Tokyo: 1976

by Ken DrydenBarry Harris was one of five musicians participating in a ten-day concert tour of Japan in 1976 in a variety of combinations; the music on this CD contains excerpts from three separate dates. Although the cover photo pictures the full quintet with alto saxophonist Charles McPherson and guitarist Jimmy Raney joining the rhythm section of Harris, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Leroy Williams, this group is only heard on two of the seven numbers; they include driving takes of "Groovin' High" and "Blue 'N' Boogie," both of which benefit from the fireworks provided by the added musicians. The trio tracks are hardly disappointing; producer Don Schlitten couldn't decide between two fine versions of "Ornithology," each of which begins with a brief detour into "How High the Moon" (whose chord changes provide the source for "Ornithology"), so he included both! Williams' percussive line in the introduction provides the spice to "A Night in Tunisia." The music is at a high level throughout, even with Harris' last-minute decision to sing along to "Salt Peanuts" though he had no vocal mike. Available for a number of years on Xanadu, and ever so briefly on the short-lived label Prevue, this out-of-print CD is worth the effort to locate it.