by Scott Yanow
This double-LP is a follow-up to Archie Shepp's Fire Music album but, since it was recorded one to six months later and uses different instrumentation, it actually has little in common, except for the quality. The avant-garde tenor performs three very different versions of "The Chased" and two other songs in a trio with bassist David Izenzon and drummer J.C. Moses, and there is an alternate take of "The Mac Man" with a quintet in August 1965. In addition, there are five selections (including a fiery recitation on "Scag") taken from the album New Thing at Newport, Shepp's appearance at the 1965 Newport Jazz Festival in a quartet with vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, bassist Barre Phillips and drummer Joe Chambers. Since much of this material has yet to be reissued on CD, free jazz collectors may want to search for this two-fer, which was issued as Vol. XVII of the Dedication Series in 1978.

Archie Shepp is back with a new album on his own Archie Ball label, a duo recording with German pianist Joachim Kühn. Both musicians can trace their careers back at least as far as the late sixties; at that time Shepp recorded a succession of fiery albums for the Impulse label, a lesser known Impulse release was the Kuhn brothers Impressions of New York (with Jimmy Garrison and Aldo Romano).
Joachim Kühn remembers seeing Shepp play at the Village Vanguard in 1967, shortly after the death of John Coltrane. The pair were brought together to play at a French festival in 2009, and they decided to record. Their virtuoso musical conversation mixes free improvisation, original compositions and arrangements of jazz standards.

Horace Parlan (January 19, 1931 – February 23, 2017) was an American pianist and composer known for working in the hard bop and post-bop styles of jazz. In addition to his work as a bandleader Parlan was known for his contributions to the Charles Mingus recordings Mingus Ah Um and Blues & Roots.

Alto Saxophone, Alto Clarinet – Talib Kibwe
Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Franck Williams
Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Vocals – Archie Shepp
Bassoon, Alto Saxophone – Robert Juritz
Contrabass – Ernest Mothle
Drums – Gilbert Matthews
Executive-Producer – Michel Pagiras
Flute [Baritone], Soprano Saxophone – Julian Arguelles
Mastered By [Digital Mastering] – Anne-Marie Terrazzoni, François Terrazzoni
Mixed By – Clément Ziegler
Percussion – Tony Maronie
Photography By – Philippe Cibille
Piano – Chris McGregor
Recorded By – Eric Sez
Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet – Jeff Gordon
Trombone – Annie Whitehead, Fayyaz Virji
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Claude Deppa, Dave Defries, Harry Beckett
Vocals – Sonti Mndébélé
Live concert recorded on March 18th, 1989 by Eric Sez (Studio 93) at "Espace John Lennon" at La Courneuve, France, during the Banlieues Bleues festival.

Bass – Malachi Favors
Drums – "Philly" Joe Jones
Piano – Dave Burrel
Tenor Saxophone – Archie Shepp
Recorded August 12, 1969 in Paris.

A somewhat surprising pairing at the time, the former firebrand of the tenor sax and the wonderful South African pianist found a pleasant and relaxed meeting point. By 1978, Shepp had largely abandoned the ferocious attack that gained him renown in the '60s, settling on a rich, Ben Webster-ish tone and playing a repertoire consisting of modern standards and bluesy originals. Two such pieces, the lovely Dave Burrell/Marion Brown composition "Fortunato" and Mal Waldron's "Left Alone," are highlights of this session, Shepp's burnished tone as soft as an old shoe. Ibrahim is a fairly deferential partner here, generally preferring to play the role of accompanist, although certainly one sprinkling his work with plenty of ideas for Shepp to work off. But the prevailing sense of relaxation begins to pall after a while and one wishes for a bit more of the old rough and tumble that these two were surely capable of. Still, for those who enjoyed Shepp's mid-'70s dates for Arista/Freedom and Ibrahim's more subdued group efforts of the late '70s and early '80s, there's much good listening here. ~ Brian Olewnick, All Music Guide

Archie Shepp - Saxophone
Noel McGhie - Drums
Bob Reid - Double Bass
Pablo Kino - Percussions
Siegfried Kessler - Piano
Recorded live on March, 23rd 1974, Grand Auditorium Studio 104 - Maison de la Radio.
Excerpts from the full performance.

Acoustic Bass, Electric Bass – Avery Sharpe
Acoustic Bass, Tuba – Hakim Jami
Cello, Piano, Vocals – Akua Dixon
Conductor – Ray Copeland
Drums – Clifford Jarvis
Engineer – Philippe Omnès
Engineer [Assistant Sound Engineer] – Bernard Darsh*
Guitar – Brandon Ross
Percussion – Kevin Jones
Piano – Art Matthews
Saxophone, Flute – James Ware, John Purcell, Marion Brown, Patience Higgins
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Piano, Leader – Archie Shepp
Synthesizer – Clyde Crimer*
Trombone – Charles "Majeed" Greenlee*, Charles Stephens, Dick Griffin, Ray Harris*, Steve Turre
Trumpet – Charles McGhee, Eddie Preston, Kamal Alim*, Richard "Malachi" Thompson*, Roy Burrowes
Viola – Carl Ector
Violin – Candice Greene
Violin, Vocals – Terry Jenoure
Vocals – Irene Datcher, Joe Lee Wilson
Recorded live at the Palais des Glaces, Paris, October 24, 1979.

Archie Shepp - tenor & soprano sax
George Adams - tenor sax
Heinz Sauer - tenor sax
Rainer Brüninghaus - piano
Palle Danielsson - bass
Alex Riel - drums
Recorded live in Frankfurt, September 24, 1978

Archie Shepp (ts, ss,voc)
Jeanne Lee (voc)
Siggi Kessler (p)
Peter Bockius (b)
Don Mumford (d)
Leverkusen, West Germany, October 6, 1984

Bass - Palle Danielsson (tracks: A1-2) , Peter Bockius (tracks: B1-2)
Drums - Alex Riel (tracks: A1-2) , Don Mumford (tracks: B1-2)
Piano - Rainer Brüninghaus (tracks: A1-2) , Siegfried Kessler (tracks: B1-2)
Producer - Rudolf Kreis
Saxophone [Tenor ] - Heinz Sauer (tracks: A1-2)
Saxophone [Tenor ], Vocals - George Adams (tracks: A1-2)
Saxophone [Tenor, Soprano], Vocals - Archie Shepp

Recorded in 1972 with a core band of Leroy Jenkins, Cornell Dupree (!), Jimmy Garrison, and Charles McGhee, Shepp supplemented these proceedings in much the same way he did with the cast of Attica Blues, with gospel singers, big bands, quintets, sextets, and chamber orchestras, with guests that included Harold Mabern on piano, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie on drums, and Ron Carter on electric bass! Recorded during a period in which Shepp was reaching out of the jazz idiom to include all of what he perceived to be "trans-African" music at the time, there is gutbucket r&b here, as well as the sweetly soul gospel of "Rest Enough." The charts' arrangements are a combination of Ellington's more pastoral moods -- usually expressed in his suites -- and the more darkly complex modal stylings of George Russell. Unlike some of Shepp's dates from this period, the vocals do not detract from the mix employed here. This is an urban record that showcases Shepp's ability, at this time in his career, to literally take on any project, combine as many sources as he was permitted by his financial resources, and come up with something compelling, provocative, and soulful. All extremes are subsumed by the whole: The avant-garde free jazz of the period is covered in the large-ensemble playing, which is covered by the gospel and r&b stylings that are accented by the free jazz players. Shepp worked with many larger ensembles as a leader, but never did he achieve such a perfect balance as he did on The Cry of My People. Given that the remastered version -- with excellent liner notes, superb sound, and a gorgeous package -- is being issued during an election year in the United States, its poignancy and urgency couldn't be more timely.~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Personnel: Archie Shepp (vocals, saxophone); Napoleon Maddox (vocals, percussion); Olivier Lake, Cochemea Gastelum (saxophone); Joe Fonda (bass instrument); Hamid Drake (drums).