Aug 7, 2011

Mal Waldron Trio - Spring in Prague + No More Tears for Lady Day

barabara sounds sez:  
More Mal – in fact a double-header, both featuring his trio with John Betsch and Paulo Carduso, both recorded in Germany and issued in Japan on the Alfa label.

No More Tears (recorded Nov.'88) is all mellow and introspective, like Mal is still feeling the grief all those years later. Whereas Spring in Prague (Feb.'90) is infused with much more vigor, reflecting the upheaval that had been going on in Eastern Europe in the previous year. Check out 'We demand' and 'Let us live': these are strong statements. In contrast, the title track is softer, an elegy no doubt looking back at the events in Czechoslovakia in 1968.

Apart from the allmusic review of No More Tears, there's very little out there about either of these albums – such as whether No More Tears came out first on Alfa or Timeless – so if anyone has any info, let's hear from you.

allmusic (Steve Loewy) sez:  
Not to be confused with the trio session recorded in the early '70s, Blues for Lady Day, this recording takes the same familiar trio format to revisit several tunes associated with Billie Holiday, as well as a few written in her memory by Waldron. The pianist is in a somber mood, perhaps because of the theme, though his performance is up to his usually high standards. A master of understatement, Waldron favors lingering chords that hang laconically even with the faster tempos. He rarely inserts an unneeded note, but instead concentrates on total sound. Drummer John Betsch brings out the best in each tune, pushing Waldron when appropriate. Bassist Paulo Cardoso makes little impression, particularly as a soloist, where he sometimes appears trapped by the structures of the songs. He is more successful as an accompanist. The delightful ambience of the trio results in a laid-back atmosphere that soothes and calms. A fine antidote to a stressful world and a lovely tribute to Lady Day.


15 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's summer in Tokyo now. No more sweat (faint hope...)
:-)

No more tears:
http://www.mediafire.com/?f463oyxx8jd1e8g

Spring in Prague:
http://www.mediafire.com/?j68864hc39gx4c0

trane said...

Fantastic, Spring in Prague is new to me, a big thanks

Eric said...

Thank you for these Mal Waldron offerings. He seemed to have made an unending stream of recordings, each one worthy of investigation.

Anonymous said...

Thank you very much, it's great to get impossible to find material by such a fine musician. Bravo! MB

Nuage fiché qui rêve said...

Domo arigato Barabara !

KingCake said...

I'm amazed that even with the almost ridiculous amount of Mal that I already have, I don't have either of these - thank you so much

It's summer here in New Orleans too and here that means between 95 and 100 degrees every day with 80 to 90% humidity - lots of sweating going on here

Uri said...

"No More Tears" is gorgeous!
Many thanks for the share.

Eric said...

Any and all Mal Waldron is appreciated.

taro nombei said...

@ everyone
Many thanks for all the comments.
Just happy to share these great albums with y'all.
:-)

yusef33 said...

Hi Barabara, I am new to your blog and noticed these 2 gems that I would love to have. Could you kindly re-post "No More Tears"
and "Spring in Prague".


taro nombei said...

@yusef33
I'll see what I can do.
Meanwhile, check out my latest post, Mal solo in concert in Japan over the last 5 years of his life.
Some great playing there too.
Keep tuned...

yusef33 said...

Thanks for "Mal Solo", Introspective indeed. I've been exercising at the gym listening to "Reminiscent Suite" Terumasa Hino and Company with Mal. What more could you ask for.

taro nombei said...

@ yusef33
Here you go!

MW-NMTfLD
http://www.mediafire.com/download/x24r22ciwzgnhr1/MW-NMTfLD.zip

MW-SiP
http://www.mediafire.com/download/qpnd09jwpyo2h5r/MW-SiP.zip

And yes: Reminiscent Suite is a MONSTER! Total classic

cheers…!

danny said...

you folks are the best. much gratitude from melbourne

Anonymous said...

thanks peeps!