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June 23, 2007
David Murray Black Saint Quartet featuring Cassandra Wilson Sacred Ground (Justin Time)
Long among the strongest, most adventurous reedmen in jazz,
Murray fronts his best quartet: two standard-bearers, bassist Ray Drummond and drummer Andrew Cyrille, and impressive upstart Lafayette Gilchrist, replacing the late pianist John Hicks. Cassandra Wilson's velvety vocals on the opening and closing tracks complement Murray's urgent tenor-sax tone, her thoughtful phrasing nicely offsetting his improvisational flights. Framed by Ishmael Reed's lyrics about racism, Murray's alternating currents -- lyricism and rage -- here plug into powerful context.
Posted by blumenfeld at June 23, 2007 1:30 AM
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