Odyssey

While bassist Barry Guy is widely known for his compositional prowess with large bands such as the London Jazz Composer's Orchestra and his own tentet, most of his work with smaller ensembles such as Iskra 1903 had been in an entirely free improv context. This trio session, with pianist Marilyn Crispell and percussionist Paul Lytton, comes as somewhat of a surprise then, given that the majority of its time is given over to composed works by Guy. Not that the pieces follow a head-solos-head format by any means. Indeed, Guy works the composed portions with the improvised ones in such a seamless manner that, except when clearly stated melodic themes appear, it's often difficult to tell whether a given section is composed or not. The results are delightful. Guy is an astonishing bassist and here ranges from prickly clusters to deep, resonant plumbings (as on the title track) that are reminiscent of Dave Holland. Crispell, by this point, had long since shed the overt Cecil Taylor influence of her earlier years and offers incisive and sympathetic playing; if anything, she seems to come out of Paul Bley but with an even more delicate touch. Lytton gets to foray into his wonderful world of clatter once in a while, but is also generally restrained here. The four short group improvisations work very well, but something really special is achieved when the free playing merges with Guy's emotional, even romantic themes as on the concluding "Harmos." When the gorgeous, heart-rending theme blossoms through the abstract introduction, the effect is stunningly beautiful. Highly recommended.