Ahmed Abdullah Quartet - Liquid Magic 1988

Ex-Sun Ra trumpeter/flügelhornist Abdullah expresses his brand of jazz in a modern way with mainstream swing and progressive overtones. Tenor saxophonist Charles Brackeen, bassist Malachi Favors, and drummer Alvin Fielder are all fine improvisers and jazz professionals. Brackeen's salty, dry Texas tenor blue hues mix and match especially well with Abdullah's sound, which ranges from burnished Dizzy Gillespie phrases to Don Cherry's smearing techniques. In fact, Abdullah is as close toCherry's style and stance as anyone, and that's a good thing. The leader has chosen three of his own compositions to showcase. "Ebony Queen" has a stairstep/up-and-down line with ostinato bass, veryOrnette Coleman-ish, with Brackeen's wayward tenor and Abdullah occasionally spurting shrill, elephantine vocal shrieks among mostly melodic passages, a challenging approach. A goodly swing leads to Fielder's Ed Blackwell-like solo. The trumpet/bass title track, depicted as Abdullah responding to a dancer (repped by Favors) leads into "The Ruler," a soulful waltz with contrapuntal horns, and bass solo plopped in between. Abdullah plays piano for "Reflections on a Mystic," with Favors' always hopeful bass leading to a ballad/dirge, to upper register tenor, muted trumpet, arco bass, then a mute out with the tenor lower pitched. There is an alternate take of "Ebony Queen," and a separate take of "The Ruler" with quite different solo construct. Sun Ra's hard bopper "Mystery of Two" is urgent and tonic, a cut anybody can dig, while "Walk with God," actually written by a Dr. Kola, a New York state prisoner, is a Zen blues walk. Miriam Makeba's "Mayibue," arranged by Abdullah, evokes all the air of a South African township party, with beautiful tenor harmony and Abdullah's breezy flügelhorn. When Abdullah records, albeit infrequently, the consistency of his musicianship is ever present and accounted for, as on this delightful recording. Highly recommended. AMG.

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