This six-CD set, with recordings from 1972 to 1984, includes the albums Conception Vessel, Tribute, Dance, Le Voyage, Psalm and It Should’ve Happened A Long Time Ago. Paul Motian’s innovative drumming with the great trios of Bill Evans and Paul Bley had already assured him of a place in jazz’s history books, but Motian had not considered life as a bandleader until ECM proposed a recording session under his own name. “Conception Vessel” opened floodgates of creativity. Through these recordings we hear not only the evolution of several outstanding Motian ensembles and the birth of the enduring Motian/Frisell/Lovano trio, but also the growth of confidence of a unique jazz composer. In Paul’s music, memories of Turkish and Armenian melodies he had heard as a child were filtered through a love of jazz. Early in his career, Paul had played with Thelonious Monk, and Monk’s wayward sense of dynamics remained a reference for him, but he also loved the free expressive possibilities of the new jazz. Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden, regular partners in Keith’s trio and quartet, encouraged Paul’s creative flight on, respectively, “Conception Vessel” and “Tribute”. With “Dance” and “Le Voyage”, the trios with Charles Brackeen recorded 1977 and 1979, Motian shaped a soundworld entirely his own, and a blueprint for the future.
CD1 - Conception Vessel [41:38]
01. Georgian Bay (Motian) - 7:31
02. Ch'i Energy (Motian) - 2:38
03. Rebica (Motian) - 11:14
04. Conception Vessel (Motian) - 7:47
05. American Indian: Song of Sitting Bull (Motian) - 2:46
06. Inspiration from a Vietnamese Lullaby (Motian) - 9:42
- Keith Jarrett - piano, flute
- Sam Brown - guitar
- Leroy Jenkins - violin
- Becky Friend - flute
- Charlie Haden - double bass
- Paul Motian - percussion
Recorded at Butterfly and Sound Ideas Studios, New York in November 1972.
Recording Engineer - George Klabin
Mixing Engineer - Martin Wieland
CD2 - Tribute [38:14]
01. Victoria (Motian) - 5:30
02. Tuesday Ends Saturday (Motian) - 6:43
03. War Orphans (Coleman) - 7:32
04. Sod House (Motian) - 9:56
05. Song for Che (Haden) - 8:33
- Carlos Ward - alto saxophone
- Sam Brown - acoustic guitar, electric guitar
- Paul Metzke - guitar
- Charlie Haden - double bass
- Paul Motian - percussion
Recorded at Generation Sound Studios, New York in May 1974.
Engineer - Tony May
Mixing Engineer - Martin Wieland
CD3 - Dance [39:43]
01. Waltz Song (Motian) - 7:11
02. Dance (Motian) - 7:30
03. Kalypso (Motian) - 4:25
04. Asia (Motian) - 7:44
05. Prelude (Motian) - 6:54
06. Lullaby (Motian) - 5:59
- Charles Brackeen - soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
- David Izenzon - double bass
- Paul Motian - drums, percussion
Recorded at Tonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg in September 1977.
Engineer - Martin Wieland
CD4 - Le Voyage [43:25]
01. Folk Song for Rosie (Motian) - 9:53
02. Abacus (Motian) - 7:16
03. Cabala/Drum Music (Motian) - 6:16
04. Sunflower (Motian) - 8:47
05. Le Voyage (Motian) - 11:13
- Charles Brackeen - soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
- J.-F. Jenny-Clark - double bass
- Paul Motian - drums, percussion
Recorded at Tonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg in March 1979.
Engineer - Martin Wieland
CD5 - Psalm [48:06]
01. Psalm (Motian) - 6:57
02. White Magic (Motian) - 3:00
03. Boomerang (Motian) - 5:44
04. Fantasm (Motian) - 6:09
05. Mandeville (Motian) - 5:03
06. Second Hand (Motian) - 9:16
07. Etude (Motian) - 4:17
08. Yahllah (Motian) - 7:40
- Joe Lovano – tenor saxophone
- Billy Drewes – tenor saxophone, alto saxophone
- Bill Frisell – guitar
- Ed Schuller – double bass
- Paul Motian – drums
Recorded at Tonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg in December 1981.
Engineer - Martin Wieland
CD6 - It Should've Happened a Long Time Ago [40:11]
01. It Should've Happened a Long Time Ago (Motian) - 6:07
02. Fiasco (Motian) - 7:49
03. Conception Vessel (Motian) - 4:32
04. Introduction (Motian) - 3:06
05. India (Motian) - 7:26
06. In the Year of the Dragon (Motian) - 5:57
07. Two Women from Padua (Motian) - 5:14
- Joe Lovano - tenor saxophone
- Bill Frisell - guitar, guitar synthesizer
- Paul Motian - drums, percussion
Recorded at Tonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg in July 1984.
Engineer - Martin Wieland
