50 ECM: Part 1

I used to go to record stores and once in a while go through the budget cassettes.  I found all kinds of things.  These cassettes used to be overstocks or cut-outs.  They were even albums that were out of print for sometime and somehow they were only available on cassette.  I found King Crimson albums on cassette and even some odd compilations.  In one of these cassette searches I came across ECM Records cassettes.  They stood out from the other cassettes I would pick up.  The navy blue spine and even the small but noticeable trademark cover artwork would show.  

I continued collecting these ECM cassettes.  The person at the record store told me for each cassette I buy he has three more in the back stock I can have.  Over time I had about 50 ECM cassettes. I had one or two of selected artists. I had many obscure artist I never heard of, and I had a few artists that I would play over and over again.  One such ECM artist was Steve Tibbetts.  I will talk about his brilliance in a future post.  Steve's music made me explore and get curious about what ECM was doing.  

The next time I heard ECM was at the local book and record store.  They had a large television with videos playing.  Once in a while it was a move and sometimes it was music videos.  The music video that caught my attention was a Keith Jarrett Trio album of standards in Jazz.  The last song on the album and in the video was "God Bless The Child." Watching the video there was so much emotion and the band really could swing like I have never seen before.

This music did not draw attention to itself.  It did not follow the norms of what Jazz was at that time and it did not sell million copies and became the hip cool Jazz of the decade.  It was only later on when we look at the catalog of artists and ECM themselves that we see some of the important Jazz albums of the genre.  Some of these albums are totally represented by even the artist who made them. I have posted a few here before, and I will do so in the future.

Manfred Eicher at the controls with Jan Garbarek, Jack DeJohnette and Ralph Towner

Sound quality has always mattered to Manfred Eicher, the meticulous and exploratory producer who founded ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music) Records in 1969 and has produced the vast majority of its recordings. ECM has released an extraordinary catalog that encompasses jazz, classical music and cross-cultural fusions from composers and performers like Keith Jarrett, Vijay Iyer, Arvo Pärt and Meredith Monk. Across styles, the label’s hallmark has been the contemplative detail of its music, a kind of acoustic enhanced realism. (NYT 11.17.17)  I could not say it any better.

ECM's music is so wide and various that one minute you could listen to a Keith Jarrett Standards Trio set and next minute you could hear a modern piano player by the name of Nik Bartsch's Ronin all compelling and always engaging.  This is what I like about Manfred and ECM it feels like his music has no boarders or walls from each release to the next.  He is happy to put a Jazz group one album and the next release could be solo guitar.  Each is so compelling and engaging it wants you to listen closely to each and engage your ears to something new.  I'm a very happy ECM listener and as this post I have about 750 of ECM's releases and always seeking out one I don't have and want.

Like every ECM release it sounds like a breath of fresh air.  Each album you think the ensemble chosen is not going to work out and then you hear one track off the album and you fall in love with it's music and creativity.  A great example and one of many is an album by John Clark called Faces. It's an album that came out in 1981 but recorded in 1980. Hear the music from this group does not sound they can play something cohesive given the groups instruments.  Here French Horn, Cello, Vibraharp/Marimba and Drums all work in perfect harmony.  The fifteen and half opening song is prime example of an ECM sound.  It's ambient sound for almost half the song is beautiful and rich in every way.  Given the time period you figure it would stick out like a sore thumb, but it truly is an ECM recording all the way.

ECM albums are very unique there is not one set formula per say but the music each person who plays on each album is pretty close to perfect and each shows is a bit more creative then you would think.  One such album and an ECM favorite is Gateway.  Three amazing and stellar musicians make a powerful statement.  These three are all by now ECM alums; John Abercrombie, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette.  Two of these people worked together before this meeting with Miles Davis. They worked during his famous and well loved electric group.  Here they weld their muscle and make you digest this album in more then one sitting.  It's song "Back-Woods Song" is powerful and has such a great groove. It's kinda sad that after two albums one in 1975 and one in 1977 it took them seventeen years to reform as a trio.  They would be sidemen on other projects but never together.  The quirky energy they made changed the Jazz and the musical landscape for years and years to come.  With great sadness the recent death of John Abercrombie this will never happen again.  Let's hope their is an archive of some live recordings.

TOP 25 ECM albums:*

1. Keith Jarrett: The Köln Concert
2. Mal Waldron: Free At Last
3. Dave Holland Quartet: Conference of the Birds
4. Pat Metheny: Bright Size Life
5. Wadada Leo Smith: Divine Love
6. Egberto Gismonti: Danca Dos Escravos
7. Enrico Rava: The Pilgrim and the Stars
8. Steve Tibbetts: (Bye Bye) Safe Journey
9. Ketil Bjonstad: The Sea
10. Art Ensemble of Chicago: Nice Guys
11. Eberhard Weber: The Colours of Chloe
12. John Abercrombie: Timeless
13. Terje Rypdal: After The Rain
14. Kenny Wheeler: Deer Wan
15. Mike Nock: Ondas
16. David Darling: Cycles
17. Charlie Haden: The Ballad of the Fallen
18. Marion Brown: Afternoon of a Georgia Faun
19. Ralph Towner: Solstice
20. Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Palle Danielsson, Jon Christensen: My Song
21. Vijay Iyer: Break Stuff
22. Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music
23. Chick Corea: Return to Forever
24. Gary Burton Quartet: Passengers 
25. Gateway Trio: Gateway (John Abercrombie. Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette)

There is many more on this list, but explore the label for yourself.  Personally, I love the early years because it is so experimental in definition of their music.  Each artists get to do what they want with a little help from Manfred, but over all it's each musicians project to go forth and be creative.  It's what makes this music some of my top music to listen to anytime of day or when I need inspiration.

Part two will focus on two people who I have come to know over the years and I have talked to them about their experiences with ECM one has a direct line it seems about what's new with the label and future releases and the other has an on-line blog like this and he reviews every ECM album.  It's quite an undertaking and I hope to ask them great questions on how they fell in love with ECM as well and what they love about the label.  I also if I can find information on the label and it's artwork and photography.  Each album has unique and special meaning with it's cover art.  It could be simple as just text, or complex with it's photo or drawing on the front.  Every album is truly ECM and for that I'm thankful for the music and the label to keep all my brain synapses firing at it's most creative time to talk about music and other interesting things.

* I made this list of albums of a few I love and a few of the many, many lists that I looked at on-line.  Every effort was to see some of the similarities and add a few that I liked as well.  ECM's catalog has so many great titles and wishing I could do more then 25 would be great.  If I was doing it there would be 100, but for you readers and myself that would be boring and take up too much time and you would move on to something else by the time you got to 50.  Please post your favorite that is not on the list if you want.  I love to hear what you like.  Thanks.