- TIME OUT
I'm looking at a picture of Dave Brubeck in 1959 and he doesn't
really strike me as the epitome of "jazz cool". You know, Miles
had the mysterious dark shades, Dolphy had his beret, and Herbie
Hancock was just a really good looking guy, and still is, even though he appears
in those awful Bose speaker commercials late at night. Brubeck looks more like
a geeky high school math teacher or accountant than a cool jazz dude. But I
know these are shallow observations from a reviewer whose roots are primarily
in rock. Image really doesn't mean anything in music, regardless of the genre.
Take punkers Husker Du for example - Bob Mould and Grant Hart
had zero stage presence, but they still managed to blow a few people's eardrums
even if they didn't move from their stationary spots for the entire show.
I'm not sure what Brubeck's quartet was like in concert, but I'm willing to
wager that they too were stationary the whole time. This is not bite-the-head-off-a-chicken
territory, this is serious complex music. Essentially a classical composer in
jazz disguise, Brubeck used jazz for its improvisational qualities and methods,
but first created the compositions and time signatures, then went for the improv.
It is because of his classisist roots
that some in the jazz world looked upon Brubeck with suspicion, as if his worldly
knowledge of music other than bebop was an imposition into their little jazz
cliques. It was pointless to criticize what the man had going on upstairs though,
as Time Out was an experiment in time signatures, in other words, he ventured
to write songs in different times other than 4/4, the standard for most jazz
tunes at that point.
Time Out stands out because not only are the times all over the place, but Brubeck
had the skilled musicians to pull off this feat, and also the inspiration to
write memorable tunes that would not take a backseat to the
experiments in technique. This is brainy stuff, but we must note that the album
was widely successful not only in jazz circles, but also with the wider music
buying public and the casual jazz listener. Never before had such a challenging
album become so widely received, and its technique of fusing jazz with classical
and world rhythms ranks right up there with Miles Davis' "Sketches Of
Spain" as albums which transcend the jazz genre.
Brubeck wastes no time as the album's opener "Blue Rondo A La Turk" unleashes
a Turkish influenced rhythm in 9/8 time. God, as I heard these opening bars,
I was in heaven. I totally welcome a challenge in listening to a jazz record
and this opener had me salivating. It really is a beautifully piano and sax
charged combo which eventually leads into standard 4/4 for the traditional jazz
solos. Paul Desmond is Brubeck's gifted alto sax player, and his warm and controlled
tones flutter around Brubeck's forceful piano chords as the song crashes to
a dramatic conclusion.
Dave's piano intro to the ballad "Strange Meadow Lark" seems more Tchaikovsky
than Thelonious Monk, but eventually gives way to Desmond's
dreamy sax solo. His solos throughout the record are very pointed and controlled
rather than whacked out fall-on-the-floor abandonment. "Take Five" is instantly
recognizable and perhaps Brubeck's most popular song. It's often covered by
other jazz artists, since for example, the liner notes state that Al
Jarreau won a Grammy for his vocal rendition of the song. I know I've
heard it in countless movies (Woody Allen?) and television commercials as well.
In addition to this, I thought the piano line sounded a lot like the one in
"Rose Rouge" by St. Germain, the current French jazz/house
outfit, but alas, found no credit for it as a sample on the latter artist's
"Tourist" album.
"Three To Get Ready" is a Hadyn influenced composition, and alternates between
3/4 waltz time and 4/4 throughout. It's a lighter sounding number, but the mood
throughout the whole album seems to be one of controlled gaiety. "Kathy's
Waltz" is a pleasant tune written for Brubeck's daughter and continues
the light mood, but "Everybody's Jumpin'" becomes more melodically adventurous,
venturing into half note after half note and maintaining a 6/4 rhythm throughout.
"Pick Up Sticks" closes the album and boasts a repetitive bassline and all the
other players seems to work their way around it.
This is an ideal record for me, since I'm not a true jazz hound, but I am continually
picking up on different styles and while I don't think I'm ready to take on
the fractured insanity of free jazz, I am at a point where I look for complexity
in melody, time and harmony. If you're at the point I am at now, I suggest you
purchase this immediately. We can become jazz hounds together.