Acclaimed bassist Miroslav Vitous had already played with such legendary jazz artists Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Herbie Mann, and Stan Getz before forming the seminal fusion act Weather Report with Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul back in 1970. Though he only appeared on three of the band's albums before leaving, his influence continued to be felt for many years, even with the arrival of Jaco Pastorius in what turned out to be Weather Report's most popular period in the mid-late 70's. Remembering Weather Report is a tribute to the improvisational nature of the early years of his former band, and along for the ride is drummer Gerald Cleaver, trumpet player Franco Ambrosetti, Gary Campbell on tenor sax, and special guest Michel Portal on bass clarinet. The band takes a more 'acoustic' approach to the style of early Weather Report, and the results are quite challenging yet enjoyable.
"Variations on W. Shorter" is a dark, intricate piece, with Vitous really working overtime on his double bass, alternating between soaring bowed lines and nimble finger picking, as he does battle with Campbell's savage sax lines while Cleaver lays down an intense rhythm on his kit. The atmospheric "Variations on Lonely Woman" (written by Ornette Coleman) sees the three reed/horn players creating waves of anguished melancholy, with menacing notes pouring out of Vitous' bass and Cleaver gently splattering his drums. This is dark, free jazz at its best, without the bombast and frenzy that you normally expect from avant-garde music of this nature. The near 14-minute "Semina" reminds of classic Miles Davis, with haunting trumpet & sax lines crying above the stabbing bowed bass runs from Vitous. "Surfing with Michel" is a great vehicle for Portal's melodic clarinet melodies, but also be on the lookout for Vitous and his speedy bass solos. One of the more upbeat pieces here is the 11-minute gem "When Dvorak Meets Miles", a complex avant-garde/free jazz number with some jagged & violent bass shards from Vitous, manic drum work courtesy of Cleaver, and frenzied sax & trumpet bursts. Ambrosetti gets some wild Miles Davis inspired trumpet bleats on this one, but it's the dizzying lead lines of Vitous that really steals the show. Closing number "Blues Report" is more of a laid back shuffle, Campbell's sax and Vitous' bass taking most of the lead lines and ending the album on a lazy, smokey note.
Though you might not be reminded much of classic Weather Report here on Remembering Weather Report, you can certainly hand it to Vitous & Co. for recreating the improvisational nature of the early part of that band's career, before they became a more pop flavored fusion band. There's plenty of stirring ensemble playing and far reaching improvisations to be found here for all you jazz lovers out there.
Track Listing
1. Variations On W. Shorter 5:13
2. Variations On Lonely Woman 7:28
3. Semina (In 3 Parts) 13:32
4. Surfing With Michel 5:48
5. When Dvorák Meets Miles 10:58
6. Blues Report 4:48
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