This post is by Scott
Recorded in June 1981
From 1969 to 1975, Gato Barbieri made a series of tremendous, genre-defying albums for Flying Dutchman and Impulse, beginning with The Third World and ending Chapter Four: Alive in New York. From this listener's perspective, this historically important run of albums is still given short shrift by critics and others. Frankly, I'm mystified why these masterpieces of the era aren't more highly regarded.
During this period, Barbieri's music consisted of a potent stew of influences including free jazz (most especially late Coltrane), the sounds and rhythms of Latin America (Afro-Caribbean, Afro-Brazilian, South American), rock, and (most notably) his uniquely scorching saxophone tone.
In 1976, Barbieri released his first album for Herb Alpert's A&M label, Caliente! It was a huge hit, dramatically expanding Barbieri's audience (and wallet, presumably). On Caliente! and the A&M albums that followed, Barbieri toned down some of the wilder aspects of his music but retained his signature tone, a combination that proved to have a potent mass appeal. Don't forget that Barbieri had been awakened to the far-reaching potential of his music when his soundtrack to Bernardo Bertolucci's film The Last Tango in Paris (1972) made such a worldwide splash.
After Barbieri's move to A&M, some people accused him of selling out. I think that's unfair, an oversimplification. His music continued to be compelling, even if it had become less complex. In any case, everyone would agree that the music Barbieri made with A&M was different from the music that had preceded it.
All of which serves as context for the selection at hand, Gato... Para Los Amigos!! Originally released as a 2-LP set on the Doctor Jazz label, the music represents a return to the heated, unleashed sounds heard on Barbieri's Flying Dutchman and Impulse releases. Not coincidentally, Bob Thiele was the founder of both Flying Dutchman and Doctor Jazz. So Barbieri's decision to "go back" in terms of his sound wasn't just metaphorical. It was a return to Thiele, an old collaborator, the man who had produced Barbieri's Flying Dutchman releases between 1969 and 1973. (However, one should note that it was another legendary producer, Teo Macero, not Thiele, who produced Gato... Para Los Amigos!!)
Gato... Para Los Amigos!! captures Barbieri in peak form—and it certainly represents his finest work of the decade.
More Gato Barbieri
Originally released on Polydor in Europe, Apasionado (1983) is another potent Barbieri release from the 1980s. (In 1985, Thiele's Doctor Jazz licensed Apasionado for issue in the U.S.) ... And, if by chance, you haven't explored Barbieri's Flying Dutchman and Impulse albums, go there immediately. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200. Just listen. As soon as possible.
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