We last met the Bridgewater Brothers (Cecil on brass, and Ron on reeds) as part of the Billy Parker's Fourth World album from a few weeks back. They recorded this Japan-only vinyl release in late 1977 with a pretty stellar lineup - Stanley Cowell on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, Michael Carvin on drums.
I started doing one of my who's-played-with-who jazz chronologies as part of this post, but it soon became clear that these guys have played together in so many configurations over so many years, that such a chronology would have ended up turning into some endless DNA molecule sequence that would have eventually eaten me and spat me out.
So the trivia fact of the day is that all five of these musicians played on singer Mark Murphy's 1961 album "Rah" which sounds, of course, nothing at all like this one (but is a wonderful vocal jazz album, so catch it at El Goog's blog via that link).
Also, as part of that initial search, I did come across a lovely 1975 album by drummer Michael Carvin called "The Camel", which was new to me, and you should check out at Pharoah's Dance.
Cecil and Ron Bridgewater, West Village NYC, 1976photo by Tom Marcello
As for this album - three long tracks written by the brothers. This is the most straight-ahead jazz I've posted so far - i'll listen to Stanley Cowell play piano any place, any time. Ron Bridgewater's "Silent Rain" features solos by the brothers and by Cowell. "Dear Trane" has - you guessed it - plenty of saxaphone solos and some inspired solo bass by Reggie Workman.
Cecil Bridgewater's frenetic title track takes up the second side of the album. After some chaotic discordancy at the start, Workman's walking bass holds things together while Cowell's arpeggios go screaming all over the scale, and Carvin is all percussion and colour.
TRACKLIST
01 "Silent Rain" - (Ron Bridgewater) - 9:09
02 "Dear Trane"- (Ron Bridgewater) - 10:37
03 "Lightning & Thunder" - (Cecil Bridgewater) - 16:41
PERSONNEL
Cecil Bridgewater - trumpet, fluegel horn
Ron Bridgewater - tenor & soprano sax
Stanley Cowell - piano
Reggie Workman - bass
Michael Carvin - drums
PRODUCTION DETAILS
Artist: BRIDGEWATER BROTHERS
Title: LIGHTNING AND THUNDER
Label: DENON / NIPPON COLUMBIA
Cat #: YX7526ND
Press: JAPAN
Recorded: Dec 10, 1977, NYC
Released 1978 – japan only
Hope you enjoy it.