Keith Jarrett - Standards, Vol. 1 (1983)

German import

As the title suggests, Jarrett plays jazz standards in a piano trio that includes Gary Peacock on bass and Jack DeJohnette on Drums. Very well done although Jarrett has a habit of moaning/singing along while he plays so if that bothers you, you probably should avoid this one. There's an old musician joke that states whenever there's a bass solo, that's the time when you go to the bar for another drink or talk to your companion. However, Peacock's solos are so good that you not only listen, you appreciate what he's saying. I think there are some innovative takes on these standards and find the whole disc relaxing and enjoyable. Plus it comes with a good story about the recording of the album:

They had gone into a Manhattan studio without rehearsing or any arrangements, but in an outburst of creativity they needed just 1½ days to record enough material — mostly from the Great American Songbook, highlighted by a 15-minute gospel-flavored, hard-grooving exploration of "God Bless the Child" — to fill three albums instead of one as planned.

That's an excerpt from a 2008 Associated Press article about the trio. The full article can be found here. No rehearsing or arrangements and they improvise this?  Amazing.

Jazz albums usually didn't grace the pages of Rolling Stone magazine, but this one got a review. However, the reviewer and I don't exactly see eye to eye.

click to enlarge

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart:  Did not chart
Peak on Billboard Jazz LPs chart: #14

Tracks:  5 tracks, 46 minutes. The five standards chosen for this volume are:

1. Meaning Of The Blues by Bobby Troup & Leah Worth (1957)
2. All The Things You Are by Jerome Kern & Oscar Hammerstein (1939)
3. It Never Entered My Mind by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart (1940)
4. The Masquerade Is Over by Allie Wrubel & Herbert Magidson (1938)
5. God Bless The Child by Arthur Herzog & Billie Holliday (1939)

Hard to go wrong with any of these, but my favorites are All The Things You Are, It Never Entered My Mind, and God Bless The Child.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD:  None, although lately I'm finding myself exploring a lot of the music released on the ECM label.

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Köln Concert (1975)