KEITH JARRETT TRIO - Bye Bye Blackbird (1991-2008) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This is the Keith Jarrett Trio's -- featuring bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette -- elegy for their former employer Miles Davis, recorded only 13 days after the maestro's death. The lonely figure in shadow with a horn on the cover contrasts with the joyous spirit of many of the tracks on this CD, yet there is still a ghostly presence to deal with -- and in keeping with Miles' credo, Jarrett's choice of notes is often more purposefully spare than usual. There is symmetry in the organization of the album, with "Bye Bye Blackbird" opening and the trio's equally jaunty "Blackbird, Bye Bye" closing the album, and the interior tracks immediately following the former and preceding the latter are "You Won't Forget Me" and "I Thought About You." The centerpiece of the CD is an 18-and-a-half-minute group improvisation, "For Miles," which after some DeJohnette tumbling around becomes a dirge sometimes reminiscent of Miles' own elegy for Duke Ellington, "He Loved Him Madly." As an immediate response to a traumatic event, Jarrett and his colleagues strike the right emotional balance to create one of their more meaningful albums. by Richard S. Ginell  

Tracklist:

1. Bye Bye Blackbird - 11:13

(Ray Henderson)

2. You Won't Forget Me - 10:46

(Kermit Goell/Fred Spielman)

3. Butch and Butch - 6:37

(Oliver Nelson)

4. Summer Night - 6:42

(Al Dubin, Harry Warren)

5. For Miles - 18:43

 (Jarrett/Peacock/DeJohnette) 

6. Straight No Chaser - 6:46

 (Thelonious Monk) 

7. I Thought About You - 4:02

(Jimmy Van Heusen/Johnny Mercer)

8. Blackbird, Bye Bye - 3:02

 (Jarrett/Peacock/DeJohnette)

Personnel

Keith Jarrett piano

Gary Peacock bass

Jack DeJohnette drums

ECM 1467

Recorded October 12, 1991 at Power Station, New York