Music notes--Somewhere Before

Maybe it is just me and the holiday season, but the cd Somewhere Before reminds me of the Vince Guaraldi Trio. I have enjoyed it, but there is that feel.

What is fun about the disc is the forays into ragtime and blues that Jarrett would later meld into his interesting and unique style. On “Moving Soon,” one gets a taste of the “free” improvisation that, again, Jarrett would later perfect, but here is a bit raw. However, we do get the fine work of two of the greats in the jazz: Charlie Haden (bass) and Paul Motian (drums). Though this isn’t the best work I have heard out of Jarrett, it is a nice addition for the collector, and does show some of the promise to come.

Along with this disc, I found four tunes from a package called The Dylan Concert, I assume because there are covers of “My Back Pages” and “Lay Lady Lay.” “My Back Pages is also on Somewhere Before. Both discs are live albums. A couple of the reviews I read of these discs were not too kind concerning the covers, but I did enjoy both versions of “My Back Pages.” The latter disc does contain a “free” piece with Jarrett on the saxophone, a bit of treat for me, but something that is not likely to win over the casual fan.