Double bassist, improviser and composer Olie Brice lives in Hastings and recommends five must-listen albums.
In these challenging times we need music more than ever. While live gigs are cancelled we want to shine a spotlight on the jazz community in the South. We’ve been in contact with artists, venues and promoters to ask them for their listening recommendations.
Here are five albums that Olie has been listening to recently. Some are new to him, and others are old favourites.
1) Dave Holland – Emerald Tears
In this time of social isolation all musicians are doing more of their playing solo than usual, and this is one of the all-time great solo albums on my instrument. I’ve been studying this album really closely recently – incredible harmonic and technical clarity and imagination, truly inspiring.
2) Shirley Horn – Lazy Afternoon
This is one of my favourite albums for pure joy! Definitely a good pick to cheer me up and get me dancing round the kitchen. Shirley Horn on magical vocals and piano, trio with one of the great rhythm sections – Buster Williams and Billy Hart.
3) The John Carter Octet – Dauwhe
This is an album I’ve been meaning to listen to for a while, but only recently spent time with. Astonishing writing and improvising from the great clarinetist and a seriously heavy band. This is the first of a five album series tracing African-American history, and one of my lockdown plans is to work my way through a close listening to the whole series.
4) Kim Kashkashian – J.S Bach, Six Suites for Viola solo
Bach’s cello suites, here played on viola, are some of the most sublime music ever written, and this recording is a really gorgeous take on them. Kashkashian is incredible, her Berio recording is out of this world and her Hindemith is also wonderful, but this recording would be a good place to look when you need some peace and beauty
5) Tarbaby with Special Guests – Fanon
The great Tarbaby (Orrin Evans, Eric Revis & Nasheet Waits) joined by Oliver Lake on alto and Marc Ducret on guitar. This is another one I’d been meaning to check out for a while. Rogue Art have one of the most interesting catalogues around at the moment, and while all this is going on they’ve been putting a whole album up to stream on their website, changing every two or three days. This is an incredible album, highly recommended, but won’t be streaming by the time you read this – check out what is here.
Our next Stay at Home Soundtrack will be by singer-songwriter Rue and published on Wednesday 22 April. Follow the series on our social media and hear about it directly when you sign up to our mailing list.