When Lonnie Liston Smith left the Miles Davis band in 1974 for a solo
career, he was, like so many of his fellow alumni, embarking on a
musical odyssey. For a committed fusioneer, he had no idea at the time
that he was about to enter an abyss that it would take him the better
part of two decades to return from. Looking back upon his catalog from
the period, this is the only record that stands out -- not only from his
own work, but also from every sense of the word: It is fully a jazz
album, and a completely funky soul-jazz disc as well. Of the seven
compositions here, six are by Smith, and the lone cover is of the Horace
Silver classic, "Peace." The lineup includes bassist Cecil McBee,
soprano saxophonist David Hubbard, tenor saxophonist Donald Smith (who
doubles on flute), drummer Art Gore, and percussionists Lawrence
Killian, Michael Carvin, and Leopoldo. Smith plays both piano and
electric keyboards and keeps his compositions on the jazzy side --
breezy, open, and full of groove playing that occasionally falls over to
the funk side of the fence. It's obvious, on this album at least, that
Smith was not completely comfortable with Miles' reliance on hard rock
in his own mix. Summery and loose in feel, airy and free with its
in-the-cut beats and stellar piano fills, Expansions prefigures a number
of the "smooth jazz" greats here, without the studio slickness and
turgid lack of imagination. The disc opens with the title track, with
one of two vocals on the LP by Donald Smith (the other is the Silver
tune). It's typical "peace and love and we've got to work together"
stuff from the mid-'70s, but it's rendered soulfully and deeply without
artifice. "Desert Nights" takes a loose Detroit jazz piano groove and
layers flute and percussion over the top, making it irresistibly sensual
and silky. It's fleshed out to the bursting point with Smith's piano;
he plays a lush solo for the bridge and fills it to the brim with
luxuriant tones from the middle register. "Summer Days" and "Voodoo
Woman" are where the electric keyboards make their first appearance, but
only as instruments capable of carrying the groove to the melody
quickly, unobtrusively, and with a slinky grace that is infectious. The
mixed bag/light-handed approach suits Smith so well here that it's a
wonder he tried to hammer home the funk and disco on later releases so
relentlessly. The music on Expansions is timeless soul-jazz, perfect in
every era. Of all the fusion records of this type released in the
mid-'70s, Expansions provided smoother jazzers and electronica's
sampling wizards with more material that Smith could ever have
anticipated.
(This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa')
Tracklist:
1 Expansions 6:06
Lonnie Liston Smith
2 Desert Nights 6:44
Lonnie Liston Smith
3 Summer Days 5:51
Lonnie Liston Smith
4 Voodoo Woman 4:22
Michael Carvin / Lonnie Liston Smith
5 Peace 4:17
Doug Carn / Horace Silver
6 Shadows 6:11
Lonnie Liston Smith
7 My Love 5:41
Lonnie Liston Smith
Credits:
Cecil Mcbee - bass
Lonnie Liston Smith - piano, electric piano, keyboards
Donald Smith - vocals, flute
David Hubbard - soprano & tenor saxophones, alto flute
Michael Carvin - Clavinet, percussion
Lawrence Killian - congas, percussion
Leopoldo Fleming - bongos, percussion
Art Gore - drums
22.6.21
LONNIE LISTON SMITH & THE COSMIC ECHOES - Expansions (1974-1995) APE (image+.cue), lossless
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