Contours is the second album by American saxophonist Sam Rivers recorded in 1965 and released on the Blue Note label.[2] The CD reissue contains an alternate take as a bonus track.

Contours
Studio album by
ReleasedJanuary 1967[1]
RecordedMay 21, 1965
StudioVan Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ
GenreAvant-garde jazz
Length40:08
LabelBlue Note
BST 84206
ProducerAlfred Lion
Sam Rivers chronology
Fuchsia Swing Song
(1964)
Contours
(1967)
A New Conception
(1967)

Reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music     [4]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings    [5]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide     [6]
Tom Hull – on the WebB+[7]

The Allmusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine awarded the album 5 stars and stated "On Contours, his second Blue Note album, tenor saxophonist Sam Rivers fully embraced the avant-garde, but presented his music in a way that wouldn't be upsetting or confusing to hard bop loyalists... Rarely is Contours anything less than enthralling, and it remains one of the high watermarks of the mid-'60s avant-garde movement".[3]

Track listing edit

All compositions by Sam Rivers.

  1. "Point of Many Returns" - 9:20
  2. "Dance of the Tripedal" - 10:07
  3. "Euterpe" - 11:43
  4. "Mellifluous Cacophony" - 8:58
  5. "Mellifluous Cacophony" [Alternate Take] - 9:04 Bonus track on CD reissue

Personnel edit

References edit

  1. ^ Billboard Jan 28, 1967
  2. ^ Blue Note Records discography accessed November 22, 2010
  3. ^ a b Erlewine, S. T. Allmusic Review accessed November 22, 2010
  4. ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Oxford University Press. p. 1968.
  5. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1217. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  6. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 168. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  7. ^ Hull, Tom. "Grade List: Sam Rivers". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved October 22, 2023.