In 1968, Barre Phillips was the first musician to record an album of solo double bass. His new album,
End to End, was released via ECM Records. It finds him returning to this idiom, which he has mastered over the years. He also claims that this will be his last solo album, the final chapter of his "Journal Violone." Watch the teaser trailer for
End to End via the player below.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaoFPIQ5870[/embed]
End to End is described via a press release as "a beautiful and moving musical statement. All the qualities we associate with Barre's playing are here in abundance - questing adventurousness, melodic invention, textural richness, developmental logic, and deep soulfulness."
To mark the release of this new album, ECM Records has released three out-of-print titles that highlight very different aspects of Phillips' creativity, via digital streaming and download platforms. The three titles are:
For All It Is, recorded in 1971;
Music By, recorded in 1980, and
Call Me When You Get There, recorded in 1983.
For All It Is charted new paths for bass ensembles and found Phillips collaborating with fellow innovators Barry Guy, J.F. Jenny-Clark, Palle Danielsson and Stu Martin.
Music By introduced his spirited songs, with Claudia Phillips and Aina Kemanis on vocals.
Call Me When You Get There is another one of Phillips' solo bass recordings, this one focusing on the music created for the films of Robert Kramer.
Featured photo credit: ECM Records
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