Recorded live at New York's Judson Hall in 1965, Spirits Rejoice is one
of Albert Ayler's wildest, noisiest albums, partly because it's one of
the very few that teams him with another saxophonist, altoist Charles
Tyler. It's also one of the earliest recordings to feature Ayler's brother
Don playing an amateurish but expressive trumpet, and the ensemble is
further expanded by using bassists Henry Grimes and Gary Peacock together
on three of the five tracks; plus, the rubato "Angels" finds
Ayler interacting with Call Cobbs' harpsichord in an odd, twinkling evocation
of the spiritual spheres. Aside from that more spacious reflection, most
of the album is given over to furious ensemble interaction and hard-blowing
solos that always place in-the-moment passion above standard jazz technique.
Freed up by the presence of the trumpet and alto, Ayler's playing concentrates
on the rich lower register of his horn and all the honks and growls that
go with it; his already thick, huge tone has rarely seemed more monolithic.
Spirits Rejoice also provides an opportunity to hear the sources of Ayler's
simple, traditional melodies becoming more eclectic. The nearly 12-minute
title track has a pronounced New Orleans marching band feel, switching
between two themes reminiscent of a hymn and a hunting bugle call, and
the brief "Holy Family" is downright R&B-flavored. "Prophet"
touches on a different side of Ayler's old-time march influence, with
machine-gun cracks and militaristic cadences from drummer Sunny Murray
driving the raggedly energetic ensemble themes. For all its apparent chaos,
Spirits Rejoice is often surprisingly pre-arranged -- witness all the
careening harmony passages that accompany the theme statements, and the
seamless transitions of the title track. Spirits Rejoice is proof that
there was an underlying logic even to Ayler's most extreme moments, and
that's why it remains a tremendously inspiring recording.
(by Steve Huey, AMG) |