"SPIRIT OF LIGHT"

Greg Morgan C melody sax, synth. Chas Ambler drums, percussion.

Recorded Lancaster, England. 6 Nov. 1995. SLAMCD 221

TRACKS:

1 Pt. 1 6m 27s

2 Pt. 2 4 44

3 Pt. 3 4 40

4 Pt. 4 6 15

5 Pt. 5 2 47

6 Pt. 6 7 45

7 Pt. 7 5 11

Morgan and Ambler have experience that stretches back to the world of blues, soul and even rock. Approaching improvisation from such a background elicits contrasting responses but it seems to work for both men. There is certainly an earthy quality to Morgan’s C-melody excursions and it complements the strongly contoured melodic lines he delivers. His playing in Parts 2, 4, 6 and 7, in particular suggests an Ayler-like desolation and this is further emphasized by a wide old-time vibrato that brings him to the brink of bathos. Ambler’s busy drum figures do not display the ponderous, rhythmic insistence of soul or rock, tending rather to flutter very effectively in tandem with the horn line, while at the same time being sympathetic to it. The synthesizer is used with discretion and adds effectively to the overall texture of the two-man ensemble. Above all else, the music is not cloaked in complexity. It is lyrical, heartfelt and delivered with a sincerity that should communicate with all who like to trace the melodic progress of their free jazz. Barry McRae

Hi-Fi News & Record Review, December 1996

Saxophonist Greg Morgan invokes the muezzin trance of late Coltrane in Spirit of Light. C-melody sax (halfway between tenor and alto) gives it a new twist. Morgan’s dialogue with drummer Chas Ambler is careful and brave, but meager reed tone is the fatal flaw for Morgan’s hubris. Ben Watson