Sphere - On Tour aka Live on Tour (Red, 1986)

This post is by Scott and Dan

Charlie Rouse (ts); Kenny Barron (p); Buster Williams (b); Ben Riley (d)

Recorded on November 21, 1985

It's good to hear Sphere without a full program of Thelonious Monk tunes. Kenny Barron assembled the band in the early 80s to commemorate Monk's work, and they released two studio albums on the Elektra Musician label (Four in One, 1982; and Flight Path, 1983). The first of these included only Monk compositions; the second included only one. Apparently, the group wished to avoid being known just as a repertory band. That was a smart move because none of the band members depended on repertory to establish their reputations. 

Charlie Rouse and Ben Riley served as indispensable members of Monk's most popular quartet, which released a series of best-selling albums in the 1960s. Both have died while Kenny Barron and Buster Williams play on. Sphere as a group continued recording live and studio albums throughout the 80s and reunited in 1998 for Sphere, with Gary Bartz replacing Rouse. 

On Tour reveals all of the strengths of the group: chemistry forged through long associations, individual virtuosity, well-chosen tunes that fit the group's identity, and the spontaneity of live performance. "Dual Force," written by Williams, gives Rouse all he needs to deliver a probing solo. The bassist follows with one of his patented solos featuring rapid runs and his trademark bent notes. Williams also contributes "Tayamisha," which features another Rouse solo.

The only standard in the program, "Beautiful Friendship," is given a lavish up-tempo reading which, at 10:15 minutes, gives everyone ample opportunity to solo. Monk's "Well You Needn't" is saved till the end as a reminder of the reason why this band was first formed. It's introduced by an intriguing drum solo and given an arrangement rather different than Monk might have imagined.

Once again, we express our appreciation for Red Records recording this band on tour. The following year, Red recorded Sphere again, live at Umbria Jazz. (The second live album was reissued in 1993 as Pumpkin's Delight.) As with Cedar Walton's Trio series, the recordings are up close with minimal crowd noise.