John Abercrombie - 1984 "Night"

Night is an album by guitarist John Abercrombie recorded in 1984 and released on the ECM label.

This surprising 1984 effort from John Abercrombie finds the guitarist in conversation with Jan Hammer, Jack DeJohnette, and Mike Brecker. The lack of a bassist on this session is not felt; the spaciousness of the music and the masterful playing of all parties involved keep the focus clearly on the melodies, both scripted and improvised. This can best be heard on the title track, a lovely, tear-wrenching ballad. On some of the more up-tempo tracks, Hammer covers the bass end with his keyboards almost like he is taking part in an organ trio. Unlike the high-velocity fusion that Hammer is best known for in his work with the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Al DiMeola, and elsewhere, his work on Night is highly subdued. In fact, his playing is one of the most pleasant things about this record. It's nice to hear him doing something other than blaring away at a million miles a minute. He really is an excellent keyboardist, and his range is often underappreciated. However, the excellent compositions by Hammer and Abercrombie are the strongest thing about Night. One of the best is the opener, "Ethereggae," which features an incredible guitar solo over a sparse, haunting synth figure and DeJohnette's incomparable comping. When Brecker adds his pointed, searching tenor, the despair and loneliness of the music are almost too much to bear. This record is the kind of album that one would like to hear while enjoying a late-night cigarette on the roof of a Manhattan apartment. Moody, atmospheric, and beautiful.

As its cover indicates, Night gives us a colorful, collage-like portrait of John Abercrombie, who jumps here into the urban deep end with smoky club atmospheres and tight jams. It’s a joy to see the guitarist working with Jan Hammer again, and the inclusion of Mike Brecker on tenor and Jack DeJohnette on drums make for a winning formula. Hammer adds a particular spike to this sonic punch, competently filling the session’s lack of bass while also fleshing out the production with an evocative sweep. Between the idiomatic blend of “Ethereggae” and the Timeless heat distortion of “3 East,” his billowing keys give Brecker more than enough room to show off his chops (he has hardly sounded better). This date isn’t all fun and games, however, for the rain-slicked streets of “Look Around” give us pause for reflection. Hammer reignites things in “Believe You Me,” which despite being the most straightforward track compositionally sports Brecker’s most uninhibited solo yet. The band saves the best for last with “Four On One,” which draws another ring of fire in an enthralling closer. DeJohnette gets his moment in the sun here as well.

Great combination of musicians! The whole album has an interesting sound. The Hammond organ is a bit of a departure from the typical Jan Hammer sound. Amazing playing from Michael Brecker, (as always) and the compositions are interesting with Abercrombie and DeJohnette's distinct styles. All musicians a featured to a great extent. If you're a fan of any of these players, you won't be disappointed.

This is one of my favourite records of all time & the opener "Etherreggae" one of my favourite tracks of all time. This album also marks (I believe) only Abercrombie's second experimentation with an organ largely replacing other keyboards (the first being "Timeless" in 1974) & personally I think the results are inspired (& certainly induced Abercrombie to repeat the "experiment" on two future albums, with Dan Wall stepping in for Jan Hammer). The other musicians on this disc are Mike Brecker (ts) & Jack de Johnette (d).
Take the aforesaid opener - beginning with a great 6-time repeated augmented B Minor chord with reverb by Abercrombie this track develops into a wonderfully slow reggae rhythm in major scale(s) with overdubbed guitar, a nice Brecker saxophone solo in the middle & a wonderful, uplifting closing electric guitar solo (joined in a wonderful burning conclusion by Brecker) featured. The second track "Night" encapsulates the mood of a reflective late evening at home alone perfectly & features brilliant soulful sax from Brecker plus nice acoustic piano from Hammer. Finally on Track 3 (Three East") Hammer's organ gets a decent workout but again, despite more great guitar work from Abercrombie, it's Brecker who steals the piece - ditto on "Look Around" which also features brilliant work from de Johnette (hitherto a tad understated).
Throughout the album the organ plays mainly an underlying supporting role & really sets a largely reflective & occasionally melancholic tone (although the pace noticeably picks up on the last two tracks). The album also displays Abercrombie's versatility & willingness to experiment as well as what a brilliant saxophonist Brecker was. Enjoy!!

Though something of an blip in the Abercrombie back catalogue, Night is far from benign. Aside from the effusive music, what really distinguishes this album is its sound. Another slam-dunk for engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug.

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Track listing:

1. "Ethereggae" (Jan Hammer) - 8:28
2. "Night" - 5:02
3. "3 East" - 4:33
4. "Look Around" - 9:02
5. "Believe You Me" - 7:42
6. "Four On One" - 6:42

Personnel:

John Abercrombie – guitar
Michael Brecker – tenor saxophone
Jan Hammer – keyboards
Jack DeJohnette – drums