This writer saw saxophonist Azar Lawrence in L.A.’s famed Catalina Jazz Club about a dozen years ago and it was surely the closest anyone could get to John Coltrane’s playing at the time. Lawrence, of course, is a Coltrane disciple, having issued more than a few albums covering Trane. Yet, most of us first became acquainted with his vigorous, spiritual playing when he accompanied the great McCoy Tyner through perhaps Tyner’s best period of solo albums. (more on that later). The subject at hand, however, is the reissue of Lawrence’s 1975 Summer Solstice, long regarded as one of his finest solo albums and only his second following Bridge into the New Age, which was also reissued two years ago.
Summer Solstice has no Coltrane covers but one can certainly hear Trane’s influence in Lawrence’s playing on both soprano (i.e. title track) and tenor. Instead, during a period of intense exploration of jazz and world music, the album finds Lawrence honing into his love for Brazilian music, melding it with his aggressive approach at the intersection of melodic and avant-garde.
In fact, listening to Lawrence’s opening wooden flute sounds on “Point of Love,” he does a great job of mimicking the jungle sounds much in the same way that Randy Weston conjured up the sounds of Africa during this same era. The album is naturally more saxophone centric than Weston’s piano and percussion focused albums but be assured that plenty of percussion percolates through this one too. The assembled international cast plays brilliantly and they are: Amaury Tristao Iguitar), Dom Salvador and Albert Daily (piano), Ron Carter (bass), Billy Hart (drums), Guilherme Franco (percussion), Gerald Hayes (flute), and Raul De Souza (trombone) who made his mark with Sergio Mendes and Sonny Rollins. He proves to be an excellent ensemble partner for Lawrence and scintillating soloist too.
The credits need a little more explanation. On “Novo Ano” and “Highway,” the two compositions of Tristao, that lineup includes DeSouza, Hayes, Tristao, Salvador, Carter and Franco in support of Lawrence. On all other tunes (except that DeSouza does not play on “Point of Love” but Franco does) the cast is DeSouza, Dailey, Carter, and Billy Hart in support of Lawrence. The percussion instruments used by France include: berimbau, cuica, egogo, panpeiro, reco-reco, caxixi, and afuche.
The album features just five compositions and runs for about 41 minutes, making it easy to absorb in just one listen. Not only is Lawrence’s playing superb, but the tone of De Souza’s trombone is remarkable as are the blending of rhythms with the other solos that include plenty of piano statements as well. Lawrence took a bold approach marrying the hard bop of the late ‘50s and ‘60s with the free spirit of Brazilian jazz. This is not Getz and Gilberto by any means. It’s a meshing of the kind of music Tyner and Coltrane were making along with the hard boppers out of Art Blakey’s mold, with the rhythms and sensuality of Brazilian music. Lawrence’s penchant for exploration has influenced many contemporary players including one of its brightest stars, Kamasi Washington,
Lawrence has near a thirty-year solo recording gap from 1979 to 2007 but since resuming, he’s put out albums on an annual basis. His current band, (TALE) The Azar Lawrence Experience, has as many as eight musicians who play Lawrence’s compositions and delve into Coltrane too. Some background, as promised, is also in order. Lawrence was a child prodigy who played violin and viola, having played violin in The Los Angeles Symphony Youth Orchestra at age 5. By his teen years though, he became attracted to the saxophone, spending time with the great Benny Golson’s son, the late Reggie Golson, in Los Angeles.
Azar began his jazz career at the renowned Dorsey High School Jazz Workshop. After high school he played in Horace Tapscott’s Pan Afrikan Arkestra, and played weekly with George Cables, Candy Finch, Larry Gales and Woody Shaw in Los Angeles. Before long, he performed with the Ike & Tina Turner band, the Watts 103rd Street Band and War. At age 19, he then Elvin Jones for 3 ½ years. McCoy Tyner then invited Lawrence to join his quartet, an alchemy that lasted for 5 ½ years. As the McCoy said: “I think you [Azar] feel the same way about the music that John [Coltrane] did.” Azar performed on arguably Tyner’s best albums, Enlightenment, Atlantis, and Sama Layuca. During his tenure with Tyner, Azar also recorded with Miles Davis on the album Dark Magus at Carnegie Hall. Upon leaving Tyner, Azar recorded his own projects, including the recently reissued Bridge Into The New Age (1974), then this one, and People Moving (1976).
Azar went on to record/write for Freddie Hubbard, Busta Rhymes, Roberta Flack, and Phyllis Hyman. His sensational collaborations of the period included writing and performing on Earth Wind & Fire’s highly acclaimed platinum album, Powerlight, and on Marvin Gaye’s Grammy award-winning, Hear My Dear. Lawrence’s return to solo work is marked by these albums. Legacy and Music of John Coltrane (2007), which coincides with the date this writer attended at Catalina, Speak The Word Revelations (2008), Prayer For My Ancestors (2009), Mystic Journey (2010), The Seeker, Live At The Jazz Standard (2014). Azar’s 2018 album, Elementals, is his most recent.
Lawrence is one of the few jazz musicians from the vital period of ‘70s jazz that continues to play with verve, improvisation, and spirituality. Enjoy this and seek out his catalog.
You can access Summer Solstice at Jazz Dispensary
