Die späten 90er sind als die "Renaissance des Folk" in die Popgeschichte eingegangen. Auch wenn man nicht gleich Sampler und Sequencer in den Müll schmiss, erwachte erneut die Sehnsucht nach akustischer Einfachheit, die Sehnsucht nach dem guten alten Songformat. Während die Mehrzahl der Künstler, die dieses Revival vorantrieben, zur Zeit der originalen Folkbewegung der 60er noch gar nicht auf der Welt war, landete 1998 auch ein damals relativ übersehener Singer-Songwriter ein fulminantes Comeback: Terry Callier mit "Timepeace". Als das Album bei Talkin´ Loud erschien, hatte man 19 Jahre nichts mehr von ihm gehört. Immer wieder auf Marketing-Kategorien und gegenläufigen Trends gestrandet, hatte sich Callier 1979 zurückgezogen, um allein erziehend seine Tochter zu versorgen. Callier machte einen normalen Job als Computerprogrammierer für die Universität seiner Heimatstadt Chicago und schien sich komplett vom Musikbusiness verabschiedet zu haben. Grund zur Verbitterung hatte es allemal für ihn gegeben: Calliers erste Plattenfirma Prestige verschlief komplett sein Debütalbum. Als 1968 "The New Folk Sound of Terry Callier" (aufgenommen 1964) endlich erschien, stieß der Meilenstein auf taube Ohren, denn die Folkbewegung war mittlerweile elektrisch geworden und lief zielstrebig in Richtung Psychedelia. In den 70er Jahren nahm Callier weitere großartige Alben für das Cadet-Label auf. Der sanfte Folk-Jazz von "Occasional Rain" und "What Colour Is Love" sollte die frühe Joan Armatrading und Gil Scott Heron inspirieren. Auf breiterer Ebene schlug er zur Zeit seiner Veröffentlichung aber keine großen Wellen, geschuldet war´s dem Desinteresse seiner eigenen Plattenfirma. Erst die britische Acid Jazz-Bewegung sollte Callier in den frühen 90ern zum verdienten Prestige verhelfen. Als in England seine alten Alben erschienen und Callier in Londons Jazz Café auftrat, machte er sich zum Guru der "Goatees" (Kinnbartträger).Einige Jahre später veröffentlichte er "Timepeace" und das Album bewies Calliers Integrität. Lückenlos knüpfte es an die Ästhetik seiner epochalen frühen Alben an. Geschmackssichere Arrangements, filigrane Instrumentierung um seine akustische Gitarre herum, atmosphärische Sounds und ein fein gewebter Klangteppich zwischen Folk, Soul und Jazz untermalen Calliers idealistische Prophezeiungen von Love, Peace und positivem Denken. Gaststar auf dem Titel "Timepeace/No One Has To Tell You/Build A World Of Love" ist Pharoah Sanders, Weggefährte John Coltranes, der sein außerirdisches Tenorsaxofon vielleicht noch nie zuvor in einen so popkompatiblen Kontext einbrachte. Weitere Highlights sind das epische "Lazarus Man", der leichtfüßige Bossa Nova "Keep Your Heart Right" und der Country von "Coyote Moon". Callier covert zwei Soulklassiker auf "Timepeace": Curtis Mayfields Aufbruchssong "People Get Ready" und interessanterweise auch "The Love Theme From Spartacus", einen Filmschmachter, der zum beliebten Jam in Jazzkreisen avancierte. Egal ob in den 60ern, den 90ern oder auf seinem aktuellen Album "Looking Out" (2004). Kompromisslos und integer hat Callier seine musikalische Sinnsuche jenseits aller Karriere-Kriterien verfolgt- nur so wird man zur Kultfigur.

(www.pure.de)

Chicago native Terry Callier has a long career that goes back to a debut album in 1968. Callier as a child, growing up in the notorious Cabrini-Green housing project in the Windy City, showed some musical ability and had several years of piano lessons. But it wasn't until college in the early 1960s, where his dorm room was near a student who owned a guitar, that Callier took up that instrument and started learning traditional folk songs, in the days of the Sixties folk "boom." In 1964, he was spotted in a blues club in Chicago playing his acoustic music by Sam Charters, then of Prestige Records, who the following year recorded Callier's first LP, entitled The New Folk Sound of Terry Callier. The record wasn't released until 1968, when by then his acoustic sound had been replaced in the public ear by the electric folk-rock of the period.
In 1970, Callier and his songwriting partner Larry Wade began working with soul star Jerry Butler and his Chicago Songwriter's Workshop. Callier and Wade wrote several songs which became hits, including The Love We Had Stayed on My Mind, which was made famous by the Dells in 1972.
After that, Callier began a series of albums under his own name, starting with Occasional Rain in 1973 and concluding with Turn You to Love in 1979. His music was a breezy blend of folk influence, including articulate lyrics, plus soul and jazz. But like many during the period, some of his records succumed to the disco influence of time. In 1983, he dropped out of the music business to help raise his family and to begin a new career as a computer programmer for the University of Chicago, where he also completed a degree in sociology by taking night classes.
One day in 1991, he received a call from England from some dance remixers and people on the so-called "acid jazz" scene, who were interested in releasing his old albums in the UK. He began making pilgrimages to England to perform, and that eventually led to the revival of his recording career. Parts of Time Peace were recorded in England.
This sort of folky, jazzy and soul-influenced style was also taken up occasionally by such people as Richie Havens, Taj Mahal, early Joan Armatrading and Gil Scott-Heron. On Time Peace, Terry Callier gives us one of the finest examples of the genre, with tasteful musicianship, an often atmospheric sound and Callier's outstanding vocals. Lyrically, the album seems a period piece, with his songs about peace, love and being positive to overcome adversity, racial or otherwise -- the old-fashioned values of idealism that have hardly been heard since the last Gil Scott-Heron album.
Joining Callier is a variable group of musicians, mostly from the Chicago area, with notable cameo appearances by Pat Metheny Group drummer Paul Wertico and harmonica virtuoso Howard Levy. Also making an appearance on one track is jazz saxophone great Pharoah Sanders, who worked with Callier many years ago. Like the concept albums of yore, Callier divides his CD into two sections, "Time" and "Peace" with one track serving as an overall introduction. Most of the music consists of new original material, but he does parts of tunes from the 1960s, Curtis Mayfield's People Get Ready, and, interestingly, The Love Theme from Spartacus.

Some might be tempted to call Terry Callier's new CD Time Peace a throwback to the 1960s with its jazzy, soulful sound, and especially its lyrics that dare to talk about peace and love and hope. But this particular style never made much of an impact on the commercial music scene of the day, and after such a long period of inactivity, Callier and his music now seem fresh and vital today. The musicianship is outstanding, Callier's vocals are absolutely first-rate and wonderfully memorable. What he sings about may be considered a relic of the past in the cynical or just-plain-dumb 1990s, but one comes away from the record feeling positive, without the music reaching the point of being sappy. Callier is a literate lyricist and first-rate composer, and his music now comes across as having a timeless aura.
The album's sound quality is also first-rate. The recording was produced by Brian Bacchus and mixed by James Nichols, who really enhanced the atmospheric arrangements with their sonic approach. The dynamic range is also very good.
It has been about 19 years since Terry Callier released his last album. His fine new CD Time Peace marks a most welcome return. (George Graham).