Elvin Jones - Very Rare (1979)

1.Sweet Mama
2.Passion Flower
3.Zange
4.Tin Tin Deo
5.Pitter Pat
6.The Witching Hour
7.E. J. Blues
8.A Love Supreme.

Elvin Jones (drums)

Art Pepper (alto saxophone)

Frank Foster (soprano & tenor saxophones)

Pat LaBarbera (tenor saxophone)

Roland Hanna (piano)

Roland Prince (guitar)

Richard Davis, Andy McCloud (acoustic bass).

Recorded at Van Gelder Recording Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on June 13-20, 1979 and live at Yomiuri Hall, Tokyo, Japan on April 8-9, 1978. Includes liner notes by Chip Stern.

VERY RARE documents two superb sessions lead by the legendary drummer. Elvin Jones is in fine form on both 1978 studio session and 1979 live concert.

Jones' ability to play with great power, yet accompany soloists with a nimble sensitivity, is a sign of his drumming genius. He knows when to spur his bandmates on to reach higher musical vistas, and when to lay back and give them space, an acute and rare musical intuition. Highlights include the album's opener, "Sweet Mama," which finds Jones unleashing a barrage of dexterous counterpoint on drums and cymbals, and the 26-minute live version of John Coltrane's famous opus, "A Love Supreme," which serves as a kind of homage to the great musician.JazzTimes (12/93, p.67) - "..[VERY RARE] is a wonderful example of [Elvin] Jones' strengths as bandleader, as drummer, and as musical collaborator ..Suffice it to say that the concentration of the studio dates stands in majestic contrast to the athletic stretches of the concert hall--and that both repay repeated listenings..".