Released only half dozen months after Gypsy '66, Gabor Szabo's 2nd album every bit a leader (after leaving a sublime Chico Hamilton band that also included Charles Lloyd) remains 1 of his finest moments inwards the studio. Szabo utilized the tales of bassist Ron Carter as well as his one-time boss Hamilton on drums, every bit good every bit a couplet of fine Latin percussionists -- Willie Bobo as well as Victor Pantoja. The groove quotient was really high on Spellbinder, maybe fifty-fifty higher than on after albums such every bit Jazz Raga or Sorcerer. This gear upward is all Szabo, drifting, wafting, as well as soaring inwards a higher identify all that rhythm; the runway choice provides ample infinite for Szabo's highly individualized Eastern modal trend to shine. The gear upward opens alongside the championship track, a snaky guitar masterpiece alongside enough of droning strings as well as pinched chords that are followed past times opened upward string flourishes. Carter holds the entire band together every bit Hamilton plays inwards counterpoint to the percussionists. This is followed alongside ii nuggets from the pop mass of the day, the Coleman/Leigh classic "Witchcraft" as well as "It Was a Very Good Year." From the performances here, it's apparent that Szabo was deeply influenced past times singers, as well as Frank Sinatra was at his pinnacle during this time. There's the emerging '60s psychedelic audio inwards Szabo's playing, but it is underlaid alongside bossa rhythms as well as swells. These tracks, spell flavored alongside Latin as well as pop stylings, are gorgeous guitar jazz. Szabo gets dorsum into his ain mystic thang alongside "Gypsy Queen" (the opening droning moments of which the Doors lifted solely for "The End"). Here the Latin rhythms as well as guitar travel caput to head, dot to counterpoint. H5N1 pronounced all the same elusive tune describe propels a serial of polyrhythms forwards into an abyss of melody, mode, as well as frighteningly intense legato phrasing, leaving the listener breathless. He takes the border off alongside Sonny Bono's "Bang Bang (She Shot Me Down)." Szabo sings hither inwards his plaintive Hungarian-inflected English, as well as the tune becomes something other than a pop song, but a tome on despair as well as loss. The funky "Cheetah" follows alongside gorgeous arpeggios, pointedly turning into chords of distinction every bit Hamilton rides the crash cymbal into territories unknown as well as double-times the band until it notches upward the intensity. This gear upward follows alongside 1 to a greater extent than Szabo original ("Yearning") as well as a trio of standards, alongside a heartbreakingly beautiful read of "My Foolish Heart" as well as a medley of "Autumn Leaves" as well as "Speak to Me of Love." Szabo's read on jazz inwards the '60s was brilliant. He embodied all of its well-nigh pop aspirations alongside a genuine spirit of invention as well as adventure. Spellbinder is a masterpiece. All Music.
I honey Jazz Guitar as well as involve keep many many albums past times the best inwards the concern ;Kenny Burrell, Grant Green, Herb Ellis, Wes Montgomery, Bill Frissell, JIm Hall as well as many others....
Of all the Jazz GUitar albums i own, Spellbinder album past times Gabor Szabo is 1 of my favourites....his note is utterly unique as well as coming from Republic of Hungary (eurpoe), has definietly added to his flavour.
on Spellbinder the organisation alongside a tonne of percussion as well as bass lays a huge spacious foundation for Gabor Szabo to pigment over the top....there are no other treble instruments to brand it his way....its all at that topographic point for Gabor Szabo to rip on as well as he does!
H5N1 swell album opened me upward to his other plant as well as i bought ii other albums which are also good, but Spellbinder is my favourite.....it fifty-fifty has the vocal runway 'Bang Bang- my babe shot me downwards ' on it, the famous runway that was used, on the flick Kill Bill.
One of my favourite Jazz Guitar albums. By Grant Green.
This album, heard at a friend's identify inwards the slow 60s, left an indelible memory. I decided to attempt it out to uncovering out whether it was every bit skilful every bit I remembered. The response is yes. It's non only Szabo's guitar, but the accompaniment as well as recording, every bit well: Ron Carter, bass; Rudy Van Gelder, engineer, Bob Thiele, producer. The latin percussion is likewise mesmerizing. Wonderful. By InTents.
Many stone listeners who graduated to jazz volition involve keep picked upward the scent, as well as hence to speak, of Gabor Szabo; he was the composer of the "Gypsy Queen", played past times Santana on the extraordinary showtime side of "Abraxas".
Such listeners would involve keep been disconcerted, perhaps, when they heard this, every bit I was, many years ago. Szabo's recording was only remotely connected inwards mood to the Santana performance. But, alongside time, I picked upward on the excellence of the performance. H5N1 mutual transition when stone listeners made the transition to jazz, the bigger vehicle, the woman raise music of America, as well as increasingly, Europe.
Republic of Hungary has the same mythic connector to music every bit African America. Perhaps this is rubbish, harmless or insidious of limiting stereotype, I don't know. But Szabo (of damnably brusk life, dying inwards his forties inwards '82) was Hungarian, fleeing the solid soil when the drunkards of the USSR cracked downwards on the opening inwards Budapest inwards 1956. By this time, the compatriot of Bartok and, inwards a dissimilar way, the "Gypsies" had discovered American jazz music. Itself an affront to the Communists.
So America got Szabo. What at that topographic point is of "Gypsy" here, I'm non sure. The exotic chemical component is the Latin American percussion: at that topographic point are ii Latin percussionists here, the entirety driven past times the car shell of the swell Chico Hamilton, who had previously featured Szabo on 1 of his unpredictable albums. At that time, Szabo as well as Hamilton were associated alongside Charles Lloyd, the tenor saxophonist. Lloyd is absent on "Spellbinder", a relief to this listener; I uncovering his alternate copyings of Coltrane as well as Ornette Coleman cloying, as well as every bit domineering every bit Flip Phillip's excursions on "Jazz at the Philharmonic".
This is a minimalist, percussion-dominated record. The swell bassist Ron Carter stays inwards the background here, as well as the leader himself, using a wooden guitar alongside pickup (I think), plays remarkably but subtly throughout, no guitargoddism here. Because the only soloist plays for the music, non the solo (rather similar Miles Davis), a 2nd soloist (reed, or perchance a violin) isn't missed.
He's well-nigh at domicile playing his ain compositions, but does reasonably good on standards, "My foolish heart", inwards this case. The Sonny Bono reveal succeeds, too, over the whole, but I'm lamentable to nation that I could involve keep done without the singing. Szabo isn't a bad singer, but it seemed to me out of place.
My re-create is a Japanese import. Very skilful sound, over the whole; it wouldn't involve keep been difficult to tape this properly, as well as non difficult to remaster, I wouldn't think. Good job, inwards whatever case, though I intend it could travel said that the bass (Ron Carter) isn't quite properly salient. By (((Marco Buendia))).
Track listing:
All compositions past times Gábor Szabó except every bit indicated
1 "Spellbinder" - 5:30
2 "Witchcraft" (Cy Coleman, Carolyn Leigh) - 4:39
iii "It Was a Very Good Year" (Ervin Drake) - 2:47
four "Gypsy Queen" - 5:13
v "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (Sonny Bono) - 2:28
6 "Cheetah" - 4:10
vii "My Foolish Heart" (Ned Washington, Victor Young) - 5:28
8 "Yearning" - 2:59
ix "Autumn Leaves/Speak to Me of Love" (Joseph Kosma, Jacques Prévert, Johnny Mercer/Jean Lenoir) - 3:35
Personnel:
Gábor Szabó - guitar, vocals
Ron Carter - bass
Chico Hamilton – drums
Willie Bobo, Victor Pantoja - percussion
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