Lifelines Dave Liebman, Richie Beirach & Jack DeJohnette

• 1 Lifelines 11:58
• 2 Firestorm 10:30
• 3 Nowness 08:43
• 4 In The Wind 03:06
• 5 Landslide 03:48
• 6 Synchronicity 03:35
• 7 Tightrope 05:24
• 8 Lamentation 07:31
• Total Runtime 54:35

Info for Lifelines

As a teenager, when he first caught sight (and sound) of John Coltrane playing at New York’s famous Birdland Club, David Liebman fell instantly in love with jazz. A virtuoso on the soprano sax, and an innovative composer, Lieb’s attachment to jazz has always been something more than musical. The spirit behind the music and the community of musicians and listeners all figure into his life in jazz.

The Rhythm Section: My roots with Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette go back to the late 1960s. I met Dave in London in 1967 when I was hanging around Europe for a few months. With Jack it was about that time when I did some jam sessions with him in New York. My first album as a leader (“First Visit”) was recorded in Japan while I was with Miles Davis and they were with Stan Getz along with my long time partner, pianist Richie Beirach. Then there was the 1988 “Trio + 1” recording with Dave and Jack and my wife Caris Visentin on oboe. When Dave came to New York with Miles he ended up living on the second floor of a loft building where I was the first tenant, eventually joined by Chick Corea....138 W.19th Street. Of course Jack and Dave have gone on to be recognized as one of the classic bass/drum combinations in jazz history and individually two of the greatest artists on their instruments. Jack especially is a force of nature.

Besides the programmatic aspect of the recording as described above, there was in my mind the idea of re-creating the feeling of the music we played in the loft days from that early period, featuring a heavy dose of free jazz a la Coltrane’s ”Ascension.” There were many late night sessions that might feature several horn players (Mike and Randy Brecker, Terumasa Hino, Bob Berg, Steve Grossman, etc.) all embracing the spirit of that period both in the real world and musically as we started to engage in fusion lead by Miles and the horn band phenomenon (“10 Wheel Drive “ and “Chicago” etc.) These activities along with continually learning about the tradition which was still very much alive with so many of the original masters still active provided the framework for an exciting period to say the least. For this recording the opportunity to have Kenny Werner was a blessing as he fit right into his role with exquisite taste and finesse. If I must say so, we have all definitely improved in these decades....the ability to play less, to play soft, to express a feeling above all and more.... showing maturity at its highest level. This was an honor and privilege, to play with these fine gentlemen.

(Personal note: Along with the recordings “Water-Giver of Life" from the late ‘90s featuring Pat Metheny, “Air” (available on the internet), and the present “Fire," what remains is “Earth" coming in the next period which will conclude my series on the elements. (Dave Liebman)

Dave Liebman, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, wooden flute, flute
Kenny Werner, piano
Dave Holland, bass
Jack DeJohnette, drums

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