Eric Dolphy – At The Five Spot, Vol.1 (1961) [APO Remaster 2018]
SACD Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 47:36 minutes | Front/Rear Covers | 1,91 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Front/Rear Covers | 974 MB

After having left the ensemble of Charles Mingus and upon working with John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy formed a short-lived but potent quintet with trumpeter Booker Little, who would pass away three months after this recording. Despite all of the obstacles and subsequent tragedy, this quintet became legendary over the years – justifiably so – and developed into a role model for all progressive jazz combos to come. The combined power of Dolphy and Little – exploring overt but in retrospect not excessive dissonance and atonality – made them a target for critics but admired among the burgeoning progressive post-bop scene. With the always stunning shadings of pianist Mal Waldron, the classical-cum-daring bass playing of Richard Davis, and the colorful drumming of alchemistic Ed Blackwell, there was no stopping this group.

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Eric Dolphy – Out There (1960) [Reissue 2003]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 33:58 minutes | Scans included | 1,48 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 803 MB

The follow-up album to Outward Bound, Eric Dolphy’s second effort for the Prestige/New Jazz label (and later remastered by Rudy Van Gelder) was equally praised and vilified for many reasons. At a time when the “anti-jazz” tag was being tossed around, Dolphy’s nonlinear, harshly harmonic music gave some critics grist for the grinding mill. A second or third listen to Dolphy’s music reveals an unrepentant shadowy side, but also depth and purpose that were unprecedented and remain singularly unique. The usage of bassist George Duvivier and cellist Ron Carter (an idea borrowed from Dolphy’s days with Chico Hamilton) gives the music its overcast color base, in many ways equally stunning and uninviting. Dolphy’s ideas must be fully embraced, taken to heart, and accepted before listening. The music reveals the depth of his thought processes while also expressing his bare-bones sensitive and kind nature. The bluesy “Serene,” led by Carter alongside Dolphy’s bass clarinet, and the wondrous ballad “Sketch of Melba” provide the sweetest moments, the latter tune identified by the fluttery introspective flute of the leader, clearly indicating where latter-period musicians like James Newton initially heard what would form their concept. Three pieces owe alms to Charles Mingus: his dark, moody, doleful, melodic, and reluctant composition “Eclipse”; the co-written (with Dolphy) craggy and scattered title track featuring Dolphy’s emblematic alto held together by the unflappable swing of drummer Roy Haynes; and “The Baron,” the leader’s dark and dirty, wise and willful tribute to his former boss, accented by a choppy and chatty solo from Carter. “17 West,” almost a post-bop standard, is briefly tonal with a patented flute solo and questioning cello inserts, while the unexpected closer written by Hale Smith, “Feathers,” is a haunting, soulful ballad of regret where Dolphy’s alto is more immediately heard in the foreground. A somber and unusual album by the standards of any style of music, Out There explores Dolphy’s vision in approaching the concept of tonality in a way few others – before, concurrent, or after – have ever envisioned.

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Eric Dolphy – Out There (1960) [Analogue Productions 2018]
SACD Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 34:00 minutes | Front/Rear cover (+PDF) | 1,37 GB
or DSD64 (from SACD-ISO to Tracks.dsf) > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | Front/Rear cover (+PDF Booklet) | 1,35 GB
or FLAC (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/96 kHz | Front/Rear cover (+PDF Booklet) | 744 MB

Out There is a 1960 jazz album by Eric Dolphy. It was Dolphy’s second album released as band leader, following his time with Charles Mingus. The album features four original compositions by Dolphy, one of which is a collaborative effort with Mingus. The album also features three covers, “Eclipse” by Mingus, “Sketch of Melba” by Randy Weston and “Feathers” by Hale Smith. The cover features a painting by Richard Jennings, referred to as “the Prophet” in Dolphy’s album, At the Five Spot.

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