Coolly Out of Step in the ‘50s and ‘60s

Pianist Lennie Tristano, alto saxophonist Lee Konitz and tenor saxophonist Warne Marsh were white shadows of jazz in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Out of sync with the then-dominant bebop style, they pursued an individualistic approach to jazz improvisation based upon complex, across-the-bar-line rhythms, intricate instrumental interaction and cool, vibrato-less sound.

At the time, Konitz and Marsh were reproached by some critics for their alleged lack of emotion, and Tristano was criticized for his early experiments in tape manipulation and overdubbing.

Listening to these tracks, however, recorded between 1955 and 1961, it’s hard to understand precisely what the fuss was all about. Konitz and Marsh clearly are attached to what might be described as the “cool” wing of ‘50s jazz, and Tristano could, at times, play with a kind of mechanical flow. But there’s no denying the extraordinary imaginativeness of the saxophonists’ solos. In chorus after chorus they take risky chances, pulling the listener along as they seem to invert the rhythms and stretch the harmonies. And Tristano, at his best, took the urgent, single-line style of pianist Bud Powell across unexpected, distant musical horizons.

The six CDs include all the Atlantic material recorded by the trio with the addition of a few previously unissued alternate takes. Konitz is present on a live Tristano date, recorded in 1955 during a gig at the Confucius Restaurant in New York City. There is a set of remarkable tracks recorded in 1954 and 1959-61 in Tristano’s home studio that includes his stark, passionately rendered solo “Requiem,” a eulogy to legendary alto saxophonist Charlie Parker.

On the tracks from an album originally titled “Lee Konitz Inside Hi-Fi,” the saxophonist plays tenor for the first time on recordings. And, unlike many players who switch, he plays the lower-pitched instrument in a quite different manner, his tone darker and a bit more turbulent, his lines more reminiscent of the Lester Young fountainhead that is one of the primary sources of his style.

The meeting of Konitz and Marsh on an album originally titled “Lee Konitz & Warne Marsh” is similarly fascinating. Instead of working with the Tristano-oriented rhythm players--players who thoroughly understood Tristano’s preference for unobtrusive, metronomic rhythmic backing--Konitz and Marsh chose the far more mainstream-oriented Oscar Pettiford, bass, and Kenny Clarke, drums. The combination is stirring on all counts. The saxophonists, clearly triggered by the surging rhythm, play stunningly, ripping through a program that includes typically complex originals as well as more familiar jazz items such as “Topsy,” “Donna Lee” and “All the Things You Are.”

The final tracks, in which Marsh plays with Ronnie Ball, piano, Philly Joe Jones, drums, and Paul Chambers, bass, afford an excellent opportunity to sample this vastly underrated jazz artist. An authentic original, Marsh was one of the early explorers of the upper harmonics of the tenor saxophone. But his greatest contribution to improvisational development may have been his stunning ability to reach into and beyond the meter of a given song, transforming it into a richly felt, brilliantly articulated, personal approach to rhythmic expression.

The one caveat about this otherwise handsomely produced, limited edition boxed set is with Mosaic’s accompanying program notes. There is a certain historical curiosity in the inclusion of the original album liner notes. But the basic program material--the information that is of greatest interest to the listener--presents the personnel, recording dates and titles in virtually incoherent disconnection. Thorough as their data may be, Mosaic needs to find a more intelligible layout--one that will make it easier to connect personnel with individual CDs and individual CDs with the original LP releases.

This set is available only through mail order from Mosaic Records, 35 Melrose Place, Stamford, CT 06902. Information: (203) 327-1111. Price for the six-CD box is $96. The collection is also available in a 10-LP box for $150.

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