John Abercrombie
John Abercrombie's tying together of jazz's many threads made him one of the most influential acoustic and electric guitarists of the 1970s and early '80s; his recordings for ECM helped define that label's progressive chamber jazz reputation. Abercrombie's style drew upon all manner of contemporary improvised music; his style was essentially jazz-based, but also displayed a more than passing familiarity with forms that ranged from folk and rock to Eastern and Western art musics.
Abercrombie attended Boston's Berklee College of Music from 1962 to 1966. While at Berklee, the guitarist toured with bluesman Johnny Hammond. After relocating to New York in 1969, Abercrombie spent time in groups led by drummers Chico Hamilton and Billy Cobham. It was with the latter's Spectrum group that Abercrombie first received widespread attention. Abercrombie's first album as leader was Timeless, a trio album with drummer Jack DeJohnette and keyboardist Jan Hammer. That was followed by Gateway, another trio with DeJohnette, and bassist Dave Holland replacing Hammer.
Abercrombie continued to be active as the 21st century opened, releasing Cat 'n' Mouse in 2002, Class Trip in 2004, A Nice Idea (with pianist Andy LaVerne) in 2005, Structures (recorded with a single microphone) in 2006, and Third Quartet in 2007. Wait Till You See Her appeared in 2009. In 2011, the guitarist issued Speak to Me, a duet recording with pianist Marc Copland on the German Pirouet label. He followed it with the quartet recording Within a Song for ECM. His band on the date included drummer Joey Baron, saxophonist Joe Lovano, and bassist Drew Gress. Another quartet session appeared on the label in October of 2013. Entitled 39 Steps, its lineup contained only one change, as Copland replaced Lovano. Uncharacteristically, he released Inspired, a collaborative setting with fellow guitarists Rale Micic, Peter Bernstein, and Lage Lund, for Artistshare in 2016, before returning to ECM with his regular quartet for Up and Coming early the following year; it would be his final recording. After years of health problems, including a stroke suffered in early 2017, Abercrombie succumbed to heart failure at home on August 22. He was 72.
© Chris Kelsey /TiVo
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Timeless
John Abercrombie, Jan Hammer, Jack DeJohnette
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 1 Jan 1975
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sargasso Sea
John Abercrombie, Ralph Towner
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 1 Jan 1976
The Qobuz Essential Discography16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gateway
John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 1 Jan 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Five Years Later
Ralph Towner, John Abercrombie
Jazz - Released by ECM on 24 Jan 2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
November
John Abercrombie, Marc Johnson, Peter Erskine, John Surman
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 1 Nov 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
That's for Sure
Marc Copland, John Abercrombie, Kenny Wheeler
Jazz - Released by Baseline Jazz on 1 Jan 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Solos - The Jazz Sessions (John Abercrombie)
Jazz - Released by Original Spin Music on 1 Jan 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Yesterdays
John Abercrombie, Don Thompson
Jazz - Released by Cornerstone Records Inc. on 23 Sep 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Night
John Abercrombie, Jan Hammer, Jack DeJohnette, Michael Brecker
Jazz - Released by ECM on 1 Apr 1984
Qobuz Référence16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Current Events
John Abercrombie, Marc Johnson, Peter Erskine
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 1 Sep 1985
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Cat 'N' Mouse
John Abercrombie, Mark Feldman, Joey Baron, Marc Johnson
Jazz - Released by ECM Records on 18 Feb 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Speak to Me
Marc Copland, John Abercrombie
Jazz - Released by Pirouet Records on 16 Sep 2011
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brand New
Marc Copland, John Abercrombie, Kenny Wheeler
Jazz - Released by Baseline Jazz on 3 Jun 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Coincidence
Jazz - Released by Whaling City Sound on 12 Feb 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Creatrix
John Abercrombie, Dave Creamer
Jazz - Released by Pleasant Valley Music on 15 Jul 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Abracadabra
John Abercrombie, David Liebman, Adam Nussbaum, Jeff Palmer
Jazz - Released by Soul Note on 1 Jan 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Witchcraft
John Abercrombie, Don Thompson
Jazz - Released by Justin Time Records Inc. on 11 Oct 1986
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
In Concert (Live)
Jazz Fusion & Jazz Rock - Released by Concert Archives on 10 Jan 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -