Feels Good To Me - Bill Bruford

Jul

29

Feels Good To Me - Bill Bruford

≡ Category: 1970s, Essential, Fusion, Reviews |
≅ Written by: Michael Kydonieus

JAZZBO NOTES ESSENTIAL RECORDING

Rating:

Feels Good To Me is an extension of the Canterbury Sound, a hybrid of pop and jazz exemplified by such groups as Hatfield of the North. Drummer Bill Bruford’s band even includes keyboardist Dave Stewart, who was in Hatfield of the North, and guitarist Allan Holdsworth, who played in Gong, another Canterbury band.

So, what’s different about Bruford’s take on the sound?

For one thing, Jeff Berlin is the most muscular, funky, virtuostic bassist ever to play in this style. He allows Bruford to amp up the complexity and power of the compositions and arrangements, as well as bring an increased emphasis on funk and jazz pyrotechnics into the equation.

Then there’s vocalist Annette Peacock, an avant guarde composer and poet in her own right. What an inspired choice! Her dry vocal delivery is perfect for this style of fusion, making her contribution to Feels Good To Me a rare example of competent vocals in a jazz fusion recording.

In another inspired choice, Bruford hired Kenny Wheeler, who is mostly known for playing on Manfred Eicher’s ECM label, to play flugelhorn on several numbers. I’m not normally crazy about Wheeler, who has a tendency to blurt out longwinded phrases that don’t say much of anything, but on Feel Good to Me, he stays in a lyrical mode, and is very effective.

All four members of the main quartet, Bruford, Stewart, Holdsworth, and Berlin, are competent composers and arrangers. Together, their synergy is astonishing. The arrangements are endlessly creative and grow organically. The solos are burning, but there is plenty of lyricism in evidence. The melodies are plentiful and memorable. The lyrics are even thoughtful.

And perhaps best of all, Feels Good To Me maintains an air of mystery. It doesn’t yield it’s secrets all at once. You’ll be hearing new things years after first hearing it.

All in all, Feels Good To Me is one of the best fusion albums to come out in the late 70s.