Boy, this album is so rare and hard to find these days but back in '84 it was a very well-loved and influential album for me! I believe it was my good friend Will who introduced me to it and I just remember living it, breathing it, learning it, disecting it, and (especially) loving it! I had never heard of any of these musicians before this album but nowadays you are bound to hear Dave Weckl's name quite a bit. Bill, I found out later, had been with Chick Correa in Return To Forever, and I got into those albums through this and because of this album, and I even have enjoyed a lot of Bill's music since this album. But, for me, this album still stands out as the quintessential Bill Connors album. Is it because there are memories now strongly attached to it? Could be, but I knew it was pretty special back in '84. Bill was (and is) compared a lot to Allan Holdsworth and, while the two might sounds very similar, I also find their styles to be quite different, too. I could tell them apart if given a listening exam. Pretty sure about that. Dave's drumming on this album is spectacular, in my opinion, and his laid back yet adventurous approach is really attractive. Tom Kennedy is someone who's name I (unfortunately) don't hear much about these days but, man, on this album, that guy was just amazing! The three of them really connected and created some really magical moments on this album. Did they ever tour together for this album, I wonder, or was it just a one-off? I know I have never come across any other recorded work with the three of them as a unit, and that's a shame. Wonder why. What we do have, thankfully, is the album Step It and here, for your listening pleasure, is the title track! Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TX7F3n8kuOA (Bill Connors "Step It")
I spent a LONG time trying to track this down on CD, and just found it recently.
ReplyDeleteIt's still some great playing, although I'm finding this stuff seems kind of cold and depressing these days. But still amazing.