Dolphy’s Timeless Art Reborn
The Out to Lunch Quintet: Live at the Artists Quarter (2006, Jazz Police)

© 2006, Andrea Canter

“Dolphy was clearly ahead of his time and in some ways timeless. At first it sounded interesting, but it seemed to be mostly random sounds. I have had many decades of jazz listening since and have come to respect the place this recording holds in jazz history as well as the timeless beauty of it as a work of art. It sounds so fresh it could've been recorded last week, and I think that it will always sound that way.”  --Don Berryman, Producer, The Out to Lunch Quintet: Live at the Artists Quarter 

It was a very cold, snowy night in February 2006, maybe the coldest of the winter. The St. Olaf College campus in Northfield, MN—and the Twin Cities Jazz Society winter concert--were 40 subzero minutes away. Reluctantly, I agreed to join Jazz Police “Chief” Don Berryman for the debut performance of The Out to Lunch Quintet (aka OTLQ)—an ensemble of esteemed local jazzmen who were recreating the music from the famous Eric Dolphy recording. Aside from misgivings about the weather, I just didn’t remember enjoying the original Out to Lunch. It had been years since I listened to it, and I only recalled that the music confused me. Within a few minutes of the set in Northfield, my confusion had dissolved into rapt attention, followed by sheer delight in the interplay of sound and rhythm. Maybe my tastes have evolved and what once struck me as mere annoying dissonance is now a welcome challenge in aural organization. Or maybe the energy of a live performance simply transcends whatever intellectual shortcomings I bring to the compositions of Eric Dolphy. To the credit of producer Berryman, associate producer Kenny Horst, and the five musicians who saw the opportunities afforded by this project, the energy and invention first heard on stage in Northfield have been faithfully captured through a live recording session, this time at the Artists Quarter.

Dave Milne, Kelly Rossum, Phil Hey, Tom Lewis, Dave Hagedorn (photos © Andrea Canter)

On his liner notes, Don Berryman provides an informative summary of the short life of Eric Dolphy, a masterful composer, arranger and performer on multiple reeds. He was a favorite of Mingus and Coltrane, but perhaps best known as the composer of avant-garde compositions using odd time signatures further pushed outside by his dissonant and unpredictable blowing style. Notes Berryman, “Out to Lunch influenced a generation of jazz players…and is regarded not only as Dolphy’s finest recording, but as one of the greatest jazz recordings.” Tragically Dolphy died at age 36 in June 1964, a few weeks before Blue Note released his seminal recording.

Dolpy’s Out to Lunch
Dolphy is not a popular icon of modern jazz, perhaps because musicians find his compositions difficult to play and because audiences find the music challenging to hear.  But always up for a challenge, vibraphonist and St. Olaf instructor Dave Hagedorn brought a Dolphy chart to a performance with Eric Kamau Gravatt’s Source Code at the Artists Quarter in early 2005.  In the audience, Berryman was intrigued by sound of “Hat and Beard” and suggested to Hagedorn that the entire Out to Lunch set would make an exciting performance, leading to the Northfield concert (“Still Out to Lunch”) sponsored by the Twin Cities Jazz Society. And OTL had special significance for Berryman.

 “I remember hearing Dolphy's Out To Lunch when I was about 17,” notes Berryman,” which was 1971 -- 7 years after its release. An audiophile friend was showing off his album collection and his stereo. At that time I was a rock and blues fan who was just discovering jazz. He had played me some classic Miles Davis -- Sketches of Spain -- which was about the hippest thing I ever heard. I started devouring all the Miles I could get after that. I constantly thanked my friend for opening me up to the hippest thing around. Then he asked if I was ready for something that would really 'blow my mind' (that's the way we really talked back then!)…I remember the shock of the first blast from the opening to “Hat and Beard” followed by the walking bass and an eerie chord on the vibes that was sustained and slowly decayed. We sat in reverent silence through the whole album, and my mind was indeed blown. This is the album that made me fall in love with the vibes. It also opened me up to music that was more complex rhythmically. Upon subsequent listenings, it has become one of my favorites.”

Dolphy was a particular virtuoso on bass clarinet and flute, and his “sidemen” were equally legendary—Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Richard Davis on bass and Tony Williams on drums. But that was then, and this is now.

A former student of Ed Blackwell and Marv Dahlgren, native Philadelphian Phil Hey spent twenty years touring with the late Dewey Redman. Often on local bandstands backing national artists, local vocalists, and small ensembles, he also manages percussion duties for the Pete Whitman X-Tet, Departure Point, Apex, Mulligan Stew and his own Quartet, and finds time to teach at the University of Minnesota and Macalester College in St. Paul. His CD Subduction was on everyone’s “best” of local releases for 2005, and Hey was recently named Jazz Musician of the Year for 2006 by City Pages.

David Milne (reeds) is an Associate Professor of Music (Saxophone/Jazz Studies) at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. A native of Rochester, NY, he is an active jazz and classical saxophonist, guest artist/clinician, and composer/arranger. Among his other projects, he is a member of the JazzMN Big Band and leads the quintet APEX and the Jazz Saxophone Quartet, JazzAX.

Wisconsin native Kelly Rossum is one of the most lauded jazz innovators in the Twin Cities, and certainly one of the most eclectic--he cites as his primary influences Miles Davis, Jimi Hendrix, and J.S. Bach! With graduate degrees in Baroque trumpet, Rossum has freelanced in rock, swing, jazz and classical ensembles in the Twin Cities and is on the faculty of the MacPhail Center for Music as a trumpet and jazz instructor. He’s directing the brand new youth jazz ensemble, Dakota Combo. His latest recording, Line, will undoubtedly make many “best of” lists for 2006.

OTLQ: Live at the Artists Quarter
It is an overwhelming temptation to listen to the new recording in comparison to Dolphy’s original, and that would be a disservice to both ensembles. Berryman notes that there was never any attempt to duplicate the 1964 classic, although “Hagedorn’s charts retain the basic theme and structure” of the original five tracks as well as of two additional cuts culled from other Dolphy recordings (“Far Cry,” “The Prophet”). To fill out the CD, OTLQ includes Kelly Rossum’s “Rush Hour.” Explains Berryman, “The plan for this group was to include originals too that were inspired by Dolphy's work. Rossum's ‘Rush Hour’ has that sense of openness as do a lot of Dolphy's tunes.” The result is a full-length (77+ minutes) recording that parallels rather than mimics Dolphy’s classic while preserving its brash spirit, elegantly quirky rhythms and textures, and sophisticated collaboration. The sound is somewhat different as these five musicians speak in their own unique voices at a time four decades removed from the Blue Note session, and in a live rather than studio context. And as a live session, nearly all tracks have been extended by several minutes, giving the new OTLQ more space for experimentation. This is not a re-creation but an expanded variation on Dolphy’s themes.

The first five tracks of OTLQ Live at the AQ follow the sequence of Dolphy’s OTL, but faithful reproduction ends there. The opening track “Hat and Beard” sets the stage for all that follows: Great lines on bass clarinet from Dave Milne are supported by an underlying foundation from Tom Lewis; Dave Hagedorn picks up the momentum briefly before Kelly Rossum charges in; the horns engage in a series of repeated phrases with a bouncing rhythm managed throughout by Phil Hey. Hagedorn is a magician while Lewis is the heartbeat (particularly on his long solo), Hey the pumping heart. It’s easy to see why Dolphy said he was thinking about Monk when he wrote it.

“Something Sweet, Something Tender” is introduced by Milne’s bass clarinet with an arco undertow from Lewis, whose feathery lines here do recall Richard Davis. Sounding closer to Miles than Hubbard, Rossum picks up the lyrical line, Hagedorn adding a celestial gauze wrapper; the chords may be dissonant but the result is melodic.  Rossum alternates “sweet and tender” phrases with breathy flutters, the trumpeter’s role more expansive here than on the original recording, and the bass clarinet takes second chair, reprising the trumpet figures. The unison duet of Milne and Lewis, however, is very reminiscent of the Dolphy/Davis pairing.

Dolphy described his “Gazzelloni” as “Everybody holds to the construction for the first 13 bars, then—freedom.” With Milne playing a less fluttery, more classical flute, the journey here is somewhat less free and more lyrical. Lewis drives hard while Hey’s pulsating percussion is initially subtle but forceful. Rossum takes over the horn lines with warbling phrases before devolving into a sequence of quasi-melodic clusters, while it is left to Hagedorn to make the most lyrical presentation. As Hey becomes more agitated and out front, Hagedorn’s lines become increasingly intricate with bobbing and weaving rhythms. Lewis tells his own tale with whining, twisting lines before the ensemble falls together in a final cacophony.

The title track starts with a military-like drum roll. As if there were five independent scripts, each musician plays a substantive role in his own time. Initially showcasing the rhythmic verve and melodicism of Dave Hagedorn, support comes from Hey’s constant rippling  and Lewis’ thrusting vamp, while the brass sit back and wait. Unlike the other tracks, here the music is compressed by four minutes, making for a more concise interaction between Milne (on bass clarinet) and Rossum. Intersecting over the rhythm section, the horns blow some wild passages that evoke cackling geese. Hey starts a new episode, crackling the snare over scintillating cymbals, then adding more bass thumps and rimshots to his overall rumbling. Coming to a halt, Hey then reprises his opening roll, and the whole ensemble jumps aboard, a march-like phrase folding into a climactic collective sound bite.

“Straight Up and Down” completes the Out to Lunch sequence. Wailing, squealing brass and vibes sound out the theme with the funkiest rhythm of the set. Dolphy himself best described this composition when he wrote that it “reminds me of a drunk walking, straight up and down….” The vibes provide the backdrop to Rossum’s staggering phrases and whiney swirls that foreshadow a series of fluttering improvised lines. Lewis answers with his own flutter from down deep, while Hey kicks up the percussion. Hagedorn continues the mellow counterpoint, then with Lewis creates a dissonant echo. Milne (bass clarinet) mirrors Rossum’s lines and there’s a nice dissipation from Hagedorn before the ensemble restates the goofy theme.

The title cut to the Prestige release, “Far Cry” is given a high-energy start with blistering brass. Rossum gets the first call with short phrases that climb up and down over Hagedorn’s chords and a quick pulse from Lewis and Hey. Lewis has a strong line underway as Milne brings out the alto, sliding around as he explores some of the territory opened by Rossum, while Lewis continues his counter claim. With some looping themes, Hagedorn adds more ingredients as he moves along with some occasionally dissonant hits, then picks up speed such that you can easily imagine his hands flying in your mind’s eye. Hey jumps in with a vengeance with Lewis quickly following suit, like the eruption of a sudden storm. Bass and drum introduce the reappearance of the brass section, and a flurry of notes from all bring resolution.

The longest track at just under 12 minutes, “The Prophet” begins with two dissonant horns stating what could be a ballad on a more traditional chart. There’s a more majestic tone here than on any other tunes in the set. On alto, Dave Milne takes it apart immediately with boppishly inventive phrases, meeting up again with Rossum for a few lines of conversation before retaking the lead.
The rhythm section offers empathetic support, celestial sustained notes from the vibes carrying across Milne’s short twists that dissolve into an extended solo journey (about 5 minutes). Hagedorn returns at his most elegant at the halfway mark, a counter line from Lewis anchoring the bottom while Hey remains subtle but always close at hand.  A unison trumpet and alto segment counters a pounding pulse from Hey and a more agitated line from Lewis. Milne takes yet one more solo spin from bottom to top of the alto and the ensemble gathers together for a glorious finish.

The lone original work from this ensemble, Kelly Rossum’s “Rush Hour” is the shortest track, still running just under 7 minutes. An opening fury of horns detours into a side street of Hagedorn’s vibraphonics, but it’s a short reprieve as Hagedorn moves into the fast lane, pulled by frenetic bass and drums. The brass pull out their respective catcalls and traffic seems grid locked at the intersection of buzzing bass and staccato trumpet honks. Milne blazes ahead on alto despite arguments from all sides til Hey catches fire, catapulting into a deconstruction zone of crowd pleasing antics that end the set.

It is said that jazz is “never played the same way once.” Clearly that fits the original Out to Lunch, and just as clearly, it fits the new Out to Lunch Quintet. The CD comes as close as possible to capturing the magic of the nights of live recording in St. Paul, and those of us with emerging tastes for adventurous music look forward to more Dolphy-inspired evenings with the OTLQ.

“We hope to help increase demand for live jazz so, as Dewey Redman said, ‘musicians can keep appearing and stop disappearing.’” –Don Berryman

The Artists Quarter is located at 408 St. Peter Street in the lower level of the Hamm Building in downtown St. Paul. Visit www.artistsquarter.com. You can purchase the CD at the show or online at www.otlq.com. This review was originally posted on the Jazz Police website (administered by CD producer Don Berryman) at www.jazzpolice.com