Handscapes 2

Regular: £33.99

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Regular: £33.99

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Cat No: SES19750

Release Date: 01 February 2023

Label: Strata-east / Pure Pleasure Records

Packaging Type: Slip Sleeve (CD or Vinyl)

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 5060149623602

Genres: Jazz

Description
180g audiophile vinyl reissue.

"When you put together 7 jazz pianists with a rhythm section, things are bound to get interesting. In 1973, Ron Burton, Stanley Cowell, Nat Jones, Hugh Lawson, Webster Lewis, Harold Mabern and Sonelius Smith electrified the jazz world with The Piano Choir â€“ Handscapes. This multi-textured collaboration explored a variety of musical expression and exotic motifs in a unique and refreshing manner. Jazz archival label Pure Pleasure Records released a 180-gram vinyl of the first album. Now Handscapes 2 has been re-mastered to updated vinyl. The results are equally satisfying. Side A opens with keyboard/piano opening on "Ballad For The Beast From Bali-Bali". The song develops with synthesizers and electric piano with freewheeling aesthetics and funky grooves. There is an energetic acoustic piano interlude that eventually folds back into synthesized music. Tempo and instrumental flourishes capture the artistic vision and passionate joy of this project. The music is melodically complex, but is rendered cohesively. It is like a seven-minute symphony. Dialing back the intensity, "The Need To Smile" is ethereal with a simpler arrangement featuring acoustic piano lead, electronic rhythm and atmospheric shading. There is a gentler flow with delicate touches underscored by a repeat vamp. "Barbara Ann" is simply a gorgeous ballad with hypnotic chords and jazzy intonation. At approximately the 3:00 mark, the song transitions to Latin-infused soul with halting breaks, crescendos and arpeggio-laden finish" - Robbie Gerson, Audiophile Audition
Tracklisting