WEATHER REPORT — Procession (review)

WEATHER REPORT — Procession album cover Album · 1983 · Fusion Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Nightfly
With Drummer Peter Erskine and Bassist Jaco Pastorius tied up on other projects and tour dates looming fast Weather Report mainstays Joe Zawinul (Keyboards) and Wayne Shorter (Saxophones) were desperately in need of a new rhythm section. Drummer Omar Hakim came highly recommended and he brought along Bassist Victor Bailey and Percussionist Jose' Rossy. By the time they came to record Procession they'd had the opportunity to tighten up as a band on the road and the new blood seemed to revitalise the band, their previous couple of albums generally regarded as a disappointment.

The title track kicks off the album quietly and subtlely with Zawinal's Synth lines quickly joined by Bass and Drums. Hakim's Drumming is very tasteful and being a guitarist as well gives his playing a very musical feel rather than being simply rhythmic. The track picks up in intensity midway before quietly fading away towards the end. This is a Zawinul composition and he tends to take the front seat here, Shorter's sax playing a secondary roll. Procession is followed by Plaza Real where Shorter does make his presence more felt on this slow Jazz piece; indeed it's his composition.

The explosive Two Lines follows; the band is really on fire on this up tempo track. Each and every band member gets to shine here, particularly Shorter's superb Sax playing and the rhythmic interplay between Bailey and Hakim is excellent. This is eighties Jazz Fusion as good as it got. Seven and a half minutes is not nearly long enough for this brilliance!

Where the Moon Goes is a little unusual. It features the processed voices of vocal group Manhattan Transfer. No doubt the band inspired to use them after their interpretation of the Weather report classic Birdland. The track starts quietly underpinned by a Zawinul synth line with a slow build climaxing with some more excellent Sax from Shorter. The Vocal's are used as another instrument rather than singing a more traditional sort of vocal melody and it works very well. The tempo really picks up towards the end, Hakim really driving the piece home. A bit of light relief in The Well follows, an atmospheric piece featuring only Keyboards and Sax. The album then closes with a Hakim composition, Molasses Run. It's another lively bit of Fusion. Once again some excellent Drums and Bass work and Hakim also plays Guitar too.

If you're looking to discover Weather Report this may not be the best place to start, see their seventies work for that but there's no denying that this is an excellent piece of Jazz/Fusion from one of the seminal bands in the genre and comes highly recommended to fans of this type of music.

Share this review
more

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

Alberto Nemo, Claudio Milano (with borda), Niccolò Clemente : Frattura, Comparsa, Dissolvenza Jazz Related Improv/Composition
CLAUDIO MILANO (NICHELODEON)
Buy this album from MMA partners
Shapes of Silence (live) World Fusion
ALEPH QUINTET
Buy this album from MMA partners
Horizons Held Close Jazz Related Improv/Composition
TRANCE MAP (EVAN PARKER AND MATTHEW WRIGHT)
Buy this album from MMA partners
Puttin' On the Ritz Classic (1920s) Jazz
THE NEW WONDERS
Buy this album from MMA partners
異響同塵~Different echoes in the same dust~ Jazz Related Improv/Composition
TOSHI TSUCHITORI 土取利行
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

Puttin' On The Ritz
THE NEW WONDERS
js· 12 hours ago
Wet Weather Wet
THE WRONG OBJECT
js· 1 day ago
Michael Kiwanuka - Lowdown (parts i and ii)
MICHAEL KIWANUKA
js· 1 day ago
Who Needs You (Billie Holiday-Jeanne Burns) by Ineza with Alex Webb & The Copasetics
INEZA (INEZA KERSCHKAMP)
js· 2 days ago
Notbad
PEELA
js· 2 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
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed