Bill Evans - Alone (1970)

Note: the CD I listened to was the 1988 edition with two additional tracks.

Just Evans playing standards. No band, no overdubs. Simply beautiful and highly recommended.

Grammy Award winner in the category of Best Instrumental Jazz Performance, Small Group or Soloist with Small Group, the third of five wins in that category for Evans.

Original 1970 liner notes written by Evans himself.

Reviews/ratings:

• CashBox: "one of the most listenable of jazz decks to be issued in recent times."
• Record World: "There's something particularly personal about this disk."
• High Fidelity: "Magnificent"
• Stereo Review: "For my money, this is one of the finest records in a decade."
• Downbeat (★★★★★): "the real Bill Evans stands out in boldest relief in this group of straight solo performances."
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000):★★★
• The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide (1985): ★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #18

Tracks:

My top picks are tracks 1-7.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Paris Concert, Edition Two (1984)
The Paris Concert, Edition One (1983)

Bill Evans - The Paris Concert , Edition Two (1984)

ELEKTRA/MUSICIAN MONTH (FEBRUARY 2023)

Hype from the label's PR dept:

More brilliant performances from Bill's historic 1979 Paris Concert. Our first edition was heralded as one of his finest recorded concert performances and was awarded an "Oscar" as Best Jazz Album of 1983 by The Association of French Jazz Critics.

Recorded in Paris, France on November 26, 1979, the same performance as Edition One. The main difference between the two editions is the fact that Edition One was exclusively covers while 4 of the 6 cuts here are Evans originals (some familiar), plus Nardis, a Miles Davis composition that became a signature tune for Evans. Of the two editions, I give this one a slight edge.

Ratings:

• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★½

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #37
• Radio & Records Jazz Airplay: #16

Tracks:

6 tracks, 48½ minutes. The CD's liner notes, written by jazz authority Burt Korall, outline each composition. My top picks today include the four tranquil ballads on the album, Re: Person I Knew, Gary's Theme, Letter To Evan, and Laurie. Guess I'm just in a mellow mood this morning.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Paris Concert, Edition One (1983)

Bill Evans - The Paris Concert, Edition One (1983)

ELEKTRA/MUSICIAN MONTH (FEBRUARY 2023)

Note: this release was originally purchased as an LP, later replaced by a CD.

Another release in the Elektra/Musician label's Jazz Master Series, this concert was recorded by Radio France at l'Espace Cardin in Paris, France on November 26, 1979, less than a year before Evans' death at age 51.

So relaxing and serene it's easy to slip from active listening into passive listening and forgetting that you're being treated to a master at work. What a delight. The young rhythm section is remarkably solid and they offer up some tasteful solos, but they seem to know their main role is simply to support what Evans is doing and get out of his way. In fact, they're not on every track, allowing for some solo piano improvisations as well.

Evans - piano
Marc Johnson - bass
Joe LaBarbera - drums

Liner notes

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "in excellent form"
• Musician: "graceful and seamlessly integrated"
• Downbeat (★★★★★): "should stand as one of the most touching and spiritual performances of the latter Evans legacy."
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★½

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: did not chart
• Billboard Jazz: #19
• CashBox Jazz: #15
• Radio & Records Jazz: #16

Tracks: No Evans originals in this edition. Tunes selected from the concert are Evans's take on romantic tunes, old and new. From the first 8 tracks, pick 'em:

1. I Do It for Your Love (Paul Simon) - 6:18
2. Quiet Now (Denny Zeitlin) - 5:55
3. Noelle's Theme (Michel Legrand) - 4:20
4. My Romance (Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers) - 9:15
5. I Loves You Porgy (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward) - 7:02
6. Up With the Lark (Jerome Kern, Leo Robin) - 6:41
7. All Mine (Minha) (Ruy Guerra, Francis Hime) - 4:05
8. Beautiful Love (Haven Gillespie, Wayne King, Egbert Van Alstyne, Victor Young) - 9:24
9. Excerpts of a conversation between Bill and his older brother, Harry Evans - 1:47

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None