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Binding: Audio CD EAN: 0724349879324 Format: Original recording remastered Label: Blue Note Manufacturer: Blue Note Number Of Discs: 1 Publisher: Blue Note Release Date: May 03, 1999 Studio: Blue Note Sales Rank: 2507
98793
Amazon.co.uk Review: Eric Dolphy was among the most daring, impassioned and technically assured improvisers to come of age in the 1960s and Out to Lunch! represents his most fully realised vision. From his ground-breaking work with Chico Hamilton and Charles Mingus, through his catalytic stint with John Coltrane, and all through his brilliant solo recordings for Prestige, this reed innovator defined the best elements of the swing and the bebop traditions, from Benny Carter through Bird, while extending on the rhythmic, melodic and harmonic freedom of Monk. Dolphy is an emotional shaman with a keen comic edge, as is evident in the rhythmic sauntering, drunken gait of his theme to "Straight Up and Down," and Monk's influence is clearly discernible in Dolphy's witty dissonances and vocalised blues phrasing throughout Out to Lunch! (his only Blue Note recording, completed shortly before his untimely death). Rhythm masters Richard Davis, Bobby Hutcherson and Tony Williams suspend time at will, sculpting in open space, while deconstructing the harmony and superimposing cubist rhythmic displacements--periodically regrouping around Freddie Hubbard's bumblebee trumpet and the leader's vocalised bass clarinet (his Monkish "Hat and Beard"), wailing alto (the martial parodies of the title tune), and exhilarating flute (the lyric, swinging "Gazzelloni"). --Chip Stern
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Way ahead of it's time
Make sure you do some reading up on Eric Dolphy before you buy this. Don't expect to hear anything resembling the winning Blue Note hard bop formula characteristic of the fifities and sixties. As far as Jazz goes this is way ahead of it's time, those who know the contemporary Jazz scene will know that there are plenty of acts out there who try and sound exactly like what you hear on this record.
OK, it's not easy listening. For me Dolphy's compositions are no way near as compelling as some ... Read More
Rating: - Playful playing.
I have to admit my jazz collection is quite slim and most of it predates the 1950's but I love the music on 'Out To Lunch'. Like others have contested, this is not free-jazz, much of the music opens with a melody line no matter how angular and dissonant before each member gets a chance to improvise. The opening 'Hat and Beard' (a tribute to Thelonious Monk) sets the tone for the rest of the album, the track roots itself in its synchopated beginning before leaping off into some interesting solos including ... Read More
Rating: - Difficult going.
I came to this music on the strength of the recommendations which it recieved. When I listened to it about four times and discarded it initially I thought that it was very thin on melody or much in the way of preconcieved quality music. Certainly, I could hear nothing to warrant the extreme praise which I have seen it recieve. Returning to it months later, I began to warm to the first two tracks, the second of which being my favorite at present. Perhaps it was simply because I was not ... Read More
Rating: - Challenging and massively rewarding music
Out to Lunch! is one of the most important jazz albums of the 1960s. The clarity of the recording, the individual space accorded each instrument, the meticulous attention to the nuances, the refined texture of the overall sound, the sheer presence of each recorded moment - these were the hallmarks of its sound.
The coming together of Eric Dolphy, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson, Richard Davis and Tony Williams on Out to Lunch! was a momentous event. Dolphy had made a clutch of records for Prestige ... Read More
Rating: - A Masterpiece
I have to redress the balance of the other review and bump up the star ratings. This is a CLASSIC and unmissable album, whose sound is still unique today. Despite the 'free'ish jazz, there is a very tight structure and plan to each track. This contradiction is what draws me to Dolphy's music. The second track 'Something Sweet, Something Tender' includes a brilliant inter-change between Dolphy and a bowed bass. This is music of the very highest standard and show-cases the individuality of Dolphy as a composer ... Read More
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