Jimmy Lyons was an American alto saxophone player. He is best known for his long tenure in the Cecil Taylor Unit. Lyons was the only constant member of the band from the mid-1960s until his death. Taylor never worked with another musician as frequently as he did with Lyons. Lyons' playing, influenced by Charlie Parker, kept Taylor's avant-garde music tethered to the jazz tradition.
Frank Wright was an American free jazz musician, known for his frantic style of playing the tenor saxophone. Critics often compare his music to that of Albert Ayler, although Wright "offers his honks and squawks with a phraseology derived from the slower, earthier funk of R&B and gospel music." According to AllMusic biographer Chris Kelsey, Wright "never recorded even a single record under his own name for a major label; he was 'underground' his entire career." In addition to tenor saxophone, Wright also played the soprano saxophone and bass clarinet.
Raphe Malik, born Laurence Mazel was an American jazz trumpeter.
Into the Hot is an album released under the auspices of Gil Evans featuring a large ensemble under the direction of John Carisi and the Cecil Taylor Unit. The album was released on the Impulse! label in 1962.
Spring of Two Blue-J's is a 1974 live album by Cecil Taylor, the second set of a "return concert" recorded at The Town Hall in New York City in November 1973. Originally released on Taylor's Unit Core label, bootlegged on European CDs, it was legitimately reissued for the first time in 2022 on global streaming platforms by its original producer, Fred Seibert's Oblivion Records. The LP features one side-long solo performance by Taylor and one side-long quartet performance with Jimmy Lyons, Sirone, and Andrew Cyrille.
Dark to Themselves is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded at the Ljubljana Jazz Festival, Yugoslavia, on June 18, 1976, and released on the Enja label. The album features Taylor on piano with alto saxophonist Jimmy Lyons, tenor saxophonist David S. Ware, trumpeter Raphe Malik, and drummer Marc Edwards. The original LP release presented the music in edited form, while the CD reissue contains the complete performance, restoring sections that were previously excised.
3 Phasis is an album by Cecil Taylor, recorded in April 1978 and released on the New World label. The album features three performances by Taylor with Raphe Malik, Jimmy Lyons, Ramsey Ameen, Sirone, and Ronald Shannon Jackson. The album was recorded during the same sessions that produced the Cecil Taylor Unit.
Live in the Black Forest is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded in June 1978 at the SWF-Radio JazzConcert in Kirchzarten, Black Forest, West Germany, and released on the MPS label. The album features two performances by Taylor with Raphe Malik, Jimmy Lyons, Ramsey Ameen, Sirone and Ronald Shannon Jackson.
One Too Many Salty Swift and Not Goodbye is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded in Stuttgart, Germany, on June 14, 1978 and released on the Hat Hut label. The album features performances by Taylor with Raphe Malik, Jimmy Lyons, Ramsey Ameen, Sirone and Ronald Shannon Jackson. The album was originally released as a triple LP featuring the Cecil Taylor Unit performances then rereleased as a double CD with duets by Lyons & Malik and Ameen & Sirone and a solo by Shannon Jackson added and the titles changed to the performers for each track.
It is in the Brewing Luminous is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded at Fat Tuesdays, NYC, on February 8 & 9, 1980 and released on the Hat Hut label. The album features performances by Taylor with Jimmy Lyons, Ramsey Ameen, Alan Silva, Jerome Cooper and Sunny Murray. The album was originally released as a double LP then rereleased as a single CD.
Always a Pleasure is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded during the Workshop Freie Musik at the Akademie der Kunste, Berlin on April 8, 1993, and released in 1996 on the FMP label. The album features a concert performance by Taylor with Longineu Parsons, Harri Sjöström, Charles Gayle, Tristan Honsinger, Sirone and Rashid Bakr.
Afro-Cuban is an album by American jazz trumpeter Kenny Dorham, recorded for Blue Note on March 29, 1955 and released later that year on the Blue Note Modern Jazz Series, shortly before the label discontinued the format. It was soon reissued on the new 1500 series, recompiled with a session by an early incarnation of the ensemble, with new cover art.
Colorfield is an album by American jazz guitarist Joe Morris, which was recorded in 2009 and released on the ESP-Disk label. He leads a trio with pianist Steve Lantner, in his first recording with Morris as leader, and long-time collaborator drummer Luther Gray. The music is inspired, in part, by the Color Field school of painting, in which large patches of color, occasionally just one color, make up the composition. Another inspiration for the music is the early Cecil Taylor Unit recordings with Jimmy Lyons on alto saxophone and either Sunny Murray or Andrew Cyrille on drums.
Last Set: Live at the 1369 Jazz Club is an album by American jazz trumpeter Raphe Malik recorded in 1984 but not issued until 2004 by the Boxholder label. The live set adds tenor saxophonist Frank Wright as special guest to the regular trio of Malik, bassist William Parker and drummer Syd Smart.
Sirens Sweet & Slow is an album by the American jazz trumpeter Raphe Malik, released in 1994 on Mapleshade's sublabel OutSounds. The album was recorded in three marathon sessions that resulted in enough music to fill at least four CDs. It was planned to put together two albums, but finally only the first one was issued emphasizing the ballad and lyrical side.
Looking East: A Suite in Three Parts is a double album by American jazz trumpeter Raphe Malik featuring a quartet with reedman Sabir Mateen, bassist Larry Roland and drummer Codaryl "Cody" Moffett, which was released on the Boxholder label. The album documents a concert performance organized by the Boston Creative Music Alliance in 1999.
21st Century Texts is an album by American jazz trumpeter Raphe Malik, which was recorded live during the Workshop Freie Musik at The Akademie der Künste in Berlin, and released on the German FMP label. Malik reformed his quintet in 1989 with his old partner Glenn Spearman on tenor, Brian King Nelson on C-melody sax, Larry Roland on bass and Dennis Warren on drums. The ensemble toured Europe in 1991 for a series of four concerts.
Lifting the Bandstand is a live album by Cecil Taylor recorded during the Tampere Jazz Happening in Tampere, Finland, on October 30, 1998, and released in 2021 by Fundacja Słuchaj!. On the album, Taylor is joined by saxophonist Harri Sjöström, cellist Tristan Honsinger, bassist Teppo Hauta-aho, and drummer Paul Lovens. The album consists of a single group improvisation.
Göttingen is a double-CD live album by pianist Cecil Taylor. It was recorded at the Junges Theater in Göttingen, Germany in September 1990, and was released in 2021 by Fundacja Słuchaj!. On the album, Taylor is joined by an ensemble of a dozen musicians. The recording took place roughly two years after the concert documented on Legba Crossing, and features many of the same players.
Artistry is an album by bassist Sirone, his first as a leader. It was recorded on July 5, 1978, at Generation Sound in New York City, and was released in 1979 by the Of The Cosmos label. On the album, Sirone is joined by flutist James Newton, cellist Muneer Bernard Fennell, and percussionist Don Moye. Liner notes were provided by Stanley Crouch.
