Wayne Shorter Speak No Evil CD

The Rudy Van Gelder Edition of SPEAK NO EVIL includes an essay by Bob Blumenthal.
Personnel: Wayne Shorter (tenor saxophone); Freddie Hubbard (trumpet); Herbie Hancock (piano); Ron Carter (bass); Elvin Jones (drums).
Producer: Alfred Lion.
Reissue producer: Michael Cuscuna.
Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on December 24, 1964. Originally released on Blue Note (BLP 4194). Includes liner notes by Don Heckman.
Digitally remastered by Rudy Van Gelder.
This is part of the Blue Note Rudy Van Gelder Editions series.
Personnel: Wayne Shorter (tenor saxophone); Freddie Hubbard (trumpet); Herbie Hancock (piano); Ron Carter (bass instrument); Elvin Jones (drums).
On his third date for Blue Note within a year, Wayne Shorter changed the bands that played on both Night Dreamer and Juju and came up with not only another winner, but also managed to give critics and jazz fans a different look at him as a saxophonist. Because of his previous associations with McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, and Reggie Workman on those recordings, Shorter had been unfairly branded with the "just-another-Coltrane-disciple" tag, despite his highly original and unusual compositions. Here, with only Jones remaining and his bandmates from the Miles Davis Quintet, Herbie Hancock and Ron Carter on board (with Freddie Hubbard filling out the horn section), Shorter at last came into his own and caused a major reappraisal of his earlier work. The odd harmonic frameworks used to erect "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum," with its balladic structure augmented with a bluesy regimen of hard bop and open-toned modalism, create the illusion of a much larger band managing all that timbral space. Likewise on the title track, with its post-bop-oriented melodic line strewn across a wide chromatic palette of minors and Hancock's piano pushing through a contrapuntal set of semi-quavers, the avant-garde meets the hard bop of the '50s head on and everybody wins. The loping lyric of the horns and Hancock's vamping in the middle section during Shorter's solo reveals a broad sense of humor in the saxophonist's linguistics and a deep, more regimented sense of time and thematic coloration. The set ends with the beautiful "Wild Flower," a lilting ballad with angular accents by Hancock who takes the lyric and inverts it, finding a chromatic counterpoint that segues into the front line instead of playing in opposition. The swing is gentle but pronounced and full of Shorter's singular lyricism as a saxophonist as well as a composer. [The CD reissue adds a fine alternate take of "Dance Cadaverous."] ~ Thom Jurek
SPEAK NO EVIL is a significant recording for two main reasons. Firstly, it is one of the first in a long string of stunning solo sessions by Shorter that showcase both his masterful saxophone abilities and his eclectic compositional style away from the leadership of Art Blakey and Miles Davis. Secondly, it combines members of the three mightiest ensembles of the period; Freddie Hubbard and Shorter worked together in Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Shorter, Herbie Hancock and Ron Carter formed three fifths of Miles Davis' legendary quintet and Elvin Jones was the drumming powerhouse behind John Coltrane's famous group.
Shorter introduces the session with the swinging "Witch Hunt," a dynamic piece with many unexpected twists and turns. Later, the mysterious "Dance Cadaverous" is a peaceful waltz that slowly unfolds its meandering melody over Jones' gentle prodding. The classic title track is, of course, the disc's highlight; a bluesy swinger in the style of Shorter's stint with Blakey. The delicate ballad "Infant Eyes" is one of the saxophonist's most touching compositions, and worthy of special attention. Finally, the lilting "Wild Flower" closes the door on a most momentous session.