HERBIE HANCOCK — Hear, O Israel - A Concert Service In Jazz (review)

HERBIE HANCOCK — Hear, O Israel - A Concert Service In Jazz album cover Live album · 1968 · Post Bop Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
dreadpirateroberts
I've struggled over the star rating on this one, though I shouldn't - but I just can't decide between three and four stars.

Because it's a great album, no doubt about it. It's simply hard to decide how much I've enjoyed it. No matter, more importantly - what's the music like? Well, it's great post-bop mixed with Jewish prayers. Spoken and sung over the jazz, the vocals weave in and out of the spotlight during this live concert from 1968, which showcases Hancock and Thad Jones, along with Jerome Richardson on saxes and flute, especially.

The pieces range from brief interludes where soprano and alto voices lead, to longer pieces where the jazz musicians stretch the music. Hancock is lyrical as ever, moving through cool moments, bluesy passages and more exploratory pieces like Torah Service and the wonderful Sanctification.

Ultimately, this should be of special interest to Hancock fans, and everyone turns in great performances but for me personally, the vocals don't gel with the jazz as smoothly as I expected. Not to say the vocalists aren't dexterous enough, but there's something about their vocal lines that seem disconnected to what the musicians are playing. It can distract me at times but it's not a flaw by any means.

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Jazz Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

JMA TOP 5 Jazz ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
A Love Supreme Post Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
Kind of Blue Cool Jazz
MILES DAVIS
Buy this album from our partners
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Progressive Big Band
CHARLES MINGUS
Buy this album from our partners
Blue Train Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
My Favorite Things Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners

New Jazz Artists

New Jazz Releases

About (or On)First Visit Avant-Garde Jazz
ELLERY ESKELIN
Buy this album from MMA partners
Noah Kaplan Quartet : Out Of The Hole Avant-Garde Jazz
NOAH KAPLAN
Buy this album from MMA partners
To Walk On Eggshells Avant-Garde Jazz
RUSS JOHNSON
Buy this album from MMA partners
Snakeoil : Snakeoil Ok Avant-Garde Jazz
TIM BERNE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Poetry of Place (from the exhibit by painter Karen Allen) Jazz Related Improv/Composition
CHRIS DINGMAN
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

Satoko Fujii Tokyo Trio Dream a Dream
SATOKO FUJII
js· 1 day ago
Wojciech Jachna Squad - Ad Astra (Promo Teaser)
WOJCIECH JACHNA
snobb· 4 days ago
Nitty Gritty
RUSS SPIEGEL
js· 4 days ago
Never in a 100.000.000 Dreams
SUPERSISTER
js· 5 days ago
Love is a Fire that Burns Unseen
PETER MADSEN
js· 5 days ago
More videos

New JMA Jazz Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Jazz News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed