Flashpoints & Undercurrents CD

This mindful meditation on jazz composition and form by baritone and soprano saxophonist John Surman exposes fifteen new tracks' worth of dazzling recorded material, compiled and collected at a time of relentless exploration by the musician in the beating heart of 70s London. Said to have emerged after witnessing Miles Davis perform at Ronnie Scott's in 1968, Surman set about entering Davis' orbit, soon appearing on a panoply of recordings both by the latter Illinois great and on others' records. The period you hear here is the literal career flashpoint encompassing both this late 60s period and much of the 70s, by which latter point Surman had left Davis' posse and formed his own troupe known simply as The Trio. Rampantly poignant brass-led jazz mostly features, including several never-heard-before recordings.