Henry Threadgill
The Complete Remastered Recordings on Black Saint and Soul Note
C.A.M.

C.A.M. get this month’s award for services to jazz for the release of this essential collection, which includes all Henry Threadgill’s albums for the Italian sister labels Black Saint/Soul Note between 1977 and 1997. Threadgill released other albums on other labels over the same period, most notably those with Air?“Air Song” and “Air Raid” (India Navigation, 1975 and 1976), “Air Time” (Nessa, 1977), three albums that followed on Novus, and “80? Below ‘82” (Antilles, 1982). There’s nothing at all here by the Henry Threadgill Sextett that released albums on Novus throughout the 80s (thankfully the Novus titles are soon to get the box set treatment from Mosaic). What there is, however, gives a pretty excellent introduction to the full range of Threadgill’s musical evolution over the period.

All of the discs have been remastered, but I can’t comment on any improvements in the sound as I don’t have any of the originals to hand, either on vinyl or CD, but it seems the best has been done with the source tapes for the two early live recordings (“Live Air”, ” Live at Montreal”), and otherwise the sound quality is as good as you’d expect from the original labels, whose owner Flavio Bonandrini always took the music seriously. I could carp about the no-expense-incurred nature of the packaging, just the original sleeves printed on thin card and shrunk to fit into a basic box, but if you have a decent magnifying device all of the information you need is there, and it’s not as if the original artwork is anything special in any case (sorry, Mr. Bonandrini).

Although none of these albums are quite the essential picks from Threadgill’s considerable catalogue?“Air Mail”, for instance, may not be quite as essential as “Air Time”?there’s really not much in it. Threadgill was ever consistently invigorating, both as a performer and, increasingly, as a singular and innovative composer and band leader. As with only the real greats, everything Threadgill produces is worthwhile; everything you get to hear informs and enriches what you’ve already heard. If all you know of Threadgill is last year’s Zooid recording, “This Brings Us To”, this box set will give you a pretty good idea of how that sound evolved.

From Air via New Air to Flute Force Four, these discs show Threadgill growing in confidence as a composer. By the time of the later disc by Threadgill’s Very Very Circus ensemble his capability as an organiser of human resources in the pursuit of a steely personal vision is fully formed. Everything that has come since is a refinement of that very personal means of expression. Where Air is an extension of Threadgill’s involvement with AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians), and was similarly nurtured by the Civil Rights movement and informed by a militant post-Vietnam consciousness (Threadgill was a veteran of that war, and played in a rock band during his posting), later discs contain music that is inimitably Threadgill’s own.

Bought together here, “Live at Montreal International Jazz Festival” and “Air Show No. 1” represent the complete recorded legacy of New Air, a trio in which Pheeroan akLaff took over from Steve McCall on the Air drum stool. It’s interesting how much more direct the music becomes, and it’s not clear whether that’s down to McCall, or Threadgill assuming for the first time the role of band leader and sole composer.” Air Show No. 1” is unusual in featuring vocals by Cassandra Wilson on three tracks. It dates from the era of Wilson’s involvement with M-Base collective and her reciprocal collaborations with Steve Coleman, and it’s nice to be reminded how fresh and compelling she was at the time.

The Flute Force Four material on “Flutistry”, for flute quartet, is, much like Charles Mingus’ solo piano works, best taken a piece at a time, because it demands concentration. Four of the six compositions are by Threadgill, and the textural clarity of the limited palate here only highlights how elegantly complex those compositions are.

“Spirit of Nuff?Nuff” is the most essential thing here, as it documents the paradigm shift in Threadgill’s composing for and recording of the mid-sized ensemble. The funky bounce of a brass section usurps the traditional role of the bassist, and Latin rhythms are integrated with those derived from formative influences as diverse as marching bands, gospel, blues and soul. Such ensembles have become his favoured vehicles ever since.

Equally essential, “Song out of My Trees”, with its various groupings of collective personnel, demonstrates how specific the casting of Threadgill’s musicians is to any realization of his conception, and how specifically his composing is tailored to their characteristic individual talents.

Original albums and personnel

Air: Live Air (1977) / Air Mail (1980) - with Fred Hopkins and Steve McCall.

New Air: Live at Montreal International Jazz Festival (1983) / Air Show No. 1 (1986) - with Fred Hopkins, Pheeroan akLaff and, on Air Show only, Cassandra Wilson

Flute Force Four: Flutistry (1990) - with James Newton, Pedro Eustache, Melecio Magdaluyo

Very Very Circus: Spirit of Nuff?Nuff (1990) - with Curtis Fowlkes, Brandon Ross, Masujaa, Edwin Rodriguez, Marcus Rojas, Gene Lake

Henry Threadgill: Song Out of My Trees (1993) - Collective personnel: Ted Daniel, Jerome Harris, James Emery, Ed Cherry, Myra Melford, Tony Cedrus, Amina Claudia Myers, Diedre Murray, Michelle Kinney, Mossa Bildner, Ted Daniel, Reggie Nicholson

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