Gabor Szabo - The Sorcerer (1967)

Gabor Szabo - The Sorcerer (1967)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 405MB

Impulse! | 20bit SBM

Allmusic:
Gabor Szabo's quintet featuring Jimmy Stewart was one of the guitarist's very best units. Live performances like this, recorded at Boston's Jazz Workshop, document some of the excitement the group stirred in 1967-1968. Included in the 1997 CD reissue are three excellent tracks ("Los Matadoros," "People," and "Corcovado") recorded at the same concert, which originally appeared on More Sorcery. The playing seems inspired, and the interplay within the group is something to behold -- even when performing lightweight tunes like "The Beat Goes On."

Tracks
-01. "The Beat Goes On" (Sonny Bono) - 4:52
-02. "Little Boat (O Barquinho)" (Ronaldo Bôscoli, Roberto Menescal) - 4:23
-03. "Lou-Ise" (Jimmy Stewart) - 4:17
-04. "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (Cole Porter) - 5:18
-05. "Space" - 6:40
-06. "Stronger Than Us" (Francis Lai, Pierre Barough) - 4:13
-07. "Mizrab" - 6:58
-08. "Comin' Back" (Clyde Otis, Szabó) 1:56
-09. "Los Matadoros" - 12:09 Bonus track on CD reissue
-10. "People" (Bob Merrill, Jule Styne) - 5:18 Bonus track on CD reissue
-11. "Corcovado" (Antonio Carlos Jobim) - 3:22 Bonus track on CD reissue
All compositions by Gábor Szabó except as indicated
Recorded at The Jazz Workshop in Boston, Massachusetts on April 14 & 15, 1967

Personnel
* Gábor Szabó - guitar
* Jimmy Stewart - guitar
* Lajos "Louis" Kabok - bass
* Marty Morell – drums
* Hal Gordon - percussion

sample & buy: Sorcerer

Gabor Szabo - 1969 (1969)

Gabor Szabo - 1969 (1969)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 190MB

DCC

Allmusic:
In the late '60s, many jazz artists were ignoring the rock and soul hits of the day -- when called upon to interpret popular songs, they stuck to their favorite Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and Irving Berlin standards and didn't see Beatles or Marvin Gaye hits as vehicles for jazz improvisation. But there were some jazz artists who didn't feel that way; Grant Green, Herbie Mann, and Charles Earland -- just to give three examples -- saw no reason why rock and soul tunes couldn't receive instrumental jazz makeovers. And on 1969, Gazor Szabo puts a jazz spin on popular songs of the 1960s, including "Walk Away Renee" (a major hit for the Left Banke), the Beatles' "In My Life," and Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now." Again, there were many jazz artists who wouldn't have touched these songs in 1969 -- they would have insisted on providing yet another version of "Our Love Is Here to Stay" or "My Funny Valentine." But Szabo acknowledges that worthwhile popular music didn't die with George Gershwin. The Hungarian guitarist doesn't always stretch out as much as he could on this album; at times, he ends a solo that probably should have lasted a few more minutes. But Szabo still deserves credit for bringing a jazz perspective to songs that so many other improvisers were ignoring. Produced by Gary McFarland, this 1969 date originally came out on vinyl and was finally reissued on CD in 1998.

Tracks
-01. "Dear Prudence" - Lennon, McCartney - 2:37
-02. "Sealed With a Kiss" - Gela, Geld, Udell - 2:41
-03. "Both Sides Now" - Mitchell - 2:54
-04. "Walk Away Renee" - Brown, Calilli, Sansone - 2:42
-05. "You Won't See Me" - Lennon, McCartney - 3:31
-06. "Michael from Mountains" - Mitchell - 3:56
-07. "Stormy" - Buie, Cobb, Cobb - 3:12
-08. "In My Life" - Lennon, McCartney - 2:25
-09. "I've Just Seen a Face" - Lennon, McCartney - 4:30
-10. "Until It's Time for You to Go" - Sainte-Marie, St. Marie - 2:18
-11. "Somewhere I Belong" - Szabo - 3:33

Personnel
Gabor Szabo - guitar
Frabcois Vaz - guitar
Randy Cierly - bass
Mike Melvoin - organ
Jim Keltner - percussion
George Ricci - cello

sample & buy: 1969

 

Gabor Szabo - High Contrast (1971)

Gabor Szabo - High Contrast (1971)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 285MB

Verve

Allmusic:
An unusually successful pairing of Gabor Szabo with R&B legend Bobby Womack. Szabo digs deep into a soulful groove, inspired by Womack's silky-smooth originals. High Contrast features "Breezin," the Womack tune written especially for Szabo, which George Benson parlayed into a huge hit in 1976, and several tunes Womack popularized in the film Across 110th Street.

Tracks
-1. Breezin' - (Bobby Womack) 3:03
-2. Amazon - (Gábor Szabó) 4:55
-3. Fingers - (Gábor Szabó, Meltz) 7:25
-4. Azure Blue - (Gábor Szabó) 4:12
-5. Just A Little Communication - (Bobby Womack)7:45
-6. If You Don't Want My Love - (Gábor Szabó, Bobby Womack) 5:08
-7. I Remember When - (Bobby Womack) 7:35

Personnel
* Gábor Szabó - Guitar
* Bobby Womack - Rhythm Guitar
* Phil Upchurch, Wolfgang Meltz - Bass
* Mark Levine - Piano
* Felix Falcon - Congas
* Carmelo Garcia - Percussion
* Jim Keltner - Drums
* The Shadow - Tambourine, Percussion

Sample & buy: High Contrast

Gabor Szabo - Femme Fatale (1978)

Gabor Szabo - Femme Fatale (1978)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 215MB

Hungaroton/Mambo 1999

Allmusic:
Released in 1981 on a small Hungarian label, this 1978 session recorded in Hollywood is the guitarist's final record. "Out of the Night" interestingly pairs him with pianist Chick Corea. But the remainder of the record is a standard late-'70s fusion date without Corea, highlighted by the Return to Forever intrigue of "A Thousand Times."

Tracks
-1. "Femme Fatale" - Szabo - 8:13
-2. "Zingaro" - Jobim - 7:08
-3. "Serena" - Harrah - 3:37
-4. "A Thousand Times" - Szabo - 9:17
-5. "Out of the Night" - Corea - 8:07

Personnel
* Gabor Szabo (guitar)
* Chick Corea (keyboards)
* Jim Keltner (drums)
* Paulinho Da Costa (percussion)
* Jerry Hey (trumpet, trombone)
* Kim Hutchcroft (sax)
* Bud Nuanez (guitar)
* Ken Wild (bass)

sample & buy: Femme Fatale

Gabor Szabo - Spellbinder (1966)

Gabor Szabo - Spellbinder (1966)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 225MB

Impulse!

Allmusic:
Released just six months after Gypsy '66, Gabor Szabo's second album as a leader (after leaving a sublime Chico Hamilton band that also included Charles Lloyd) remains one of his finest moments in the studio. Szabo utilized the tales of bassist Ron Carter and his old boss Hamilton on drums, as well as a pair of fine Latin percussionists -- Willie Bobo and Victor Pantoja. The groove quotient was very high on Spellbinder, maybe even higher than on later albums such as Jazz Raga or Sorcerer. This set is all Szabo, drifting, wafting, and soaring above all that rhythm; the track selection provides ample space for Szabo's highly individualized Eastern modal style to shine. The set opens with the title track, a snaky guitar masterpiece with plenty of droning strings and pinched chords that are followed by open string flourishes. Carter holds the entire band together as Hamilton plays in counterpoint to the percussionists. This is followed with two nuggets from the pop book of the day, the Coleman/Leigh classic "Witchcraft" and "It Was a Very Good Year." From the performances here, it's apparent that Szabo was deeply influenced by singers, and Frank Sinatra was at his pinnacle during this time. There's the emerging '60s psychedelic sound in Szabo's playing, but it is underlaid with bossa rhythms and swells. These tracks, while flavored with Latin and pop stylings, are gorgeous guitar jazz. Szabo gets back into his own mystic thang with "Gypsy Queen" (the opening droning moments of which the Doors lifted entirely for "The End"). Here the Latin rhythms and guitar go head to head, point to counterpoint. A pronounced yet elusive melody line propels a series of polyrhythms forward into an abyss of melody, mode, and frighteningly intense legato phrasing, leaving the listener breathless. He takes the edge off with Sonny Bono's "Bang Bang (She Shot Me Down)." Szabo sings here in his plaintive Hungarian-inflected English, and the tune becomes something other than a pop song, but a tome on despair and loss. The funky "Cheetah" follows with gorgeous arpeggios, pointedly turning into chords of distinction as Hamilton rides the crash cymbal into territories unknown and double-times the band until it notches up the intensity. This set follows with one more Szabo original ("Yearning") and a trio of standards, with a heartbreakingly beautiful read of "My Foolish Heart" and a medley of "Autumn Leaves" and "Speak to Me of Love." Szabo's read on jazz in the '60s was brilliant. He embodied all of its most popular aspirations with a genuine spirit of innovation and adventure. Spellbinder is a masterpiece.

Tracks
-1. "Spellbinder" - 5:30
-2. "Witchcraft" (Cy Coleman, Carolyn Leigh) - 4:39
-3. "It Was a Very Good Year" (Ervin Drake) - 2:47
-4. "Gypsy Queen" - 5:13
-5. "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (Sonny Bono) - 2:28
-6. "Cheetah" - 4:10
-7. "My Foolish Heart" (Ned Washington, Victor Young) - 5:28
-8. "Yearning" - 2:59
-9. "Autumn Leaves/Speak to Me of Love" (J Kosma, J Prévert, J Mercer/J Lenoir) - 3:35
* All compositions by Gábor Szabó except as indicated
* Recorded at Rudy Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on May 6, 1966

Personnel
* Gábor Szabó - guitar, vocals
* Ron Carter - bass
* Chico Hamilton – drums
* Willie Bobo, Victor Pantoja - percussion

sample & buy: Spellbinder