On the day Anthony Braxton marked his 80th birthday — June 4, 2025 — some significant recordings of a band he led when he was half that age had finally become public. Quartet (England) 1985 (Burning Ambulance) is six hours of never-before released tapes of the fabled composer, reedist and bandleader fronting his regular group at the time, his quartet with Marilyn Crispell (piano), Mark Dresser (double bass) and Gerry Hemingway (drums).
Though this powerful lineup was active through the 80s into the early 90s, in the fall of 1985 they made only one run through England, hitting many of the major municipalities there and their London, Birmingham and Coventry stops were preserved and released in the early 90s through Leo Records in the form of three double CD’s. But there were so much more.
Graham Lock, a noted jazz author, unwittingly became responsible for four more stops from the tour becoming available. I say “unwittingly” because Lock didn’t think the mono cassette recordings he made from the audience to inform one of his books on Braxton would ever be good enough to release to the wider public. Thanks to advances in digital technology and the good work of recording engineer Chris Trent, audio souvenirs from four more concerts are available today. I’m not going declare that these polished-up recordings are pristine, but given the circumstances under which they were taped with no separation, they’re more than good enough to justify release.
Certainly, it’s easy to discern that everyone is playing at the highest level. You have to be something of a virtuoso just to properly play Braxton’s music and no one questions the bonafides of Crispell, Dresser and Hemingway for their work both with and without their common leader. But if there were any questions, they would forcefully dismissed with these performances. The Quartet were playing daily, with a different combination of compositions and variations of compositions each time.
Each set, running about 40-45 minutes, is a single performance of several of Braxton’s compositions rendered as a single piece. Braxton typically puts them together so that no matter how rigorous they were scripted, there was always plenty of breathing space for individual expression. Moreover, he knows how to sew together these two divergent approaches into a holistic piece that’s continually moving forward, always giving the audience reason to stay engaged.
The first set in Sheffield has that Monk whimsy applied to a freer milieu that breaks down into a melee. Hemingway’s drums produces a distinctive clatter and Crispell is frantic but playing with intent (it’s a Braxton chart, after all). Dresser isn’t left out of the party; he gets his own spotlight that softens up to open the door for a more contemplative frame of mind. Sometimes the performance pushes forward by Dresser moving to bowed bass and Braxton swapping out his sax for a flute to give the music a chamber music flavor, but regardless it’s always pushing. The highest point is reached when the backing band briefly backs out as Braxton plays eloquently on alto sax.
The second set likewise begins with a Monk/Mingus type of theme but it soon becomes evident that highly structured parts deeply intermingle with moments of heavy improvisation, that’s by design. At one point the rhythm is established by Crispell’s block chords as Hemingway largely goes off. Braxton on clarinet leads the band on a up-and-down, one note per beat ride. Other sections flow in a rubato with the leader back on his alto sax, and new, swinging melodies can suddenly erupt out of the blue.
Though the first Leicester set feels more orchestrated than the others, it still gives us a lot to ponder as Braxton’s charts combine informed chunks of classical, jazz and avant-jazz, as Braxton is steeped in all music forms. Later that day, the quartet starts with a strident march, a constriction countered by Braxton’s wild asides on clarinet that somehow manages to stay on key with the underlying harmony. It’s also a reminder of what a nasty-assed, virtuosic reed player Braxton is (in case you forgot all about For Alto).
Individual performances are simply delightful for their ingenuity as much as their sheer chops. For instance, Crispell’s extemporized feature during the first Bristol set two-thirds in uses Braxton’s composed figure as the fabric from which she builds a message that’s logical and yet instinctive. Hemingway’s percussion highlight on the following set is an advanced seminar on exploiting the silence between the beats, effectually building up anticipation. Dresser really shines on the first Southampton set, whether it be from engaging one-on-one with Hemingway pizzicato, with Braxton arco, or using solos as a launching point for group improv.
Sometimes, however, the biggest enjoyment comes from simply taking in Braxton’s resourceful composing that is remindful of classical styles but always with a modern twist. Behold for instance, the cinematic score at around the twenty-one minute mark of the second Southampton set with its quickly ascending and descending progression played in perfect unison.
The final five tracks perfectly round out this ginormous assemblage, because they are covers captured during soundchecks, running at briefer, easily digestible durations of 3-8 minutes. Braxton & Co. play the straight jazz tunes straight, honoring and celebrating the tradition that he so aggressively moves so far ahead of with his own material. During the Birmingham soundcheck, “All the Things You Are” is captured already well underway, quickly followed up by “On Green Dolphin Street.” “All the Things You Are” is caught mid-performance in Birmingham and another brief one from a Coventry soundcheck is likewise tackled straight ahead but in a different key.
For those preferring to bite off smaller chunks of these performances, each of the four dates are available separately but you gotta buy the full monty to also get the standards soundcheck tracks. At any price point, the availability of these historic recordings from a living, historic jazz figure leading one of his best ensembles is a major event itself.
Order Anthony Braxton’s Quartet (England) 1985 from Bandcamp and only from Bandcamp.
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