| Hagar's Song | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 26, 2013 | |||
| Recorded | April 2012 | |||
| Studio | Santa Barbara Sound Design Santa Barbara, California | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 68:58 | |||
| Label | ECM 2311 | |||
| Producer | Charles Lloyd and Dorothy Darr | |||
| Charles Lloyd chronology | ||||
| ||||
Hagar's Song is an album by saxophonist Charles Lloyd and pianist Jason Moran recorded in April 2012 and released on ECM February the following year. [1]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 79/100 [2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
| All About Jazz | [4] |
| The Guardian | [5] |
| PopMatters |   [6] |
Response was positive, with Metacritic assigning the album an aggregate score of 79 out of 100 based on 6 critical reviews indicating "Generally favorable reviews". [2]
The AllMusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars stating "Hagar's Song finds Lloyd and Moran at their most naturally curious and deeply attentive best, offering a conversation so intimate the listener may occasionally feel she is eavesdropping." [3]
All About Jazz reviewer John Kelman said, "In a set that runs the gamut from well-known standards by George Gershwin, Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington to relatively more contemporary fare from Bob Dylan and Brian Wilson, Lloyd and Moran demonstrate the kind of empathy and trust that only comes from considerably time spent together ... There's little that's predictable about either player, but with Hagar's Song—imbued, as it is, with constants of surprise, simpatico and stellar performances—both Lloyd and Moran have made the leap to a new plateau." [4]
In The Guardian , John Fordham wrote "Saxophonist Charles Lloyd, soon to be 75, here gives an intimate closeup of his warm relationship with brilliant pianist Jason Moran—and with his enslaved great-great-grandmother, who names the album through Lloyd's suite in her memory." [5]
The PopMatters review by Will Layman observed "Hagar’s Song is nothing more and nothing less than a set of duets with Moran. And in many respects it is the most intimate—and best—work of Lloyd’s career ... Hagar’s Song is low on flash. And it rests with love against your ear." [6]
All compositions by Charles Lloyd except as indicated
Although it is billed as a Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges album, Side by Side is a 1959 album mostly under the leadership of Johnny Hodges, Duke Ellington's alto saxophonist for many years. Ellington only appears on three of this album's tracks. The album places Hodges at the fore, backing him with piano by Ellington or Billy Strayhorn and providing other accompaniment by jazz figures like Ben Webster, Roy Eldridge, Harry "Sweets" Edison and Jo Jones. The album, a follow-up to Back to Back: Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges Play the Blues, has remained perpetually in print.
Rabo de Nube is a live album by the Charles Lloyd Quartet recorded in Basel on April 27, 2007 and released on ECM the following year. The quartet features pianist Jason Moran, bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Eric Harland.
Sangam is a live album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd recorded in Santa Barbara, California on May 23, 2004 and released on ECM in April 2006. The trio features percussion section Zakir Hussain and Eric Harland.
Jumping the Creek is an album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd recorded in January 2004 and released on ECM April the following year. The quartet features rhythm section Geri Allen, Robert Hurst and Eric Harland.
The Water Is Wide is an album by American jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd recorded in December 1999 and released on ECM August the following year. The quintet features rhythm section John Abercrombie, Brad Mehldau, Larry Grenadier and Billy Higgins, with a guest appearance from bassist Darek Oles. The session, which also produced Hyperion with Higgins (2001), was one of Higgins' last before his death in 2001.
Voice in the Night is an album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd recorded in May 1998 and released on ECM March the following year. The quartet features rhythm section John Abercrombie, Dave Holland and Billy Higgins.
Which Way Is East is a double-album of duets by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd and percussionist Billy Higgins recorded in January 2001 and released on ECM in March 2004. The album contains the last recordings by Higgins before he died in May 2001.
Mirror is an album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd recorded in December 2009 and released on ECM in September the following year.
Athens Concert is a live album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd and his quartet with Greek singer Maria Farantouri, recorded in June 2010 and released on ECM the following year.
Incidentals is an album by Tim Berne's Snakeoil recorded in December 2014 and released on ECM August 25, 2017—the band's fourth album for the label.
Snakeoil is an album by the American composer and saxophonist Tim Berne released on the ECM label in 2012.
Shadow Man is an album by American composer and saxophonist Tim Berne's band Snakeoil, recorded in January 2013 and released on ECM in October later that year.
Lost in a Dream is a live album by jazz drummer Paul Motian, recorded at the Village Vanguard in February 2009 and released on ECM the following year. It features tenor saxophonist Chris Potter and pianist Jason Moran.
Mágico: Carta de Amor is a live album by saxophonist Jan Garbarek, guitarist Egberto Gismonti and bassist Charlie Haden recorded in 1981 and released on ECM three decades later in 2012. The album follows the trio's first two recordings Magico (1979) and Folk Songs (1981).
Extended Circle is an album by the Tord Gustavsen Quartet recorded in June 2013 and released on ECM January the following year. The quartet features saxophonist Tore Brunborg and rhythm section Mats Eilertsen and Jarle Vespestad.
Rava on the Dance Floor is a live album by Italian jazz trumpeter and composer Enrico Rava with Parco della Musica Jazz Lab, performing songs by Michael Jackson recorded in Italy in 2011 and released on the ECM label.
The Thompson Fields is an album by the Maria Schneider Orchestra that won the Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album in 2017. Schneider was the composer, conductor, and co-producer of the autobiographical work. The title comes from the Minnesota farm where she was raised.
Passin' Thru is a live album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd, recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival and in Santa Fe in 2016 and released on the Blue Note label in 2017.
Hommage à Eberhard Weber is a live tribute album celebrating German double bassist and composer Eberhard Weber's 75th birthday recorded by the German public broadcaster SWR in Stuttgart in 2015 featuring Pat Metheny, Jan Garbarek, Gary Burton, Scott Colley, Danny Gottlieb, Paul McCandless, with Michael Gibbs and Helge Sunde conducting the SWR Big Band which was released on the ECM label.
Surrounded by Sea is an album by British saxophonist and composer Andy Sheppard recorded in Switzerland in 2014 and released on the ECM label the following year.
