V/A - Spiritual Jazz 19 West Coast U.S.A. (Part I : 50s & 60s)

2LP Vinyl - JMANLP 151

The first of two x 2LP sets that examine the influence and expression of the underground jazz that evolved in California and surrounding states during the latter part of the 20th century.

This listing is for Part 1, a 2LP set which examines music created during the '50s & '60s.

There's a separate listing for Part 2, another 2LP set that deals with the '70s and '80s.

The West Coast of the USA has long been associated with the ‘cool jazz’ popular explosion of the 1950s, though wherever jazz was played, modal, Afro-centric and spiritualised streams flowed and flourished too - the West Coast was no exception. In the post-war years, Los Angeles’ Central Avenue was second only to Manhattan as America’s greatest jazz district. Yet while Manhattan might have been the de facto centre of the jazz universe during these years, it was California that came to exert the greater pull on culture at large, drawing people from across America toward its burgeoning 1960s counter-culture.

Here we explore the effects of that counter-culture on jazz. We examine the influence of the most significant force in post-civil rights Black politics – the Black Panthers, and we delve into the novel spiritual practices and religions of the coming ‘New Age’. A variety of idiosyncratic indies such as Arhoolie, Theresa and Nimbus were located in California as well as many more private enterprises, and we showcase the results of their efforts to express their musical freedom. All of these factors can be seen to have an influence on the way that jazz and jazz musicians developed and thrived on the West Coast - and the evolution of spiritual jazz here is examined in detail.

Condition:

Media: Mint (M)

Sleeve: Mint (M)

Track List: 

A1. The Chico Hamilton Quintet, Buddy Collette - Blue Sands
A2. Victor Feldman - New Delhi
A3. Hank Bagby - Iborian
A4. Les McCann, The Crusaders - Damascus
A5. Ken Jensen (2) - Cheap Blue
B1. Buddy Collette - Jungle Pipe
B2. Earl Anderza - Outa Sight
B3. Curtis Amy - Shaker Heights
C1. Roy Haynes, Frank Strozier - Wives And Lovers
C2. Curtis Amy, Dupree Bolton - Native Land
C3. Mills Jazzabeaux, Don Ellis - My!
C4. Harold Land Quintet - Timetable
D1. Now Creative Arts Jazz Ensemble - Pretty Good
D2. The Charles Lloyd Quartet - Dervish Dance