Spiral

AMG Review of Spiral

Steve Huey
All Music Guide

Recorded in 1968 but not issued until 1979, Spiral marks the first time that the official lineup of the Bobby Hutcherson-Harold Land Quintet -- which also included pianist Stanley Cowell, bassist Reggie Johnson, and drummer Joe Chambers -- recorded together. (The first Hutcherson-Land album, Total Eclipse, featured Chick Corea on piano.) In one sense, it's understandable why this music stayed on the shelf for over a decade: it didn't fit the late-'60s zeitgeist. It had nothing to do with fusion, and it wasn't aggressively far-out like much of the avant-garde had gotten. Yet, on the other hand, it isn't so understandable -- the music was quite good, often excellent, and the quintet had a knack for making sophisticated, mainstream-leaning modal post-bop sound surprisingly soulful. Hutcherson, Land, Chambers, and Cowell all contribute compositions, making Spiral truly a group effort; Chambers in particular proves once again what an overlooked composer he was, but really, all the pieces are strong. Yet another unimpeachably solid Hutcherson session. [Note: The original LP version of Spiral contained "Jasper," an Andrew Hill-penned outtake from the 1965 Dialogue session that didn't really fit with all the Hutcherson-Land cuts. When Blue Note reissued Spiral as part of a CD two-fer with Medina, "Jasper" was excised and included on Dialogue as a bonus track.]