Leon
Thomas (vocals), Ian Carr (trumpet & flugelhorn), Karl Jenkins (oboe &
piano), Brian Smith (soprano & tenor saxophones, flute), Chris Spedding
(guitar), Jeff Clyne (bass) & John Marshall (drums.)
(Review by Russell).
June 20 1970. The Montreux Jazz
Festival. Forty fours years later we have the official release of Nucleus
recorded live at one of Europe ’s premier
summer jazz festivals with American vocalist Leon Thomas. Gearbox Records’
lovingly packaged vinyl recording comes as a gatefold double album with a free
download code enclosed for the avid fan.
Ian Carr’s Nucleus represented
the
Much of the material on Live 1970 is reworked from Leon Thomas’
earlier recordings as a leader and with Pharoah Sanders. Thomas’ vocal style is
an amalgam of American scat and Alpine yodelling (apposite given the
location!). The band sound is that of a Coltrane vibe (Ascension, A Love Supreme) shifting gear to encompass the angry
protestations of a burgeoning global movement to a committed take on the blues.
The first of four sides is a one-track affair (all 18 minutes, 54 seconds); The Creator Has a Master Plan is Thomas’
jointly composed piece with Sanders (John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana were to
mine a similar seam with Love, Devotion,
Surrender).The British sextet on the recording are up to the mark as they
lay down the groove; bassist Jeff Clyne and drummer John Marshall perform admirably throughout
although at times the sound quality doesn’t do Clyne any favours. Karl Jenkins’
oboe features on Echoes (the first of
two tracks on side two) and a contrasting contribution is heard from Carr’s
flugelhorn. In stark contrast Thomas’ Damn
‘Nam (Ain’t Going to Vietnam ) is
one angry piece of music. Thomas’ vocal defies the US foreign policy of the times; if
Cassius Clay could go to prison, so would he. His stance is reaffirmed by a
raging Chris Spedding. Thomas’ One hears
the vocalist scatting full-on (a no-holds-barred performance, perhaps an
acquired taste, the Montreux crowd adoring of it) and Brian Smith’s soprano
work catches the ear. Chains of Love
(a hit in the fifties for Big Joe Turner) is the atypical cut; excellent, no
nonsense blues singing with a fine r ‘n’ b backing band!
Side four is taken up with The Journey (12 minutes, 5 seconds).
This is a reprise of Leon Thomas’ spiritual compositions of the time. Live 1970 is essential listening for
those who heard Nucleus first time round and indeed for the student of the
genre.
Russell.
Nucleus
with Leon Thomas – Live 1970 (Gearbox Records GB1529) is available now.
1 comment :
Hi Lance,
This record does take me back. I saw Nucleus perform both separately and then with Leon Thomas at Montreux in 1970 and it certainly was terrific being there in person. Nucleus won the top award at the Montreux Jazz Festival that year which I believe was a trip to the Newport Jazz Festival.
Best regards
Harry Monty
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