OSCAR ROCCHI QUINTET - Alchemy In Jazz (2024 Reissue) - LP - Vinyl [JUN 14]

LP - Black Vinyl.   

Besides being a leading session musician in Milan's jazz scene between the 60s and 90s, Italian pianist Oscar Rocchi created a number of exquisite library albums in the pop-jazz genre. These include among others Erbe Selvatiche, Pop-Paraphrenia and Woman's Colours (the latter co-written with his friend Giancarlo Barigozzi) as well as Alchemy in Jazz.

Originally released on Ring, an imprint of Edizioni Minstrel, the album was recorded by a quintet featuring Rocchi on piano plus long-time collaborators Hugo Heredia (sax and flute), Sergio Fanni (trumpet), Gianni Cazzola (drums) and Furio Di Castri (double bass), and has since become a cult record in countries from the US to Japan, where it was released for the first time on CD in 2013.

With a palette ranging from frenzied post-bop echoes("Gold-Fast", "Nigredo") to sentimental nocturnal ballads ("Solution", "Rubedo") to cheerful modern-jazz vibes ("Mercury", "Silver-Bop", "Sulphur"), here Rocchi paints an elegantly syncopated musical fresco that, like the magical, alchemical process referred to in the title, transmutes the harsher aspects of jazz syntax into a graceful and more euphonic style that is approachable for jazz neophytes and yet enjoyable for seasoned jazz lovers.

Tracklist: 

A1.        Gold-Fast    [4:15]
A2.        Mercury    [5:59]
A3.        Solution    [9:50]

B1.        Silver-Bop    [7:30]
B2.        Sulphur    [3:44]
B3.        Rubedo    [3:53]
B4.        Nigredo    [4:18]