Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
In Memoriam: Al Foster, 1943–2025
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
On Feb. 26, two new ECM albums are set to hit the street: John Abercrombie’s Cat ‘N’ Mouse and Invisible Nature: Live In Tampere And Berlin by John Surman and Jack DeJohnette.
Cat ‘N’ Mouse features Abercrombie on guitar, Mark Feldman on violin, Marc Johnson on bass and Joey Baron on drums. Feldman had previously worked with Abercrombie, and the idea for the new ensemble, recorded in December 2000 in New York, was to “continue the relationship with Feldman and develop a music that was still more open-sounding,” Abercrombie said. Keyboards were abandoned for the recording, with an emphasis placed on strings.
Invisible Nature was recorded live at the Berlin Jazz Festival and the Tampere Jazz Happening in November 2000. It’s the follow-up to The Amazing Adventures Of Simon Simon, the 1981 debut by the Surman-DeJohnette duo. The musical relationship between the two men goes back further, however. In 1968, when DeJohnette was in London with the Bill Evans Trio at Ronnie Scott’s Club, he took time out to improvise with local musicians. “Jack instigated a jam session series in the afternoon, and the word got out,” Surman said. “So I was there, along with John McLaughlin, Dave Holland and Tony Oxley.”
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
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The time and labor required to tour is, for many musicians, daunting at best and prohibitive at worst. It’s hardly…
