The Paul Bley Quartet

The Paul Bley Quartet
Studio album by Paul Bley
Released	1987
Recorded	November 1987
Genre	Jazz
Length	53:16
Label	ECM
Producer	Manfred Eicher
Paul Bley chronology
Notes (1987) The Paul Bley Quartet (1987) Solo (1987)

The Paul Bley Quartet is an album by Canadian jazz pianist Paul Bley recorded in 1987 and released on the ECM label.^[1]

Reception

The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars stating "While it's easy to argue that, with Manfred Eicher's icy, crystalline production, this was a stock date for both the artists and the label, that argument would be flat wrong. Bley was looking for a new lyricism in his own playing and in his compositions. He was coming from a different place than the large harmonies offered by augmented and suspended chords and writing for piano trios. The other band members -- two other extremely lyrical improvisers in Surman and Frisell (who prized understatement as the veritable doorway to lyricism) and a drummer who was better known for his dancing through rhythms than playing them in Motian -- were the perfect foils".^[2] The Penguin Guide to Jazz said "The long "Interplay" on the latter, eponymous set, is disappointing enough to ease that album back a stellar notch".^[3]

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz	[3]

Track listing

All compositions by Paul Bley except as indicated

1. "Interplay" - 20:22
2. "Heat" (John Surman) - 8:18
3. "After Dark" (Bill Frisell) - 11:55
4. "One in Four" (Paul Motian) - 9:33
5. "Triste" - 2:58

• Recorded at Rainbow Studio in Oslo, Norway in November 1987.

Personnel

• Paul Bley — piano
• John Surman — soprano saxophone, bass clarinet
• Bill Frisell — guitar
• Paul Motian — drums

References

1. ECM discography accessed August 29, 2011
2. Jurek, T. Allmusic Review accessed August 29, 2011
3. Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (8th ed.). London: Penguin. p. 134. ISBN 0141023279.