Diminutive Mysteries (Mostly Hemphill) is an album by saxophonist Tim Berne which was recorded in 1992 and released on the JMT label.[1][2] The album is a tribute to Berne's mentor Julius Hemphill. Alongside Berne's regular band is featured guest David Sanborn, in an outlier among his more mainstream R&B work.
| Diminutive Mysteries (Mostly Hemphill) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1993 | |||
| Recorded | September 1992 | |||
| Venue | Power Station, New York City | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 65:37 | |||
| Label | JMT JMT 514 003 | |||
| Producer | Stefan F. Winter | |||
| Tim Berne chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz | [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide | [6] |
| Tom Hull – on the Web | B[7] |
| The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz | [8] |
The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow states: "This is certainly the most unusual David Sanborn recording to date. Avant-gardist Tim Berne (heard here on alto and baritone) and the popular R&B star Sanborn (mostly leaving his trademark alto behind to play sopranino) share a great respect for altoist Julius Hemphill and the St. Louis free jazz movement... they perform seven often-emotional Hemphill pieces plus Berne's "The Maze." Sanborn is to be congratulated for successfully stretching himself although this is very much Berne's date".[3]
The Guardian's John Fordham wrote: "The pieces are raw-boned and clamouring but rigorously structured and spine-tinglingly harmonised. Sometimes they sound like skewed bebop and sometimes like stealthily building improv, and Sanborn's soul sound... loses none of its famous wail."[4]
John Howard of Perfect Sound Forever called the album "A stunning tour de force... one of the finest jazz albums ever made," and commented: "the album ranges in mood from the sublimely beautiful 'Writhing Love Lines' to... 'The Maze,' 21 minutes of tangling and untangling structure."[9]
Track listing edit
All compositions by Julius Hemphill except as indicated
- "Sounds in the Fog" – 8:12
- "Serial Abstractions" – 6:27
- "Out, The Regular" – 5:54
- "The Unknown" – 6:50
- "Writhing Love Lines" – 7:20
- "Rites" – 3:32
- "The Maze (For Julius)" (Tim Berne) – 21:23
- "Mystery to Me" – 6:30
Personnel edit
- Tim Berne – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone
- David Sanborn – sopranino saxophone, alto saxophone
- Marc Ducret – electric guitar
- Hank Roberts – cello
- Joey Baron – drums
- Herb Robertson – trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn (track 7)
- Mark Dresser – bass (track 7)
References edit
- ^ Tim Berne discography, accessed October 7, 2014
- ^ Shimada, T., JMT label discography, accessed October 7, 2014
- ^ a b Yanow, S., Allmusic Review accessed October 7, 2014
- ^ a b Fordham, John (January 27, 2005). "Tim Berne, Diminutive Mysteries (Mostly Hemphill)". The Guardian. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
- ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1994). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP and Cassette. Penguin Books. p. 119.
- ^ Swenson, John, ed. (1999). The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide. Random House. p. 63.
- ^ Hull, Tom. "Grade List: Tim Berne". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
- ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (2004). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz. Virgin Books. p. 82.
- ^ Howard, John (September 1998). "Tim Berne: Interview by John Howard". Perfect Sound Forever. Retrieved July 13, 2023.