Archie Shepp - Blase [LP]

Pressed on 180-gram white vinyl, this premium edition revives a historic 1969 Paris session from the iconic BYG/Actuel catalog-an essential statement from a visionary musician and activist, now reissued in it's best quality ever. Restored & remastered from the original tapes by Nick Robbins, it features a new and insightful essay by author & music journalist Kevin Le Gendre.The LP edition presents the original gatefold sleeve and artwork meticulously recreated with a sleek matte laminate finish, along with a double-sided insert.Awarded Audiophile Album of the Month by Jazzwise, March 2023, and hailed as "A must for Shepp fans as well as free-jazz aficionados" by Kevin Whitlock - Jazzwise.Florida-born saxophonist, composer, poet, actor, and playwright Archie Shepp was one of the most powerful voices of politicized Black culture in the late '60s-a time of radical thought and social upheaval.After relocating to Paris, Shepp recorded a series of groundbreaking albums, including Blasé, which explored themes of freedom, racial equality, and the deep roots of African-American music. Blending gospel, blues, and avant-garde jazz, the album featured the mesmerizing vocals of Jeanne Lee and members of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, creating a powerful fusion of jazz, poetry, and radical politics.Blasé defies categorization, moving fluidly across eras and influences-what Shepp called "pre-jazz" as much as "free jazz." From a graceful reprise of Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Lady to the propulsive rhythms of Touareg, inspired by his transformative experience at the 1969 Pan-African Festival in Algiers, Shepp's vision was always expansive.Black music has a dynamic relationship with it's past-what was once old becomes new again, resonating across generations. If Blasé teaches us anything, it's that younger artists will always feel the spirit of their predecessors, both in life and beyond. As Duke Ellington put it: "All God's chillun got rhythm."