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Southern Extreme
| REVIEW | SOURCE | REVIEWER | |
| Southern Extreme by the Joel Futterman/'Kidd' Jordan Trio with Alvin Fielder delivers vigorous yet sensitive free jazz on this 1997 concert recording. New Orleans tenor man Kidd Jordan can blow as hard as anyone, and pianist Joel Futterman is another powerful player who gets a big sound from the instrument. After an introductory poem read by executive producer Phil Egert, the 20-minute long opener to the concert, Mississippi Sweet, finds the pair playing a musical game of tag. Luckily drummer Alvin Fielder doesn't try to compete with them on strength, being more content to lay back and comment on the activity. This instant composition ebbs and flows, with passages of soaring intensity offset by more relaxed sections. Cecil Taylor's Sixties trio with Jimmy Lyons and Andrew Cyrille is the obvious model for this group. Futterman seems to be attracted to dynamic saxophonists, as some of his early recordings in fact feature Lyons on alto. Futterman introduces another dimensions when he leaves the piano to pick up a soprano saxophone. The idiomatic Kidd's Blues features a middle section with Kidd's tenor, Futterman's soprano, and Fielder's drums, before Futterman moves back to the keyboard for the last half of the tune. Sound quality is a problem at times, with some of Jordan's most intense work being off-mike. Even the drums sound a little far away most of the time. But the energy of the trio and their spirited interplay come through, making Southern Extreme definitely worth hearing. | IAJRC Journal, |
Stuart Kremsky |
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| The partisan politics of jazz have polarized much of the music. Stigmas
surrounding 'progressive,' 'avant-garde,' 'free,' 'innovative,' or 'forward-looking' jazz
music have only served to stunt its growth and have added nothing to jazz's assimilation
into the mainstream culture of America in the new millennium. Most major labels have
avoided it like the plague, leaving the smaller independents to keep the fire burning and
stretching the envelope by utilizing unconventional and unstructured (music like the music
itself) sources. College radio has played a pivotal role and the advent of the internet
has given progressive improvisational music a new and resourceful outreach to spread the
good news. Drimala Records is a label solely making their releases available online. Southern Extreme, one of their inaugural releases, is a graphic illustration of how avant-garde can be and should be. A trio recording featuring tenor wizard Edward "Kidd" Jordan, drummer Alvin Fielder, and pianist Joel Futterman, Southern Extreme is a hardcore trip through advanced free jazz that lasts over an hour. Mississippi Sweet is a masterpiece with muscular solos from Jordan and wide-open interaction amongst the trio. The music struggles between contained chaos and complete anarchy as Jordan slashes and carves his way through with strong counters from both Futterman and Fielder. Jordan's helter-skelter sermon stretches on to a striking Plato's Reverie. It is all done in a pure, unadulterated form. Southern Extreme is a powerful statement that is rousing to the senses and inspires the thinking mind. It will not disappoint. Southern Extreme can only be purchased off the Drimala Records' site. |
Jazz USA, |
Fred Jung |
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| "Pianist Joel Futterman leads a trio of vastly under-recorded and
underrated giants of the free music genre through a stimulating live set of seven pieces.
Futterman's debt to Cecil Taylor is evident, but he stamps his own personality with some
outrageously adventurous voicing, spectacular technique, and frenetic style. Tenor
saxophonist Kidd Jordan is compellingly powerful throughout, able to sustain long
innovative solos, while drummer Alvin Fielder, a founding member of Chicago's AACM, is
never less than a marvelous whirlwind of energy. Together, the threesome keeps the
listener guessing, with Futterman doubling on sopranino and some sort of flute-like wind.
Their third recording as a trio and first for the Drimala label is a winner all the way,
indicative of the high quality to be expected from these neglected musical virtuosi.
" (4 Stars) |
All-Music Guide, November, 1999 |
Steven Loewy |
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| "In a new departure, Drimala Records are
making this recording available only through their website. It cannot be found in
music shops. The trio is composed of pianist/flautist, Joel Futterman, veteran New
Orleans saxophonist, Edward 'Kidd' Jordan, and drummer, Alvin Fielder. All
compositions are by the group. The late Bill Evans once told Gene Lees, 'Any music
that is not in some way in touch with the process of improvisation is likely to be
sterile.' Well folks, there is no sterility on this CD. This is 'cutting edge
jazz' played by the people who will carry our music into the 21st century. Being a 62 year old, 'mouldy figue, dixielander', I found the music somewhat foreign to my old ears. The musicians, though capable and enthusiastic, seemed to convey a certain anger in their delivery. If you like the music of Archie Shepp, Joe Harriot, Gene Shaw, and Albert Ayler, then this record deserves a place in your collection. Good luck to Drimala Records with this new marketing concept." |
Richard Bourcier (August 1998) |
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"Drimala is a new label whose recording can only be obtained at http://www.drimala.com. Futterman, who plays mainly piano, has recorded with the genre-bending Hal Russell; Kidd Jordan played contrabass clarinet for Hamiet Bluitt, but sticks to tenor sax here. Alvin Fielder is a sensitive and daring percussionist a la Sunny Murray. After a minute-long recitation of the poem that gives this disc its title, the trio dives into the twenty-one minute long 'Mississippi Sweet.' Jordan's tenor is strongly reminiscent of the Trane and Pharoah workouts of the mid-Sixties --- he sounds like both of them together! Futterman's piano is as impassioned as McCoy's was in those bygone days, and then, like Keith Jarrett, he switches to flute in midstream. Unlike Keith, however, he uses the switch as an occasion for some high-register dueling with Jordan, who eventually takes center stage (with Futterman returning to piano) for a screaming workout right out of Live in Seattle. And so it goes. 'No Train North' begins with a whirling drum solo followed by Futterman playing at a furiously lyrical Cecil Taylor pitch. Like Taylor he can (and does) turn down the volume and work in miniature. As Jordan enters in a high register he strums the strings, then takes the reedman on at the keyboard in another ferocious encounter. If Albert Ayler had had a pianist on Spiritual Unity, it would have sounded like this. Especially worthy of note on this fine example of latter-day 'free' playing: On 'Plato's Reverie' the trio shows off a sinewy and hypnotic lyricism. 'Kidd's Blues' has Futterman and Jordan in anguished duet melodies with Futterman on soprano. This interesting release from this new label shows that the paths blazed by Ayler, late Coltrane, and early Pharoah can still be fruitfully trod today." |
All About Jazz |
Robert Spencer (August 1998) |
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| "Southern Extreme is the first release from the internet-exclusive Drimala Records, a label which proposed to document the work of seriously underexposed New Orleans saxophonist Edward 'Kidd' Jordan. However, judging from Jordan's performance on this CD (recorded live at Mississippi State University last fall), even those who have never heard him might find themselves feeling as if they'd been listening to him for years. Jordan plays with a style that simply sounds like New Orleans---traveling the development of jazz from its birthplace, through Chicago, Kansas City, New York, and returning home with the authority and wisdom befitting to such a journey. Pianist Joel Futterman is similarly insightful, blending many styles to create an aura which transcends pinpointing and in many ways acts as the most cohesive element within the trio. Drummer Alvin Fielder propelled various Chicago incarnations of Sun Ra's Arkestra in the late 50s, was a charter member of the AACM in the 60s, and his playing appropriately reflects these heavy credentials. As a unit, the trio becomes an entity well beyond the linear sum of its members, displaying profound levels of communication in its entirely improvised music. The disc's opening track Mississippi Sweet covers all facets of the group's sound over a continuous shift of dynamic range---by the time Futterman returns to the piano (after an Indian flute and curved soprano sax excursion) amidst Jordan's key-clacking screams and Fielder's full-out driving, the piece has come back to rest in Mississippi after having traversed all conceivable jazz geographies. The exploration continues throughout the disc: No Train North commences with a ferocious drum solo and concludes with high-intensity restraint; Plato's Reverie brings to mind the spiritual melodicism of a Trane ballad ('Alabama' deconstructed perhaps?); You Are My Truth concludes in a carnival-esque (a strong New Orleans presence once again) sax duet; Kidd's Blues features Jordan negotiating through Futterman's ivory-crashing to ablowing-over-dramatic- changes destination; and Renaissance And Reprise is comprised of a Futterman/Fielder due with long streams of Indian flute (though probably the least engaging piece as a result of Jordan's absence). Fans of improvised jazz should not hesitate to seek out this group, not only to ensure that Jordan earns recognition on a wider level, but also because the trio has many highly-rewarding musical stories to tell." | Signal To Noise, No. 7 |
Scott Hreha
(September/ |
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| "For those who value jazz experimentation at its most audacious and fiercely committed, the viscerally exciting music-making on this disc will prove difficult to resist. Pianist Futterman, reedist, Jordan, and drummer Fielder collaborated on two earlier recordings, and it shows in the complexity and intricacy of their most recent work. Jordan's often blistering lines on tenor saxophone, Futterman's bracing chord clusters and fiery virtuosity on piano and Fielder's shimmering contributions on drums neatly counterbalance one another. It's not music for delicate or mainstream tastes, yet there's no denying the fervor or force of these performances." | Chicago Tribune, November 22, 1998 |
Howard Reich |
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"One of the interesting things about this recording is the way the mix of instruments weaves in and out of the listener's range. Drums are present, then fade, but only in subtle ways. And while the horn and piano playing, particularly on an extended number like Mississippi Sweat (clocking in at a hefty 21:30), seem omnipresent, there is an auditory illusion to them that refuses to let the drums vanish, even when they aren't being played. Much of what passes for jazz and improvised music is music played at the same level with everyone heard primarily in the foreground. Southern Extreme is an exception (aided, no doubt, by being a live recording). Perhaps it helps that three are only three members to this band, but the three-dimensionality to this material is furthered along by its experimental nature as well. As the liner notes say, 'This recording is a document of an art and music collaboration...in which Mississippi State University art students created large murals in response to the live music performed by the trio.' Southern Extreme is the trio's third album, and it brings together young and old. The youthful Joel Futterman's discursive, bright piano is augmented by occasional turns on soprano and Indian flutes, while the New Orleans veteran Kidd Jordan cooks throughout on tenor, weaving any number of stories on his horn, some terrifying and seemingly manic, others showcasing his saxophonic reach for conventional tonality. The other vet, Alvin Fielder, a paradox: Both a ball of polyrhythmic fire and a gentle presence here, his touch is just right (check out his brush work on Plato's Reverie). All seven selections were written by the trio, and, like much 'new music,' was probably better heard by the audience in November 1997." |
Down Beat, |
John Ephland |
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"The Futterman/Jordan trio, with Fielder on drums, opens with a telling, one-minute poem by Jason McNeil dealing with abstraction, from which the album title derives. It sets the creative tone for probing, compatible music that follows when the group dives headlong into a sound storm of torrential proportions. The deluge is manifested by the abundance of energy exerted by these three. This live performance at Mississippi State University has vitality galore, providing these three geographically diverse musicians an opportunity to become an incendiary force. Futterman is a double threat. He creates a whirlwind when scurrying across his keyboard at a frantic pace, and he matches that enthusiasm when switching to woodwinds to joust with Jordan in combative fashion. Futterman plays e-flat and b-flat Indian flutes and the curved soprano in his diverse role. His blowing has a volatile effect that seems to ignite Jordan, allowing him to return to the piano for further prodding while Jordan maintains the intensity. At one point, he plays the soprano while pounding the keys with his left hand. New Orleans stalwart caught the eyes and ears of The Big Apple when he more than held his own with Milford Graves and Charles Gayle at the 1998 Vision Festival. He seemed to captivate the audience with his drive, and that momentum is present on this recording as well. His tone is bold and gutsy but not raspy. It merges seamlessly into the chaotic world that Futterman inhabits. Former Chicago resident and original AACM member Fielder sparks the performance with his drumming. His sometimes freewheeling, sometime unhurried approach adds the proper ingredients to the trio equation. He provides the right chemistry for this group. All seven compositions are a group effort. This typifies the play on this recording. It is a collaborative effort by three empathetic musicians who are in tune with nature, science, and each other. Their rapport is obvious, and the product is engrossing. You will like this union." |
Cadence, |
Frank Rubolino (February 1999) |
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"While outwardly tied to the sixties energy music, the individuality of this trio emerges intact. Edward 'Kidd' Jordan on tenor evokes as much the jazz voices of the 30s as the work of the Impulse saxophonists. Alvin Fielder is up for the challenge, playing with agility and imagination throughout this program, feeding the fire of the front-line (Southern Exposure). Joel Futterman's early work with Jimmy Lyons and Rahsaan Roland Kirk colours his approach here yet he has the good sense (and ability) to go his own way. Recorded in performance at University of Mississippi, there is great strength in the rush of this music as well as tenderness. (Plato's Reverie)." |
Coda, |
Steve Vickery |
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