JOHN ABERCROMBIE TRIO - Speak of the Devil (1993) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The follow-up to While We're Young has a less melodic, more loosely structured feel, as if it were all kinetically inspired and freely improvised within various structures. The intuition or trust level of electric guitarist John Abercrombie, organist Dan Wall, and drummer Adam Nussbaum is clearly evident: They are listening, reacting, and responding to each other from measure to measure, and that is the basis for their music making. It's a fusion of feelings, and those moods -- many times dark -- lie beneath the surface only to rise at their behest. The snarly, stealth, and swirling sound is evident on the introductory cut "Angel Food," courtesy of Abercrombie, Wall, and Nussbaum, respectively, going to a tick-tock beat that is positively blackened on the closer "Hell's Gate." In between you get two free, seemingly unstructured pieces: the unhurried "Now & Again" and the more reverent but interactive "Farewell." "Dreamland" is like "Angel Food" in attitude, while the collective improvisation "Mahat" has hopping 2/4 tom tom beats from Nussbaum moving into full drum kit swing. The melodies are either nonexistent or harder to grasp; Abercrombie's searing or lilting guitar sound requires close attention. Skating around a melody for "Chorale," you actually get the impression the leader is building disparate, multiple, chameleonic changes within a more definite swing. A true melodic motif, albeit slight, informs "BT-U" in a more rock/R&B beat, while the waltz "Early to Bed" suggests a lovely, extrapolated Bill Evans line, perhaps from "Very Early." Though "While We're Young" was a definitive recording for Abercrombie's vaunted trio, this CD simply offers a different slant. It's the sign of a group either in transition of evolution, and whatever the case, it's an intriguing step for these three uncanny sonic explorers. by Michael G. Nastos  
Tracklist :
1     Angel Food 7:52
Dan Wall
2     Now And Again 6:13
John Abercrombie / Adam Nussbaum / Dan Wall
3     Mahat 8:24
John Abercrombie / Adam Nussbaum / Dan Wall
4     Chorale 8:19
John Abercrombie
5     Farewell 6:15
John Abercrombie
6     BT-U 6:20
Adam Nussbaum
7     Early To Bed 8:17
John Abercrombie
8     Dreamland 9:08
Dan Wall
9     Hell's Gate 7:07
Dan Wall
Credits :
Design [Cover Design] – Barbara Wojirsch
Drums – Adam Nussbaum
Guitar [Guitars] – John Abercrombie
Organ [Hammond B3 Organ] – Dan Wall
Producer – Manfred Eicher

JOHN ABERCROMBIE / DAN WALL / ADAM NUSSBAUM - Tactics (1996) APE (image+.cue), lossless

This set is a little different than most ECM releases, because the trio (guitarist John Abercrombie, organist Dan Wall and drummer Adam Nussbaum) performs a couple of fairly straight-ahead standards -- "You and the Night and the Music" and "Long Ago and Far Away" -- in addition to six originals, including Wall's rhythmic "Bo Diddy." Not sounding at all like a typical soul-jazz organ group, these musicians take more advanced improvisations, with Wall (whose accompaniment of Abercrombie is quite atmospheric) emerging as the top soloist. by Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     Sweet Sixteen 11:21
John Abercrombie
2     Last Waltz 11:14
John Abercrombie
3     Bo Diddy 11:43
Dan Wall
4     You and the Night and the Music 10:15
Howard Dietz / Arthur Schwartz
5     Chumbida 5:46
Adam Nussbaum
6     Dear Rain 7:38
John Abercrombie
7     Mr. Magoo 8:44
Dan Wall
8     Long Ago (And Far Away) 9:42
Ira Gershwin / Jerome Kern
Credits :
Drums – Adam Nussbaum
Guitar [Guitars] – John Abercrombie
Organ [Hammond B3 Organ] – Dan Wall