Trumpeter Eddie Gale has died

Eddie Gale, the erstwhile Sun Ra and Cecil Taylor sideman, died on 10 July aged 78 in California. Gale was from Brooklyn and received lessons early on from trumpeter Kenny Dorham and began to sat in at jam sessions in his youth. In the early 1960s …

Published: 13 Jul 2020. Updated: 3 years.

Eddie Gale, the erstwhile Sun Ra and Cecil Taylor sideman, died on 10 July aged 78 in California. Gale was from Brooklyn and received lessons early on from trumpeter Kenny Dorham and began to sat in at jam sessions in his youth. In the early 1960s he got to know Sun Ra and he toured and recorded with Ra’s Arkestra throughout the 60s and 70s. With Cecil Taylor he appeared on the classic Unit Structures and with Larry Young was on the recording for Of Love and Peace. His own albums included Eddie Gale’s Ghetto Music in 1968 and Black Rhythm Happening the following year. Eddie is survived by his wife, Georgette, his children Donna, Marc, Chanel, Gwilu and Teyonda, 12 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

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Gerald Clayton, Happening: Live at the Village Vanguard

The idea of a live album, in a club, in front of people, seems a little preposterous at the moment. But this is no curiosity and joins an illustrious line of albums recorded at New York club the Village Vanguard. Trigger alert: contains applause! …

Published: 11 Jul 2020. Updated: 3 years.

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The idea of a live album, in a club, in front of people, seems a little preposterous at the moment. But this is no curiosity and joins an illustrious line of albums recorded at New York club the Village Vanguard. Trigger alert: contains applause!

Pianist Clayton is with Logan Richardson on alto saxophone, Walter Smith III on tenor saxophone, Joe Sanders on bass, and Marcus Gilmore on drums.

The horns are beautifully voiced on 'Rejuvenation Agenda' (what an excellent piece of naming given current circumstances) one of four Clayton originals. A softly delivered 'Body and Soul' plus Ellington and Bud Powell classics are also on the record so it's a hearty mix of the new and the unknown.

It is the kind of record where high level virtuosity, and there is plenty of it, does not get in the way of spirit and the joy of performance. You also can't approach it as an example of one style or another. Some of the harmonies are very avant garde and yet the whole shape of the album seems to ride on the coat tails of the mainstream so I suppose fans from a number of styles within jazz will get what this is about. Above all there is a lot of life on the record. Gilmore, best known for his work with Vijay Iyer, contributes a great sense of attack and the record has the sort of rhythmic bite you need on a live record. Out now on Blue Note.