Carla Bley - Heavy Heart (1984)

German import

Man, is this album ever frustrating. Still, I can't help but like it. It's as if Bley challenged herself to write commercial (almost smooth) jazz music instead of her usual jazz-based art music. To that end, Bley invited artists such as Kenny Kirkland, Hiram Bullock, and Manolo Badrena to join her ten-piece band for this recording. So it kinda sounds like a typical Carla Bley album if there is such a thing, but kinda not and I suspect that description would bring a wry smile to the composer/arranger's face.

Bley's unique orchestration voicings are present throughout and there's some catchy melodies over some smooth chord changes. Maybe it's just frustrating to me because it wasn't what I expected. Nevertheless, like I said, I dig 5 of the 6 tracks here. Looking back, I'm not sure how much Bley likes these tunes as she did not select any of the 6 tunes from this album for her retrospective entry in ECM's rarum series in 2004.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "some of her most accessible music yet"
• Musician: "I'll be damned if the album didn't finally make my surly, snobbish heart go pit-a-pat."
• Tom Hull: B+
• Downbeat (★★★): "the tunes aren't as strong as her more 'serious' compositions, but the soloing is exhilarating"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★½
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★

debuted at #9 in the April 20, 1984 issue

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #27
• CashBox Jazz: #14
• Radio & Records Jazz Radio National Airplay: #4

Tracks: My favorite tracks are the noir-ish Talking Hearts (great solo from Bullock), the appropriately named Joyful Noise (great solo from Kirkland), and the title track featuring Steve Slagle on alto sax. Bley's sense of humor is evident by having a cut titled Ending It followed by a tune titled Starting Again, the latter being more in the style of free jazz with a fair share of dissonance and, to my ears, doesn't really fit in with the other five tracks.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: The above magazine ad from Radio & Records magazine caught my eye so I thought I'd give the thing a try even though my copy of The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD clearly states, "This is a disappointing vintage in Bley's music."

It also occurs to me that I saw three of the musicians mentioned above around the time this album was recorded: Badrena with Spyro Gyra in 1983, Kirkland with Sting in 1985, and Bullock with David Sanborn opening for Al Jarreau, also in 1985. If I'd only seen Bley and her group back then. That might have been a better (and cheaper) music education than what I was getting in college.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Selected Recordings :rarum XV (2004)
Social Studies (1981)
Musique Mecanique (1979)