Eyes of the Heart (album)

Eyes of the Heart
Live album by
Keith Jarrett
Released25 May 1979[1]
RecordedMay 1976
VenueTheater am Kornmarkt
Bregenz, Austria
GenrePost-bop
Length50:56
LabelECM 1150
ProducerManfred Eicher
Keith Jarrett chronology
Bop-Be
(1978) 		Eyes of the Heart
(1979) 		Nude Ants
(1980)
Keith Jarrett American Quartet chronology
Bop-Be
(1978) 		Eyes of the Heart
(1979) 		Hamburg '72
(2014)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz[3]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide[4]

Eyes of The Heart is a live album by American pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Theater am Kornmarkt in Bregenz, Austria in May 1976 and released on ECM in 1979—the last release by Jarrett's "American Quartet", featuring saxophonist Dewey Redman and rhythm section Charlie Haden and Paul Motian.

Background

The studio album The Survivors' Suite had been recorded one month earlier.

Although recorded the same year before Byablue (released in 1977) and Bop-Be (released in 1978), Eyes of The Heart was the last album released to feature Jarrett's American quartet.

Original notes

As part of the public farewell and disbanding of Jarrett's "American Quartet" the CD and vinyl issues contained a few notes addressed to its members:

Music is at its best when it carries you along at a level deeper than the music itself and forces you to live in its spaces as well as its notes.
Improvisation is at its best when everyone involved in the music is aware of an intent greater than his own; therefore more his own. Neither of these are common occurrences.
I wish to dedicate this recording to Charlie Haden, Dewey Redman and Paul Motian, all of whom shared the most valuable intimacy with me during the making of this music.
It is not easy.
It is not difficult.
It is.

Reception

Writing for AllMusic, Scott Yanow called the album "intriguing", and wrote: "Every recording by this particular group (arguably Jarrett's best working ensemble) is well worth hearing, for they had their own sound and the ability to play both 'inside' and 'outside' simultaneously, and they were continually full of surprises."[2] In an article for Between Sound and Space, Tyran Grillo commented: "Just when I think I've encountered the extent of Jarrett's immeasurable talents, he surprises me with an album like this. It's always a pleasure to hear his peripheral instrumental work, for his talents at the keyboard transfer effortlessly to reed by way of our grateful hearts. Perhaps the title is more than just a metaphor."[5]

Track listing

All music composed by Keith Jarrett.
  1. "Eyes of the Heart (Part One)" – 17:11
  2. "Eyes of the Heart (Part Two)" – 15:43
  3. "Encore (a-b-c)" – 18:03

Personnel

American Quartet

Production

  • Manfred Eicher – producer
  • Martin Wieland – recording engineer
  • Barbara Wojirsch – design
  • Keith Jarrett - photography

References

  1. ^ ECM Records Keith Jarrett: Eyes of the Heart accessed May 2020
  2. ^ a b Yanow, Scott (2011). "Eyes of The Heart - Keith Jarrett Quartet | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  3. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 769. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  4. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 112. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  5. ^ Grillo, Tyran (July 26, 2011). "Keith Jarrett: Eyes of the Heart (ECM 1150)". Between Sound and Space. Retrieved March 13, 2021.