Al Foster, Live at Smoke, Smoke Sessions

Al Foster died earlier this year. This posthumous release was recorded just 5 months before Foster died at the age of 82 in May.

It features a beautiful version of Brad Mehldau classic ‘Unrequited’ a piece Foster also recorded some years earlier with Brad & Ron Carter on saxist Eli Degibri’s classic Israeli Song.

Miles Davis drummer Foster is found on Live at Smoke with Mehldau, bassist Joe Martin and saxophonist Chris Potter.

‘Unrequited’ as part of its luminous bittersweet balladic charms uses rubato (flexible tempo) to create emotional depth. It is primarily in E minor, though it modulates between B major and E minor. 

Foster was a regular at New York club Smoke where the track was recorded. This just released album also includes a version of Chris Potter piece ‘Amsterdam Blues,’ a tune that appeared on 1997 Concord Jazz album Unspoken (Jack DeJohnette who also died this year was on that earlier recording).

Late-1930s Willard Robison standard ‘Old Folks,’ which has some sublime Chris Potter soloing and great feel from Foster, Wayne Shorter classic ‘E.S.P,’ Sonny Rollins’ ‘Pent-Up House’ and Foster’s own ‘Simone’s Dance’ – a piece that also appeared on 2019 Foster work Inspirations & Dedications – Matt Dennis classic ‘Everything Happens To Me,’ John Coltrane’s ‘Satellite’ and Joe Martin’s ‘Malida’ also are included.

As for ‘Malida’ an earlier version was on Martin’s 2019 Sunnyside album Étoilée (that had Nasheet Waits, Mark Turner and Kevin Hays with Martin).

Live at Smoke is quite a long album clocking in at just over an hour and a half but never overstays its welcome.

Players have time to spread out, finish their sentences as it were, collaborate with one another on non-dumbed down ideas, play in a communitarian fashion and more.

Suffice is to say partly through these above factors, approachable choice of material plus a certain authentic live jazz club atmosphere contributed by the sound of an audience in Smoke, this amounts to a very satisfying album especially if your taste revolves around the magic of bebop, standards and golden age inspired balladic originals and is an ideal way to remember Foster who was still playing so well so recently as proved by the recording.