Keith Jarrett
Facing You

The solo pianism of Jarrett has been much talked about, is talked about, and will be talked about immensely. A hallmark that has characterized the pianist for more than thirty years and finds its emblematic maximum manifestation in live concerts starting from the most acclaimed Koln Concert. Jarrett has thus made history thanks to a live solo piano of extreme originality: the construction of a new world encompasses the long suites of total improvisation (there are, however, superb performances, though rarer, of standards or old compositions). These concerts have been, rightly, praised, sublimated, glorified, commented on, and reviewed. But what is at ground zero? When does Jarrett's real adventure with solitude begin? The answer is called "Facing you".

November 1971, Oslo: Keith Jarrett faces for the first time the recording (for ECM) of a studio album recorded in complete solitude. Only three hours to create an album that will mark the beginning of a new era for the pianist and the jazz panorama. With "Facing you" Jarrett publishes his love for the acoustic piano, and nothing else. The artist's sentiment towards the instrument takes on even more intense and explosive characteristics since Jarrett, in that same period, was engaged as a "keyboardist" in Miles Davis's Electric Band. An anthem to purity therefore, in contrast with an electronics that at that time was consolidating in the world of jazz.

Listening to the work, it is immediately clear that this is not the Jarrett known by most, the Jarrett who merges his soul with the piano uninterruptedly for more than 40 minutes, suffers, rejoices, and sings with the instrument, reviving often indescribable emotions. "Facing you" is an album composed of eight tracks with a maximum duration of just over ten minutes, thus ideas that are more formally concentrated and distinct, but that do not evoke the same magic as the subsequent live concerts.

The compositions are all by Jarrett.

Already the opening track, "In Front", is an excellent example of a synthesis of gospel, soul, and ragtime roots (but also classical) that marked the genesis of jazz music. A genealogy that does not lack freshness. The following "Ritooria" is more academic in nature, a mix of full moments, with a vague lyrical line, and equal virtuosity. The third track "Lalene" is very melodic, the lyricism of the pianist escapes the constraints of the previous piece, soft and romantic, it begins to outline the more "popular" aspect of his way of playing (in an extremely positive sense, of course). "My Lady, my child" is dedicated to his wife Margot and newborn son Gabriel. "Landscape For Future Earth" (constantly flat and calm) is a bridge to "Starbright", much more heterogeneous and difficult to perform, of exquisitely jazz origin. The last two tracks revive atmospheres of the previous ones: "Vapalia" begins with a very marked right-hand line and much more sparing use of the left, ending, on the other hand, with a more orchestral finale. The last piece "Semblence" is one of the most difficult to listen to, the guiding thread is lost in unpredictable harmonic structures, sometimes accompanied by free sketches.

It is certainly an album that often falls (due to a misunderstanding of the work) into the background compared to the more known and loved production of Keith Jarrett, but that is necessary to own at least for its historical significance.