Black Jazz Records #5 CALVIN KEYS 'Shawn-Neeq'

From the very first majestic wave of sound on 'Shawn-Neeq', it's clear guitarist Calvin Keys is setting off on an inspired, mystical trip. Rarely is instrumental music so perfectly conceived and executed with such fire and precision that it creates its own torsioned universe. The molten interplay and interlocking dynamics of the band display a command of an unspoken, bottomless musical language part funk-jazz, part Coltrane-ian modalism and unfailingly grooves hard throughout. The title track ranks as one of the top experiences in funky/spiritual jazz, glowing with a warm, burnished hue for its full 6 minutes as Keys' guitar and Larry Nash's Rhodes electric piano meld into a lovely, drifting wash of organic sound. The second side contains only two long tracks, 'Gee-Gee' and 'BK', both of which take jazz guitar into the stellar regions of  the wonderful. Without doubt every track here is a classic of the genre. I can not recommend this LP enough. One of my favorite albums perhaps topped only by Keys' other Black Jazz release 'Proceed With Caution' (reviewed elsewhere in this blog).

Black Jazz Records #18 - CALVIN KEYS 'Proceed With Caution'

CALVIN KEYS
'Proceed With Caution'
1974, Black Jazz Records #18








One of the dopest albums on the sublime Black Jazz Records out of Chicago, guitarist Calvin Keys' second LP for the label ups both the musical complexity and the hard street vibe over his earlier, more straight-ahead, but still freakin' amazing 'Shawn-Neeq' album. The sound here is super-dense and constantly roiling, filled with tons of heavy electric piano and, as usual, simply amazing bass work from the best bassist no one's ever heard of, Henry Franklin (who actually released two LPs on Black Jazz himself). Intermingled with free-wheeling snatches of hairy avant jazz-funk like the title track and the intense modal guitar workout of 'Efflugence', you'll find groovy jump-toned paeans to 'Aunt Lovey' and the chilled-out , smooth-move heaven of 'Renaissance'. Another Black Jazz stalwart, keyboardist Kirk Lightsey, alternately pounds and strokes his Fender Rhodes electric piano into submission and the interplay between him and Keys' stun-funk guitar is pure improv magic. Like every other Black Jazz release, I can't recommend this record enough.