I saw him play at WOMAD in Marymoor Park in Redmond (Seattle area) in 1998. "Africa - Tears and Laughter" was my intro to his music and is still my favourite of his.
I saw Mr. Ibrahim perform at Swarthmore College in Pa.; it was around the late 1980s,around the time of “Water From an Ancient Well”. I think I purchased that album sometime after the concert.I remember Ricky Ford in the band at the performance, but I’m not sure about the other musicians. It was memorable, I still remember the beautiful vibe of the experience.
“African Market” played by his quintet that included Carlos Ward. There were Africans in the hall in their colourful dresses. There was dancing in the aisles. The band was unforgettable.
He played here in LA at a club called Hop Singhs many years ago, solo. He played 2 sets, the second set started after ten, and it was well after two, closing time, and he was still playing. The club owner Rudy was so hip to what was happening, he closed all the entrance and exit doors very quietly, Some people had to go to work in the AM, but they stayed as long as they could, Rudy had now locked the doors so the police would not come and close everything down or the opening and closing door sound would disturb Dollar from his sonic meditations. He quietly led those people out the kitchen back door entrance to the outside world, He was Dollar Brand in those days, and Dollar kept playing he played until about 4:30 in the morning, occasionally stopping to sing or chant the words to the next piece, no water bottle, no announcing, just transcendent music. He transformed the club into a church of every listeners inner religion, everyone was in rapt attention hanging on the grooves and sound of his improvising. Some people were actually sobbing at the beauty being created. He was magnificent, and to me he will always be magnificent. He took us everywhere, The only other pianist I've ever seen transform a performance into a spiritual awakening was Horace Tapscott. This is what he gave me, and I am ever eternally grateful for his gift what music is.
His “Ubu Suku” has been in my head for years — the original trio version (On Duke Ellington Presents …), a solo version, and a duet with Archie Shepp. Such a beautiful and original composition. (If I have it right, title is Xhosa for “night.”)
I hope you're aware of the 1973 Toronto solo piano recording of Abdullah Ibrahim (originally issued as Dollar Brand on LP) "Fats, Duke &The Monk" on Sackville SKCD2-3048. Three lengthy excursions:
1. Salaam Peace (18:28) a medley of a dozen original themes)
2. Fats Duke & The Monk (11:20) investigating those composers, and a bit of a tribute to them.
3. African Portraits (23:57)...just that!
I was at the session and spent days wandering around humming the themes, ruminating on the humanity of it all, and wondering of was all real.
In 1987 I had the joy of recording his group Ekaya at the Toronto International Jazz Festival for broadcast on CJRT-FM. (The same tour that Richard Thurston refers to in his comments.) I gave the master tapes to Abdullah, and I wonder if they'll ever be heard again...
Yes, yes, yes Water From An Ancient Well is a gorgeous album - as are his African Dawn (solo, Enja Records 1982), Zimbabwe (Enja, 1983 quartet with Carlos Ward), Echoes From Africa (duo with Johnny Dyani, Enja 1979) and Memories (solo, West 54 1973)
Heard him for the first time on his release African Piano on JAPO/ECM. Capetown Fringe was another favorite from the 70s. Didn’t hear him live until 1987 when he appeared with Ekaya at the DuMaurier Jazz Festival, Vancouver BC. Fantastic. Happy coincidence. The band then came to Seattle and played Jazz Alley. Two sets a night for six nights. Missed three. Absolutely incredible. The songs flowed organically one into another into another. After I saw him frequently during the 90s and early 00s, sadly never again with Ekaya. The economics must have been tough for a septet. Most often he performed solo or trio. He turned up at Womad 1998. He could be a little prickly and once I saw the setup it looked like there may be a problem. Multiple stages with music performed concurrently with some…leakage. But Ibrahim, playing solo, played a relaxed, incredibly beautiful set. He was at his good natured best that sunny afternoon. As I write this I’m listening to what Apple Music shows to be my most played album. Live at Sweet Basil Vol. 1. Duets with Carlos Ward from 1980. Sadly, Vol. 2 has never appeared. Gorgeous. Majestic. Swinging. Another memorable appearance took place in 1990 at Jazz Alley, Seattle. The day Nelson Mandela was released from prison, Ibrahim performed solo before an enraptured and very lucky audience of 75 maximum. Powerful, joyous set. Between sets local artist/activist Salma Waldman presented him roses. Thoughtful, elegant, and gracious he spoke some about his friend Nelson. Quite a moment actually. Those of us lucky enough to have been there were treated to something really special. After the show I went home and flipped on the late news. The network coverage I saw featured some talking heads then stock footage of, wait for it, Sting in front of a crowd of thousands, fist in the air shouting Mandela! So it goes in our celebrity besotted age. Oh well. Thanks for the music, Mr. Ibrahim.
This is the best Charles Davis I've ever heard. For that matter, everyone sounds good--the mark of Ibrahim's skills as a bandleader and composer, and no doubt why Duke Ellington admired him so much. Ward is indeed playing C flute, not alto flute. (I used to play both. You can tell an alto flute by its thicker, breathier timbre and its range of a fourth below a C flute.) Ford sounds much more like Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis than Paul Gonsalves to me. Elsewhere, Kenny Barron is his usual exquisite self.
I interviewed Abdullah for a long piece that ran in Musician Magazine in March 1990. (Archives of Musician are available online now.) I had to arrange everything through his manager. He was living in the Chelsea Hotel at the time. I heard him many times at Sweet Basil, with the South African drummer Brian Abrahams (who was also a vocalist, and made an LP called District Six with a group of other well-known South African musicians). I went to his wife Bea Benjamin's CD release press gathering as well. I think Abdullah played Water from An Ancient Well every time I heard him at Basil. ("Forget the word jazz," he said to me in our interview. "It's got nothing to do with jazz." )
He said he could see my aura when I was sitting there. "I see you surrounded by plants," he said. The backstories of most of my interviews are.... interesting,
I played tunes from that album incessantly on KZSU when it came out. “The Mountain” even became part of my show’s title for one quarter: “From the Mountain to the Crossing.” “The Crossing” was the title of Sheila Jordan’s then latest album. Every show was a journey.
I had the same reaction when I heard Kenny Barron playing solo a few years ago and he did his tribute to Ibrahim—“one of the very greatest American pianists is dedicating a performance to a foreign musician?”—but then I started listening to Ibrahim’s music and never stopped. And I will always treasure seeing him walk onto the stage at the 92d Street Y for one of the most beautiful live performances I’ve ever seen. He was over 90 years of age and still bringing his music to live audiences. RIP to a true master.
I saw him play at WOMAD in Marymoor Park in Redmond (Seattle area) in 1998. "Africa - Tears and Laughter" was my intro to his music and is still my favourite of his.
I saw Mr. Ibrahim perform at Swarthmore College in Pa.; it was around the late 1980s,around the time of “Water From an Ancient Well”. I think I purchased that album sometime after the concert.I remember Ricky Ford in the band at the performance, but I’m not sure about the other musicians. It was memorable, I still remember the beautiful vibe of the experience.
I was at that concert at Swarthmore too. Remember it well
“African Market” played by his quintet that included Carlos Ward. There were Africans in the hall in their colourful dresses. There was dancing in the aisles. The band was unforgettable.
He played here in LA at a club called Hop Singhs many years ago, solo. He played 2 sets, the second set started after ten, and it was well after two, closing time, and he was still playing. The club owner Rudy was so hip to what was happening, he closed all the entrance and exit doors very quietly, Some people had to go to work in the AM, but they stayed as long as they could, Rudy had now locked the doors so the police would not come and close everything down or the opening and closing door sound would disturb Dollar from his sonic meditations. He quietly led those people out the kitchen back door entrance to the outside world, He was Dollar Brand in those days, and Dollar kept playing he played until about 4:30 in the morning, occasionally stopping to sing or chant the words to the next piece, no water bottle, no announcing, just transcendent music. He transformed the club into a church of every listeners inner religion, everyone was in rapt attention hanging on the grooves and sound of his improvising. Some people were actually sobbing at the beauty being created. He was magnificent, and to me he will always be magnificent. He took us everywhere, The only other pianist I've ever seen transform a performance into a spiritual awakening was Horace Tapscott. This is what he gave me, and I am ever eternally grateful for his gift what music is.
His “Ubu Suku” has been in my head for years — the original trio version (On Duke Ellington Presents …), a solo version, and a duet with Archie Shepp. Such a beautiful and original composition. (If I have it right, title is Xhosa for “night.”)
I hope you're aware of the 1973 Toronto solo piano recording of Abdullah Ibrahim (originally issued as Dollar Brand on LP) "Fats, Duke &The Monk" on Sackville SKCD2-3048. Three lengthy excursions:
1. Salaam Peace (18:28) a medley of a dozen original themes)
2. Fats Duke & The Monk (11:20) investigating those composers, and a bit of a tribute to them.
3. African Portraits (23:57)...just that!
I was at the session and spent days wandering around humming the themes, ruminating on the humanity of it all, and wondering of was all real.
In 1987 I had the joy of recording his group Ekaya at the Toronto International Jazz Festival for broadcast on CJRT-FM. (The same tour that Richard Thurston refers to in his comments.) I gave the master tapes to Abdullah, and I wonder if they'll ever be heard again...
Ted O'Reilly
Yes, yes, yes Water From An Ancient Well is a gorgeous album - as are his African Dawn (solo, Enja Records 1982), Zimbabwe (Enja, 1983 quartet with Carlos Ward), Echoes From Africa (duo with Johnny Dyani, Enja 1979) and Memories (solo, West 54 1973)
Heard him for the first time on his release African Piano on JAPO/ECM. Capetown Fringe was another favorite from the 70s. Didn’t hear him live until 1987 when he appeared with Ekaya at the DuMaurier Jazz Festival, Vancouver BC. Fantastic. Happy coincidence. The band then came to Seattle and played Jazz Alley. Two sets a night for six nights. Missed three. Absolutely incredible. The songs flowed organically one into another into another. After I saw him frequently during the 90s and early 00s, sadly never again with Ekaya. The economics must have been tough for a septet. Most often he performed solo or trio. He turned up at Womad 1998. He could be a little prickly and once I saw the setup it looked like there may be a problem. Multiple stages with music performed concurrently with some…leakage. But Ibrahim, playing solo, played a relaxed, incredibly beautiful set. He was at his good natured best that sunny afternoon. As I write this I’m listening to what Apple Music shows to be my most played album. Live at Sweet Basil Vol. 1. Duets with Carlos Ward from 1980. Sadly, Vol. 2 has never appeared. Gorgeous. Majestic. Swinging. Another memorable appearance took place in 1990 at Jazz Alley, Seattle. The day Nelson Mandela was released from prison, Ibrahim performed solo before an enraptured and very lucky audience of 75 maximum. Powerful, joyous set. Between sets local artist/activist Salma Waldman presented him roses. Thoughtful, elegant, and gracious he spoke some about his friend Nelson. Quite a moment actually. Those of us lucky enough to have been there were treated to something really special. After the show I went home and flipped on the late news. The network coverage I saw featured some talking heads then stock footage of, wait for it, Sting in front of a crowd of thousands, fist in the air shouting Mandela! So it goes in our celebrity besotted age. Oh well. Thanks for the music, Mr. Ibrahim.
For an interesting comparison of Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Paul Gonsalves, here's a 1967 album led by the two of them:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L_E7hXq5w4&list=RD-L_E7hXq5w4&start_radio=1
This is the best Charles Davis I've ever heard. For that matter, everyone sounds good--the mark of Ibrahim's skills as a bandleader and composer, and no doubt why Duke Ellington admired him so much. Ward is indeed playing C flute, not alto flute. (I used to play both. You can tell an alto flute by its thicker, breathier timbre and its range of a fourth below a C flute.) Ford sounds much more like Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis than Paul Gonsalves to me. Elsewhere, Kenny Barron is his usual exquisite self.
Perhaps I was wrong to cite Gonsalves.
Understandable--as you'll hear on their album collaboration I posted above, they had similarities as well as differences.
I interviewed Abdullah for a long piece that ran in Musician Magazine in March 1990. (Archives of Musician are available online now.) I had to arrange everything through his manager. He was living in the Chelsea Hotel at the time. I heard him many times at Sweet Basil, with the South African drummer Brian Abrahams (who was also a vocalist, and made an LP called District Six with a group of other well-known South African musicians). I went to his wife Bea Benjamin's CD release press gathering as well. I think Abdullah played Water from An Ancient Well every time I heard him at Basil. ("Forget the word jazz," he said to me in our interview. "It's got nothing to do with jazz." )
yes, this confirms my impression, that Ibrahim was outside of jazz, especially as a pianist. Thanks for comment
He said he could see my aura when I was sitting there. "I see you surrounded by plants," he said. The backstories of most of my interviews are.... interesting,
I played tunes from that album incessantly on KZSU when it came out. “The Mountain” even became part of my show’s title for one quarter: “From the Mountain to the Crossing.” “The Crossing” was the title of Sheila Jordan’s then latest album. Every show was a journey.
I had the same reaction when I heard Kenny Barron playing solo a few years ago and he did his tribute to Ibrahim—“one of the very greatest American pianists is dedicating a performance to a foreign musician?”—but then I started listening to Ibrahim’s music and never stopped. And I will always treasure seeing him walk onto the stage at the 92d Street Y for one of the most beautiful live performances I’ve ever seen. He was over 90 years of age and still bringing his music to live audiences. RIP to a true master.
Fats Duke and the Monk (1973) shows his solo playing.
Nice piece. Ward plays alto sax and flute on the recording, not alto flute. Fyi. Thanks, Rob
oh that's big mistake
I hear it now in the solo, but on the melody Ward is actually playing quite low in register. Fooled me!