| Open, to Love | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1972 | |||
| Recorded | September 11, 1972 | |||
| Studio | Arne Bendiksen Studio Oslo, Norway | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 42:32 | |||
| Label | ECM 1023 ST | |||
| Producer | Manfred Eicher | |||
| Paul Bley chronology | ||||
| ||||
Open, to Love is a solo album by Canadian jazz pianist and composer Paul Bley recorded on September 11, 1972 and released on ECM later that year.
The album is one of the first showcases of the pointillism and silence that would inform much of his later work. [1]
Open, to Love was selected as part of the ECM Touchstones series, as one of the most influential recordings on the label. [2]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [1] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz | [3] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [4] |
The AllMusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 5 stars stating "Despite the fact that pianist and composer Paul Bley had been a renowned and innovative jazzman for nearly 20 years, 1973 saw the release of his most mature and visionary work, and one that to this day remains his opus. This is one of the most influential solo piano recordings in jazz history, and certainly one that defined the sound of the German label ECM... Ultimately, what Bley offers is jazz pianism as a new kind of aural poetics, one that treats the extension of the composer's line much as the poet treats the line as the extension of breath. Sheer brilliance." [1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz said "There is, perhaps, inevitably a hint of deja-vu here and there, but the territory is always much too interesting for that to become a problem." [3]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Closer" | Carla Bley | 5:51 |
| 2. | "Ida Lupino" | Carla Bley | 7:31 |
| 3. | "Started" | Paul Bley | 5:13 |
| Total length: | 18:36 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Open, to Love" | Annette Peacock | 7:10 |
| 2. | "Harlem" | Paul Bley | 3:22 |
| 3. | "Seven" | Carla Bley | 7:21 |
| 4. | "Nothing Ever Was, Anyway" | Annette Peacock | 6:02 |
| Total length: | 23:56 42:32 | ||
Carla Bley was an American jazz composer, pianist, organist, and bandleader. An important figure in the free jazz movement of the 1960s, she was perhaps best known for her jazz opera Escalator over the Hill, as well as a book of compositions that have been performed by many other artists, including Gary Burton, Jimmy Giuffre, George Russell, Art Farmer, Robert Wyatt, John Scofield, and her ex-husband Paul Bley. She was a pioneer in the development of independent artist-owned record labels, and recorded over two dozen albums between 1966 and 2019.
Paul Bley, CM was a Canadian jazz pianist known for his contributions to the free jazz movement of the 1960s as well as his innovations and influence on trio playing and his early live performance on the Moog and ARP synthesizers. His music has been described by Ben Ratliff of the New York Times as "deeply original and aesthetically aggressive". Bley's prolific output includes influential recordings from the 1950s through to his solo piano recordings of the 2000s.
The Ballad of the Fallen is a jazz album by bassist Charlie Haden, with arrangements by Carla Bley, recorded in November 1982 and released on ECM October the following year.
Facing You is a solo album by jazz pianist Keith Jarrett, recorded on November 10, 1971and released on ECM March the following year—the first of a half-century of releases for the label.
Dinner Music is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley recorded in 1976 and released on the Watt/ECM label in 1977.
Musique Mecanique is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley recorded in 1978 and released on the Watt/ECM label in 1979.
Social Studies is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley, recorded in 1980 and released on the Watt/ECM label in 1981.
Looking for America is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley recorded in 2002 and released on the Watt/ECM label in 2003.
The Lost Chords is a live album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley with Andy Sheppard, Steve Swallow, and Billy Drummond recorded in Europe in 2003 and released on the Watt/ECM label in 2004.
The Lost Chords find Paolo Fresu is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Carla Bley with Andy Sheppard, Steve Swallow, and Billy Drummond and Paolo Fresu recorded in Europe in 2007 and released on the Watt/ECM label.
Fragments is an album by Canadian jazz pianist Paul Bley recorded in 1986 and released on the ECM label.
The Paul Bley Quartet is an album by Canadian jazz pianist Paul Bley, recorded in 1987 and released on the ECM label.
Sankt Gerold is a live album by pianist Paul Bley, bassist Barre Phillips, and saxophonist Evan Parker recorded in April 1996 and released on ECM in October 2000.
Solo in Mondsee is a solo live album by pianist Paul Bley recorded at the Schloss Mondsee in Austria on June 25, 2001 and released on ECM in 2007.
Nothing to Declare is a solo album by pianist Paul Bley recorded in 2003 and released on the Justin Time label in 2004.
Closer is the seventh album led by jazz pianist Paul Bley, featuring seven compositions by Carla Bley, recorded in 1965 and released on the ESP-Disk label.
Quiet Song is an album by pianist Paul Bley, clarinetist Jimmy Giuffre and guitarist Bill Connors recorded in 1974 and released on Bley's own Improvising Artists label in 1975.
Japan Suite is a live album by pianist Paul Bley, drummer Barry Altschul and bassist Gary Peacock recorded in Japan in 1976 and released on Bley's own Improvising Artists label in 1977.
Axis is a live solo album by pianist Paul Bley recorded in New York in 1977 and released on Bley's own Improvising Artists label the following year.
Hands On is a solo piano album by Paul Bley recorded in 1993 and released on the Japanese Transheart label.
