Artist: ALBERT AYLER Title: Bells Label: ESP Catalog #: ESPCD 1010 Tracks 1.ÊÊ BellsÊ (19:56) (No track breaks, but (according to Jeff Schwartz) the compositions played are "Holy Ghost" and "No Name", going into "Bells". All compositions by Albert Ayler) Personnel Albert AylerÊÊ (tenor saxophone) Donald AylerÊÊ (trumpet) Charles TylerÊÊ (alto saxophone) Lewis WorrellÊÊ (bass) Sunny MurrayÊÊ (drums) Recording Details May 1, 1965 Town Hall, New York On May 1, 1965, (MAY DAY) the Albert Ayler Quintet performed this 20 minute work. It was released by ESP as a transparent LP recorded only on one side. The LP jacket and the back of the LP were silk screened by hand, a wildly impractical gesture. The colors ranged from transparent to golden yellow to cherry red, depending on what plastic was on hand in the pressing plant. Despite the brevity of the LP, it sold well, and ESP made its pointÉthat music is not a commodity to be sold by the minute. That the length of a work of musical art bears no relation to its inherent value to the listener. ALBERT AYLER AT TOWN HAL: BELLS. On May 1, 1965, (MAY DAY) the Albert Ayler Quintet performed this 20 minute work. It was released by ESP as a transparent LP recorded only on one side. The LP jacket and the back of the LP were silk screened by hand, a wildly impractical gesture. The colors ranged from transparent to golden yellow to cherry red, depending on what plastic was on hand in the pressing plant. Despite the brevity of the LP, it sold well, and ESP made its pointÉthat music is not a commodity to be sold by the minute. That the length of a work of musical art bears no relation to its inherent value to the listener. "On this record (originally released in 1965) Albert Ayler teamed up with his brother (trumpeter Donald Ayler) for the first time. The concert performance (with Sunny Murray, Charles Tyler and Lewis Worrell) is their entire 20-minute set at the Town Hall. This is one of the Aylers' influential recordings for ESP-Disk'. From the sleevenotes (From Down Beat July 15th, 1965) Town Hall, New York City Albert Ayler is certainly original. His tenor saxophone sound, on fast tempos, is harsh and guttural, with a pronounced vibrato and a multitude of what used to be called freak effects in King OliverÕs day. He plays with a vehemence that startles the listener, either repelling him or pulling him into the music with almost brute force. The effect can be oddly exhilarating. On slow tempos, Ayler favors a vibrato so wide that it brings to mind Charlie BarnetÕs old take-off on Freddy Martin. It is an archaic sound, and the phrasing that goes with itÑdrawn-out notes, glissandi, sentimental melodic emphasisÑis quite in keeping. Trumpeter Don Ayler plays like his brother plays fast tenor: loud, staccato, and broadly emphatic. .... He did not solo at slow tempo. Altoist Tyler fits the brothers. His sound is not unlike AlbertÕs but more grating and less controlledÑsome of his overtones were involuntary, whereas the tenorist meant every note he played to be. The music that goes with this definitive instrumental approach is no less personal. It resembles at timesÑin texture as well as voicings and melodyÑthe music of a village brass band or a military drum-and-bugle corps. In spite of its abrasiveness, the music is quite gay and friendlyÑÓcountryÓ might be the word for it. The harmonies are stark and almost primitive, with occasional forays into bagpipe effects. AylerÕs group played two pieces.The first, quite brief, ended with a prolonged bombardment by the full ensemble; a flurry of repeated notes played strictly on the beat. The effect was not unlike a surrealistic parody of those famous Jazz at the Philharmonic finales, replete with screaming trumpet and honking saxophones. Or perhaps the image was of a rhythm-and-blues band gone berserk. The second piece, though sprawling and too long, was nevertheless filled with exciting passages. A slow tenor solo was followed by a bass interlude and then a call to arms by the horns, a militaristic theme-statement, a fast tenor solo, ensemble interlude, solos by all the horns at very rapid tempo, a return to the theme, another call to arms, and a bansheelike concluding ensemble. To this listener, there seems to be a great deal of wild humor in AylerÕs music. Though often vehement, it is celebration rather than protest; much of it has the sheer Òbad boyÓ joy of making sounds. Ê Whatever oneÕs reaction to this music, there can be little doubt that it contained the spirit of jazz. Some may dismiss it as untutored, primitive, or merely grotesque, but it certainly has the courage of its convictions and is anything but boring or pretentious. DAN MORGENSTERN *** ÒThe original LP-pressing of Bells was a translucent one-sided disc, with the cover of Bells painted on the grooveless back of the vinyl. After the commotion around the release of AylerÕs Spiritual Unity (ESP 1002) a year earlier, Bells was received rather coldly, with critics joking that the record looked better than it sounded. Even nowadays, Bells is a somewhat overlooked record. WhatÊ the critics missed, was what AlbertÕs brother, Donald, was contributing to that record. Although it wasnÕt the debut of trumpeter Donald Ayler- he made his first appearance on disc with Albert on The New Wave in Jazz earlier that year- Bells shows for the first time what Donald was capable of in terms of humoristic and spiritual musical communication. Albert wanted a trumpet player in his expanding group. So by the end of 1964 Donald took up the trumpet studying nine hours a day for a few months. While being able to follow the breathtakingly sharp improvisations of his brother almost immediately, he never perfected the technique of his trumpetplaying than up to the degree that he needed to accompany AlbertÕs saxophone. Donald contributed enthusiastic arranging in turn-of-the-century style, and a Louis Armstrong-era swing to AlbertÕs writing. The sixties statement that free jazz was in a way a recuperation of early Dixieland music, with all musicians soloing at the same time, is commonly associated with Ornette ColemanÕs music. But the music of the Aylers is far more directly connected with New Orleans style jazz than OrnetteÕs abstract art music. What the Ayler brothers added to furious free soloing, were recognisable hymns and songs. True, those lovely little tunes were set up mainly to be completely deconstructed, and sometimes virtually rapedÉ Bells is a medley of three Ayler tunes (Holy Ghost, No Name and Bells). In this May 1965 version themes are being played against each other, abandoned midway, or completely destroyed. Compared to the Holy Ghost version on The New Wave in Jazz (reissued on Impulse as part of Live in Greenwich Village), Donald and Albert have taken a big step forward into density and chaos! Drummer Sunny Murray and alto saxophone player Charles Tyler provide just the right tension and violence to add to this wild party. By the end of 1965 the joyous roar of the Bells line-up had calmed down only just a little bit. A balance was found on Spirits Rejoice (ESP 1020), with more room for sublety, which was subsequently carried on for the classic Live in Greenwich Village (on Impulse) from 1966. Bells finds the Ayler group in their first discovery of brotherly cameraderie, a party snap in their family album. Taking it as a rough diamond, and a glimpse into what was still to come, it is still a party record.Ó REMCO TAKKEN, jazz critic for De VolkskrantÊÊ (from the Calibre release of Bells)