| Natives and Aliens | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 1997 |
| Recorded | May 24, 1996 |
| Studio | Gateway Studios, London |
| Genre | Free jazz |
| Label | Leo Records CD LR 243 |
| Producer | Evan Parker, Leo Feigin |
Natives and Aliens is an album by the members of the Evan Parker Trio (saxophonist Evan Parker, bassist Barry Guy, and drummer Paul Lytton), with guest pianist Marilyn Crispell. It was recorded on May 24, 1996, at Gateway Studios in London, and was released in 1997 by Leo Records. [1] [2]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz |  [4] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [5] |
In a review for AllMusic, Stewart Mason wrote: "these 11 tracks are fluid, small-group improvisations that slot Crispell neatly into the practiced interplay of Parker's trio... The Evan Parker Trio, as always, play with the intuition and improvisatory grace that comes when skilled musicians are in tune with each other's idiosyncracies, giving Natives and Aliens a light -- almost swinging, in the old-school sense -- touch that's often missing in this brand of modern jazz." [3]
The authors of the Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings awarded the album 3½ stars, and stated: "it's interesting to hear Parker, so long devoted to the microtonal devastation of Western harmony, woking in the context of an instrument with fixed pitches." They wrote that Crispell creates "huge, resonant chords which are difficult to analyse with any precision but into which the entire trio seems to be subsumed." [4]
Evan Shaw Parker is a British tenor and soprano saxophone player who plays free improvisation.
Marilyn Crispell is an American jazz pianist and composer. Scott Yanow described her as "a powerful player... who has her own way of using space... She is near the top of her field." Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote: "Hearing Marilyn Crispell play solo piano is like monitoring an active volcano... She is one of a very few pianists who rise to the challenge of free jazz." In addition to her own extensive work as a soloist or bandleader, Crispell is also known as a longtime member of saxophonist Anthony Braxton's quartet in the 1980s and '90s.
Barry John Guy is an English composer and double bass player. His range of interests encompasses early music, contemporary composition, jazz and improvisation, and he has worked with a wide variety of orchestras in the UK and Europe. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music under Buxton Orr, and later taught there.
Paul Lytton is an English free jazz and free improvising percussionist.
Toward the Margins is an album by the Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble, recorded in 1996 and released on the ECM New Series the following year.
Drawn Inward is an album by the Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble recorded in December 1998 and released on ECM the following year.
The Redwood Session is an album by saxophonist Evan Parker with bassist Barry Guy and drummer Paul Lytton recorded in 1995 which was the first release on the CIMP label.
50th Birthday Concert is a double CD live album by British saxophonist and improviser Evan Parker recorded at Dingwalls in 1993 and released on the English Leo label.
Atlanta is a live album by saxophonist Evan Parker. It was recorded in December 1986 in Atlanta, Georgia, and was released by Impetus Records in 1990. On the album, Parker is joined by bassist Barry Guy and drummer Paul Lytton.
Odyssey is an album by bassist Barry Guy, pianist Marilyn Crispell, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded on August 24 and 25, 1999, at Rote Fabrik in Zurich, Switzerland, and was released in 2001 by Intakt Records.
Ithaca is an album by bassist Barry Guy, pianist Marilyn Crispell, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded on January 14 and 15, 2003, at Radio Studio DRS in Zurich, Switzerland, and was released in 2004 by Intakt Records.
Phases of the Night is an album by bassist Barry Guy, pianist Marilyn Crispell, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded on May 30 and 31, 2007, at Studio Sound Development in Zurich, Switzerland, and was released in 2008 by Intakt Records.
Deep Memory is an album by bassist Barry Guy, pianist Marilyn Crispell, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded on May 21, 2015, at Powerplay Studios in Maur, Switzerland, and was released in 2016 by Intakt Records. The album features seven compositions by Guy, all named after and inspired by paintings of Hughie O'Donoghue.
Inscape–Tableaux is an album by bassist Barry Guy. It was recorded on May 18 and 19, 2000, at Rote Fabrik in Zürich, Switzerland, and was released in 2001 by Intakt Records. On the album, which features a seven-part composition by Guy, he plays bass and directs members of his New Orchestra: Evan Parker and Mats Gustafsson on saxophone, Hans Koch on saxophone and clarinet, Herb Robertson on trumpet, Johannes Bauer on trombone, Per Åke Holmlander on tuba, Marilyn Crispell on piano, and Paul Lytton and Raymond Strid on percussion.
After Appleby is a double-CD album by the members of the Evan Parker Trio, with guest pianist Marilyn Crispell. One CD was recorded on June 28, 1999, at Gateway Studio in London, while the other was recorded live the following day at the Vortex Jazz Club in London. The recordings took place immediately after the Appleby Jazz Festival, where the musicians performed in a variety of combinations. The album was released in 2000 by Leo Records.
Oort–Entropy is an album by bassist Barry Guy. It was recorded in May and July, 2004, at SWR Studio in Baden-Baden, Germany, and was released in 2005 by Intakt Records. On the album, which features a three-part composition by Guy, he plays bass and conducts members of his New Orchestra: Evan Parker and Mats Gustafsson on saxophone, Hans Koch on bass clarinet, Herb Robertson on trumpet, Johannes Bauer on trombone, Per Åke Holmlander on tuba, Agustí Fernández on piano, and Paul Lytton and Raymond Strid on percussion. Oort–Entropy is the group's second recording, following 2001's Inscape–Tableaux.
Harmos is an album by Barry Guy and the London Jazz Composers' Orchestra that features a recording of a large-scale, 44-minute composition by Guy. It was recorded in April 1989, just before the LJCO's 20th anniversary, in Zürich, Switzerland, and was released later that year by Intakt Records. Guy interpreted the Greek title in its original meaning of "coming together," and the work attempts to find solutions to the challenges surrounding the coexistence of improvisation and composition.
Double Trouble Two is an album by Barry Guy and the London Jazz Composers' Orchestra with guest artists Irène Schweizer (piano), Marilyn Crispell (piano), and Pierre Favre (drums). Documenting a large-scale, 47-minute composition by Guy, it was recorded in December 1995 in Zürich, Switzerland, and was released in 1998 by Intakt Records.
At the Vortex is a live album by saxophonist Evan Parker, bassist Barry Guy, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded on June 26, 1996, at The Vortex in London, and was released by Emanem Records in 1998.
Live at Maya Recordings Festival is a live album by saxophonist Evan Parker, double bassist Barry Guy, and drummer Paul Lytton. It was recorded during September 23–25, 2011, at the Theater am Gleis in Winterthur, Switzerland, and was released on both vinyl and CD in 2013 by NoBusiness Records.
