There are many wonderful ways to get acquainted or stay in touch with the spirit of
Rahsaan Roland Kirk. For a truly mind-altering and life-changing listening experience, try this Lone Hill Jazz double-CD reissue of
Kirk's amazing performances recorded live at the Club Montmartre in Copenhagen on October 24 and 25, 1963. (Present in the audience on the second night was
John Coltrane, who was resting his chops after playing the Tivolis Koncertsal.) Earlier that year,
Kirk was working out of Chicago when a promoter from Sweden heard him and suggested a Scandinavian tour. By late September
Kirk was in London playing to packed houses at Ronnie Scott's and the Marquee Club. The tour then expanded as
Kirk roared through Italy, France, Belgium, Germany and Holland in addition to Sweden and Denmark. Fortunately,
Quincy Jones arranged for the
Copenhagen Concert to be recorded, preserving for posterity the magical interplay between this joyously driven multi-instrumental Ohioan and the Barcelona-born pianist
Tete Montoliu, bassists
Don Moore and
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, and drummer
J.C. Moses, who by the end of the decade would serve as the house drummer at Café Montmartre. Two tracks feature special guest blues harmonica legend
Sonny Boy Williamson, identified on most previous issues only as 'Big Skol'. The gutsy combination of
Kirk and
Williamson on "Untitled Blues" and "The Monkey Thing" is a spicy treat that meshes nicely with
Williamson's other European and British adventures in the company of
Memphis Slim,
Eric Clapton,
the Yardbirds, and
Eric Burdon & the Animals. According to what
Kirk says by way of introduction, he and
Sonny Boy Williamson had previously gigged together in Milwaukee, which makes their Danish rendezvous somewhat of a reunion jam. Every aspect of
Kirk's artistry is documented on the Copenhagen recordings -- gorgeous ballads, gleefully reconstituted standards and fiery originals. Essential features are his supreme one-man three-sax and flute adaptation of "Mood Indigo," a bouncing medley that opens with a rousing "Rock-A-Bye Baby" and
Kirk's blustery, screaming over-the-top flute solo during "On the Corner of King and Scott Streets." This edition also contains two exciting bonus tracks: a sunny seven-minute version of "A Stritch in Time" recorded live at the 1962 Newport Jazz Festival, and a rare recording of a nearly 15-minute jam on
Charlie Parker's "Au Privave," tape recorded by an enterprising amateur at a gig in Berlin on September 24, 1964. In addition to
Tete Montoliu, bassist
Jimmy Woode, and drummer
Kenny Clarke, this steamy blowout features alto saxophonist
Sonny Stitt. Those who really love their jazz will want to absorb this track in all its muddy-sounding "bootleg" splendor, as this is the only known recording of
Sonny Stitt and
Rahsaan Roland Kirk performing together. Don't miss it.