The 2nd of two 3-CD sets released as trumpeter Wadada Leo nears his 80th birthday, these albums were recorded in 2015 & 2016 in bassist Bill Laswell's studio, the first presenting the duo of Smith and late drummer Milford Graves, the second a duo with Laswell, those discs leading to the expansive and outstanding full trio of Smith, Laswell & Graves on the final disc.
Label: Tum Catalog ID: TUMR803.2 Squidco Product Code: 30224
Format: 3 CDs Condition: New Released: 2021 Country: Finland Packaging: Digipack - 3 panel Recorded at Orange Music Sound Studios in West Orange, New Jersey, on May 26th, 27th, 2016, and December 11th and 12th, 2015, by James Dellatacoma .
7. The Poet: Play Ebony, Play Ivory (For Henry Dumas)
Disc 2:
1. Ascending the Sacred Waterfall - A Ceremonial Practice 11:12
2. Prince - The Blue Diamond Spirit 6:12
3. Donald Ayler's Rainbow Summit 7:08
4. Tony Williams 4:55
5. Mysterious Night 7:34
6. Earth - A Morning Song 6:31
7. Minnie Ripperton - The Chicago Bronzeville Master Blaster 13:02
Disc 3:
1. Social Justice-A Fire for Reimagining the World 6:35
2. Myths of Civilizations and Revolutions 8:48
3. Truth in Expansion 10:13
4. The Healer's Direct Energy 11:04
5. Waves of Elevated Horizontal Forces 11:00
6. An Epic Journey Inside the Center of Color 6:32
7. Ruby Red Largo - A Sonnet 10:52
sample the album:
descriptions, reviews, &c.
"Sacred Ceremonies brings together three distinct and highly influential movements in contemporary creative music, convening in a once-in-a-lifetime meeting of wholly singular minds. Wadada Leo Smith was a member of the first generation of composers and musicians to come out of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in Chicago in the 1960s whereas Milford Graves was an important proponent of the "new music" or "free jazz" movement in New York City during the same decade. Bill Laswell in turn was an integral part of the Downtown scene in New York City in the 1970s. From those early days, they have each long since forged a totally unique personal approach to making music and have now together created a collection of music that transcends any easily definable influences."-Tum
"As he approached his eightieth birthday, Wadada Leo Smith could have been content to sit out the year of nothingness that Covid-19 brought in 2020 and beyond. With his 2013 Pulitzer Prize nomination, a 2016 Doris Duke Award, and nearly one-hundred recording credits, the trumpeter & multi-instrumentalist has landed at the top of countless polls throughout his distinguished career. But, stepping away from the music, if only for a brief respite, is not part of the improviser's plan so, in the first half of 2021, Smith gives us two TUM Records box sets. Here, the focus is on his three-disc release, Sacred Ceremonies.
The three discs were recorded between late 2015 and mid-2016 in the West Orange, New Jersey, studio of bassist Bill Laswell. The first disc features a Milford Graves and Smith duo, the second a duo with Laswell, and the third, a combined trio. The Smith-Graves disc is a crackling collection of creative energy. "Nyoto 2" and "Baby Dodds In Congo Square" account for almost half the side. Graves' astounding methodology, rapid delivery, and clarity feel like a springboard for Smith's ethereal trumpet. The Laswell section is highlighted by another long work, "Ascending the Sacred Waterfall: A Ceremonial Practice." Laswell, a one-person spectrum of aural sensations, alternates between reverberating shapes and translucent shadows. Smith's lower register is crystalline and moving; the whole piece is iridescent. When the trio joins up, opening with "Social Justice-A Fire for Reimagining the World," it feels like the first two discs had built up to this outstanding section. Smouldering improvisations launch the blistering "The Healer's Direct Energy," and carry over to "An Epic Journey Inside the Center of Color."
Smith, Graves (who passed away in 2021) and Laswell come from diverse experiences and significant achievements in music. They do not seem like top- of-mind personnel for a joint project, but they have history. Smith and Laswell recorded together in 2014 and 2017. Graves and Laswell had issued two duo albums, and Smith and Graves performed with John Zorn at the saxophonist's 2015 namesake festival. The three define virtuosity and, in these various pairings, they eclipse genre and approach with unconventional ideas, beautifully executed."-Karl Ackermann