Jack Dejohnette album Made in Chicago Review

    

     This is the latest Jack Dejohnette album in which he comes home to his Chicago roots and plays with some of the guys from the AACM whom he played with in his youth. This includes Henry Threadgill on alto saxophones and bass flute, Roscoe Mitchell on sopranino saxophones, soprano saxophones, alto saxophones, baroque flute, and bass recorder. In addition, there is Muhal Richard Abrams on piano, Larry Grey on bass and violoncello, and of course Jack Dejohnette on drums. What makes this 2013 performance at the Chicago Jazz Festival so great is not the compositions, but the individual and collaborative improvisation of these musicians as a whole.
      In fact, I can't tell that these compositions are even written down at all. It all sounds like improvisation and great improv at that! I've always thought that live jazz is always better than studio albums and this is one case where live performance really shines. The level of nuance and skill is just off the roof. A piece that really stands out is the second song, Jack 5, by Muhal Richard Abrams, where Jack Dejohnette opens up with drum flourishes on the cymbals and toms. What gives Jack such a unique touch on the drums is that he was a pianist when he first began playing music. I really like Jack 5 because when the melody comes in, its an odd sort of droning melody not unlike something Ornette Coleman would do. It's slow and methodical. The bass line is especially interesting. Check out this song online if possible, it is a great piece.  
     Some of the other songs have the same qualities as Jack 5 in that the beginning is a bit slow and the melody goes up and down in chromatic dramatic fashion. But when they start improvising things really go the dogs, or in this case, the cats. With the piano its hard to say what this group sounds like. I would immediatley say they sound like the Art Ensemble of Chicago but I would say this is more melodic and structured than AEOC. That's whats so great about it. This is great music for people that are just getting into free-jazz but it still contains enough free elements that free-jazz fans would love it. It's the best of both worlds. The piano really gives the group a harmonic framework in which to do the improvising. There are moments where the piano is doing its thing and it sounds like a post-bop sort of band.
     The other highlight of the performance for me was the last untitled tune. It sounds like the Art Ensemble of Chicago, all free and what not. I particularly love Roscoe Mitchell's squeaky saxophone playing on this. It's what makes free-jazz great, this piece. 
     I would say this is an important record because most of these guys are in their 70s, almost 80s now and they won't be with us forever. So it's cool to see them come back to their roots from when they used to play with each other in Chicago and now here they are at old age still playing and performing together, maybe for the last time. In addition, this is an important jazz recording because many Chicago jazz greats played at this festival as well. This is one of the best new jazz recording I've ever heard.
 As Jack says at the end, "May the Great Spirit bless you!" It certainly has blessed Jack.