On September 9th 1971 a riot broke out in Attica Prison. Five days later the riot was over, and thirty-nine people were left dead – killed by the bullets from the police and National Guard. In January the following year Archie released ‘Attica Blues’ as a tribute, combining many different styles into a big jazz orchestra. Now, more than forty years later, he has revisited this album with the Archie Shepp Attica Blues Orchestra, and this live album was recorded over three different dates in 2012 and 2013. Archie has brought together a group of musicians who sound as if they have just recorded the original and are now taking it on the road. There is a power and grace with this recording that can sometimes be missing from those who want to show just how clever they are, with sometimes just a few playing and at others the complete band as they swing and move from one style to another, encompassing funk, gospel, and so many others, although always at the heart is jazz and blues.
The amount of musicians involved is considerable, and include Archie Shepp: tenor and soprano saxophones, voice; Amina Claudine Myers: piano, voice; Tom McClung: piano; Famoudou Don Moye: drums, congas; Reggie Washington: bass; Darryl Hall: bass (5); Pierre Durand: guitar; Stéphane Belmondo: trumpet; Izidor Leitinger: trumpet; Christophe Leloil: trumpet; Olivier Miconi: trumpet; Ambrose Akinmusire: trumpet (5); Sébastien Llado: trombone; Simon Sieger: trombone; Romain Morello: trombone; Michaël Ballue: trombone; Raphaël Imbert: alto saxophone; Olivier Chaussade: alto saxophone; François Théberge: tenor saxophone; Virgile Lefebvre: tenor saxophone; Jean-Philippe Scali: baritone saxophone; Manon Tenoudji: violin; Steve Duong: violin; Antoine Carlier: viola; Louise Rosbach: cello; Marion Rampal: voice; Cécile McLorin Salvant: voice. But, although there are times when the sound is of a jazz orchestra in a large hall there are others when it is far more intimate, just a few players on a small stage in a smoky backroom somewhere.
This certainly doesn’t sound as if it is a recording of today (apart from the sonic quality), but rather this is of a time gone by, and is one that I very much enjoyed experiencing.
