ECM Weekends • No.29: Barre Phillips “Mountainscapes”
Barre Phillips, what an interesting musician. He has quite a long history with ECM, both solo and collaborative, but his free improv career is even more impressive. This bassist cut his teeth in the refined company of Archie Shepp and Jimmy Giuffre before embarking on a solo recording career with “Journal Violone” (1969, Opus One). The album is widely considered to be the first solo bass release. Even more impressive is that it’s a free improv session - pretty much codifying the style for numerous other players to follow. Perhaps this fearlessness is what made him such an in-demand instrumentalist - see his FMP projects, participation in Derek Bailey’s Company and even one date with psychedelic pioneers Gong.
Philips is also a long-time associate of British sax player John Surman. Most famously in The Trio (their 1970s sessions for Dawn Records are amazing). Both eventually ended up on ECM. Phillips’s first outing on the label was a boisterous free duet with fellow bassist Dave Holland. By the time he got to “Mountainscapes” his style seems to have softened into an elegantly austere, minimalist-inflected exploration of atmosphere and timbre. Although this sudden shift in aesthetic might have been Surman’s influence. The latter’s instantly recognizable mid-period style is all over this record - heavenly loops on synthesizer, copious reverb and polyphonic tapestry of overdubbed folk-like motives. Frequently “Mountainscapes” feels pretty much like a test run for Surman’s “Upon Reflection” which would land on ECM a few years later. Also joining on drums is their Trio-era colleague Stu Martin. His skill is well-showcased on the rockier bookending numbers, of which the last one also features electrifying fusion stylings of the guitarist John Abercrombie. You can’t go wrong with this one.
