Wayne Shorter Schizophrenia CD

Personnel: Wayne Shorter (tenor saxophone); James Spaulding (alto saxophone, flute); Curtis Fuller (trombone); Herbie Hancock (piano); Ron Carter (bass); Joe Chambers (drums).
Producer: Francis Wolff.
Reissue producer: Michael Cuscuna.
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on March 10, 1967. Originally released on Blue Note (84297). Includes liner notes by Leonard Feather.
This is part of Blue Note's Limited Edition Connoisseur series.
Personnel: Wayne Shorter (saxophone, tenor saxophone); James Spaulding (flute, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone); Curtis Fuller (trombone); Herbie Hancock (piano); Joe Chambers (drums).
Liner Note Author: Leonard Feather.
Recording information: Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, NJ (03/10/1967).
Wayne Shorter was at the peak of his creative powers when he recorded Schizophrenia in the spring of 1967. Assembling a sextet that featured two of his Miles Davis bandmates (pianist Herbie Hancock and bassist Ron Carter), trombonist Curtis Fuller, alto saxophonist/flautist James Spaulding and drummer Joe Chambers, Shorter found a band that was capable of conveying his musical "schizophrenia," which means that this is a band that can play straight just as well as they can stretch the limits of jazz. At their best, they do this simultaneously, as they do on the opener "Tom Thumb." The beat and theme of the song are straightforward, but the musical interplay and solos take chances that result in unpredictable results. And "unpredictable" is the operative phrase for this set of edgy post-bop. Shorter's compositions (as well as Spaulding's lone contribution, "Kryptonite") have strong themes, but they lead into uncharted territory, constantly challenging the musicians and the listener. This music exists at the border between post-bop and free jazz -- it's grounded in post-bop, but it knows what is happening across the border. Within a few years, he would cross that line, but Schizophrenia crackles with the excitement of Shorter and his colleagues trying to balance the two extremes. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
The early recordings of Wayne Shorter retain a special place in the hearts of jazz aficionados. During his prolonged apprenticeship as a sideman in the 1960s, Shorter managed to outstrip such formidable leaders as Art Blakey and Miles Davis, becoming the defining conceptual catalyst in their greatest ensembles--both as a composer and improviser.
Over the course of several albums as a leader for Alfred Lion's Blue Note label, Shorter transcended the long shadows of such important early influences as John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins, developing an elliptical style all his own, and a fantastic repertoire of original material. These recordings, with their extraordinary range of styles and moods, confirm Shorter's place in the pantheon of modern jazz immortals.
In a sense, SCHIZOPHRENIA refers to the split personalities of a musician capable of exploring traditional ideas and adventurous experimental fare with equal vigor, originality and musical curiosity. Dating from March of 1967, SCHIZOPHRENIA presents a mature combination of contrasting musical designs, from the joyous concoction of blues and salsa sources that mark his arrangement of "Tom Thumb," to the oblique transformations of "Playground."
On the title tune, Shorter begins with cerebral, celestial voicings for tenor, flute and trombone--impressionistic and serene--when without warning, Joe Chambers' charged drum break announces a second, more angular theme at a breakneck tempo. Shorter solos as if he were playing all the accompanying instruments, building exquisite tension by alternating long intricate melodic lines, with jagged, repeated figures, harmonic inversions and calculated rhythmic suspensions. But Shorter is also capable of breathtaking tenderness, as on the gently waltzing "Miyako," where his pastel ensemble textures, gauzy tone and floating rhythmic conception, inspire Herbi