Bailey, Derek / Lacy, Steve

Outcome

Label: Potlatch Country: France

"Frequently, when discussing duo recordings, writers and listeners alike get caught up in the concept of conversational dialogue, implying either a most rudimental give and take, or perhaps an encounter where two players run each other through an endurance test of will while putting their own manifesto across. Other schools assert tales of microsecond adjustments, where deft, seemingly telepathic communication takes place, as one player anticipates the other's next move. Not surprisingly, the duo of guitarist Derek Bailey and soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy fails to fit comfortably within any of these preconceived boxes.

Perhaps the best analogy in (non-musical terms) for this unique musical arrangement, is a partnership between significant others. Consider if you will, a first time duo, which can, like a young romance, be full of awkward politeness, and sheepish fumbling, while trying not to say (or in this case play) the wrong thing. Bailey and Lacy, despite relatively infrequent collaborations, are more akin to a well-seasoned courtship: one that permits the space for autonomy, interjection and debate, and selective inattention. Above all, in this instance, both of the involved parties retain their own distinct identity while relishing in, and learning from, characteristics.

That both Bailey and Lacy are compatible impro-visers who coexist artistically while sacrificing none of their own personality should surprise no one. Strangely, this recording marks only the second time their collaboration as a tandem has been documented. The other from 1976 was released as Company 4 on Incus records and has yet to be reissued, while three other recordings from the early to mid-seventies (The Crust, Saxophone Special, and Dreams) find Bailey working within larger Lacy ensembles. Why these two have worked together so infrequently is a bit of a mystery, for when two of the music's true visionaries share the stage, it is bound to be at the very least intriguing. On this Paris night, from the summer of 1983, there was no shortage of magic at the Dunois club."-Potlatch