El Pampero

by Gato Barbieri

Overview

This record chronicles a flavorful and unforgettable night during a live show recorded in Montreux, Switzerland. Gato Barbieri leads his fantastic group of musical friends with hurricane-like flair on his tenor sax. At times surreal and mind-boggling, Barbieri shows just how far one can let the music go to break the borders of jazz, sending his music into fresh and uncharted territory. Barbieri's chops and melodic sweeps are daring and bold, while the back crew brings vitality and utter life to the music, from the record's beginning to its very end. Within the first tune, "El Pampero," Barbieri plays a home tone riff over and over, changing only the keys of the song, with improvisation in between that gets the audience into dancing. Lonnie Liston Smith plays with great sweeping ease on the piano, while percussionists Pretty Purdie, Na-Na, and Sonny Morgan send their rhythms into soaring heights. A wondrous sense of dynamics is displayed here and throughout the record. The call and response between Na-Na and Morgan is a featured key ingredient, keeping the mood of the percussion section fluid and tight. Yes, the listeners were mesmerized, and one can feel lifted in spirit again with each playing of this recording. Perhaps the focus and direction of the music, which latched on greatly to the home key and initial melody, gives the music a more solid foundation. This was certainly a special night in Switzerland, in which Barbieri proudly shared his music, credited in a natural more than economic fashion, breathing spirit into the audience rather than taking money. For this performance was priceless, a can't-miss that left audience members bedazzled, talking among themselves years later, saying, "Do you remember when?...I was there!" With passion and faith in music, this group of musicians thrived here in this recorded moment, to demonstrate art, haunting art, vivid imagination, and victory in art. ~ Shawn M. Haney

Product Details

Release Date:	10/07/2014
Label:	Bgp
UPC:	0029667528320

Tracks

1. El Pampero
2. Mi Buenos Aires Querido
3. Brasil
4. El Arriero

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Gato Barbieri   Primary Artist,Sax (Tenor)
Lonnie Liston Smith & the Cosmic Echoes   Primary Artist
Chuck Rainey   Bass,Bass (Electric)
Lonnie Liston Smith   Piano
Sonny Morgan   Congas
Nana Vasconcelos   Berimbau,Percussion
Bernard "Pretty" Purdie   Drums

Technical Credits

Bob Russell   Composer
Bob Thiele   Producer
Gato Barbieri   Arranger,Composer
Ary Barroso   Composer
Carlos Gardel   Composer
Atahualpa Yupanqui   Composer
Haig Adishian   Design
Laurent Goddet   Liner Notes
Aldo Cabral   Composer
Pedro Berrios   Composer
Alfredo Le Pera   Composer
Giuseppe Pino   Cover Photo
Benedicto Lacerda   Composer
Stephan Sulke   Mixing