and smiles
name it cruel fair or blessed evil-
it is you (ne i) nobody else

drive dumb mankind dizzy with haranguing
you are deafened every mother's son-
all is merely talk which isn't singing
and all talking's to oneself alone

but the very song of (as mountains
feel and lovers) singing is silence

from 73 Poems by e.e.cummings (1959)



While it seems that most of the work Corea did with these fine musicians (including the early recordings of the group Circle) were initially released under Corea's name alone, they were, in the finest sense of the words, group efforts.
The compositions were written,not just by Corea, and the group interplay pushes the rhythm section forward, rather than having them play a purely supportive role, or even inverts the traditional heirarchy- (Hear Corea's support of Altschul's solo in Rhymes, where Corea plays the inside of the piano with a string of bells, for an obvious example).The group interplay is Very close (and would get significantly closer) and the level of inventiveness is high. The heads are short and to the point-springboards for what is mostly very free playing, with selective restraint shown by all. Not"energy-music",exactly, but very energetic nonetheless.
This session pre-dates the Circle recordinfs by only a few weeks or months, and these years (1970-71) were to be the last before Corea "went fusion", and are, for me personally, the most interesting of his records of which I am aware.
-DrE



















THE SONG OF SINGING:
Chick Corea- Piano
Dave Holland- Bass
Barry Altschul- Drums


Side One:

1-Toy Room (D.Holland) 5:56
2-Ballad 1 (B.Altschul,C.Corea,D.Holland) 4:21
3-Rhymes (C.Corea) 6:58

Side Two:

4-Flesh (C.Corea) 6:12
5-Ballad 3 (B.Altschul,C.Corea,D.Holland) 5:36
6-Nefertiti (Wayne Shorter) 7:11
re-up:
(1)