| Explorations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | End of March 1961 [1] | |||
| Recorded | February 2, 1961 | |||
| Studio | Bell Sound (New York City) | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 39:48 (original LP) 50:58 (1987 reissue) 60:00 (2011 reissue) | |||
| Label | Riverside RLP 351 | |||
| Producer | Orrin Keepnews | |||
| The Bill Evans Trio chronology | ||||
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Explorations is an album by jazz pianist Bill Evans that was originally released on Riverside label in 1961. The album won the Billboard Jazz Critics Best Piano LP poll for 1961.
Explorations was the second album Evans recorded with his trio of Scott LaFaro on bass and Paul Motian on drums. Evans considered it one of his favorites from this period. Producer Orrin Keepnews in the liner notes talks about the two extra pieces that were released on the CD, "Beautiful Love (take 1)" and "The Boy Next Door"; the first version of "Beautiful Love" to be included in the original LP was a second take. In fact, as Keepnews specifies, "it is not the usual case of a second attempt that immediately followed the first. Early in this date, he played this number once; we both approved, and he moved on to something else. Much later, he decided to try a second 'Beautiful Love', which he later preferred." "The Boy Next Door," on the other hand, was set aside at the time of the LP, because of the limited space available on the album.
The album was remastered and reissued by Original Jazz Classics in 2011 with two previously unissued alternate takes.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| All About Jazz | (no rating) [2] |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [4] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [5] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [6] |
The album won the Billboard Jazz Critics Best Piano LP poll for 1961. [7]
David Rickert of All About Jazz wrote: "...Evans demands to be heard, seducing you with his indelibly emotional playing... The trio works magic here, breathing fresh air into standards such as 'How Deep Is the Ocean?' and 'Beautiful Love' and creating the illusion that these songs were written just so someone like Evans could play them. The highlight of the album is 'Elsa,' which is one of the most beautiful piano ballads on record." [2] Writing for Allmusic, critic Thom Jurek said of the album: "Evans, with Paul Motian and Scott LaFaro, was onto something as a trio, exploring the undersides of melodic and rhythmic constructions that had never been considered by most... Explorations is an extraordinary example of the reach and breadth of this trio at its peak." [3]
William John Evans was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His interpretations of traditional jazz repertoire, his ways of using impressionist harmony and block chords, and his trademark rhythmically independent, "singing" melodic lines, continue to influence jazz pianists today.
Rocco Scott LaFaro was an American jazz double bassist known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio. LaFaro broke new ground on the instrument, developing a countermelodic style of accompaniment rather than playing traditional walking basslines, as well as virtuosity that was practically unmatched by any of his contemporaries. Despite his short career, he remains one of the most influential jazz bassists, and was ranked number 16 on Bass Player magazine's top 100 bass players of all time.
Portrait in Jazz is the fifth studio album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans as a leader, released in 1960. It is the first of only two studio albums to be recorded with his famous trio featuring bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian.
New Jazz Conceptions is the debut album by jazz musician Bill Evans, released in 1957 on Riverside Records.
Sunday at the Village Vanguard is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his Trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. Released in 1961, the album is routinely ranked as one of the best live jazz recordings of all time.
Stephen Paul Motian was an American jazz drummer, percussionist, and composer. Motian played an important role in freeing jazz drummers from strict time-keeping duties.
Waltz for Debby is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. It was released in 1962.
Orrin Keepnews was an American jazz writer and record producer known for founding Riverside Records and Milestone Records, for freelance work, and for his work at other labels.
Moon Beams is a 1962 album by jazz musician Bill Evans, and the first trio album recorded by Evans after the death of bassist Scott LaFaro.
A jazz trio is a group of three jazz musicians, often a piano trio comprising a pianist, a double bass player and a drummer. Jazz trios are commonly named after their leader, such as the Bill Evans Trio.
The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in San Francisco is a 1959 album by The Cannonball Adderley Quintet.
On Green Dolphin Street is a record album credited to jazz musician Bill Evans. It was released in 1977 through the Victor Music Industries Inc. Japanese label as an imprint for Riverside. The songs were recorded in 1959.
How My Heart Sings! is an album recorded by jazz musician Bill Evans in 1962, at the same time as Moon Beams.
Interplay is a 1963 album by jazz musician Bill Evans. It was recorded in July 1962 in New York City for Riverside Records. The Interplay Sessions is a 1982 Milestone album that includes the entirety of this album, and tracks recorded for Riverside on August 21 and 22 of the same year with a different lineup . The Interplay Sessions peaked at number 26 on the Billboard Jazz Albums charts in 1983. The CD reissue Interplay adds another take of "I'll Never Smile Again" as a bonus track. At the Grammy Awards of 1984, Orrin Keepnews won the Grammy Award for Best Album Notes for the reissue.
At Shelly's Manne-Hole is a live album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans, released in 1963 as his last recording for the Riverside label. The trio featured Chuck Israels, who followed Scott LaFaro on bass in autumn 1961, and Larry Bunker on drums, who just joined the reformed trio, after Paul Motian had left. An additional eight performances recorded during the trio's May, 1963 engagement at Shelly's Manne-Hole were released on the album Time Remembered.
The Bill Evans Album is an album by the jazz pianist Bill Evans, released in 1971. It is his first album to feature all compositions written, arranged and performed by Evans.
Boss Guitar is an album by American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, released in 1963 by Riverside. It was reissued on the Original Jazz Classics label with alternate takes. All the tracks are available on Wes Montgomery: The Complete Riverside Recordings.
Turn Out the Stars: The Final Village Vanguard Recordings is a six-CD box set live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera recorded over four nights at the Village Vanguard in New York City in 1980 and released on CD on the Warner Bros. label in 1996. A concurrent LP release was made on Mosaic.
"Nardis" is a composition by American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis. It was written in 1958, during Davis's modal period, to be played by Cannonball Adderley for the album Portrait of Cannonball. The piece has come to be associated with pianist Bill Evans, who performed and recorded it many times.
Sonic Explorations is the debut album by American jazz pianist Matthew Shipp and alto saxophonist Rob Brown, originally issued on LP in 1988 on Cadence Jazz.
