Best known for his ferocious tenor solos,
Charles Gayle instead plays alto and piano on this trio outing with bassist
Hillard Greene and drummer
Jay Rosen. His improvisations on alto are typically blood-curdling although they have their own logic and are slightly more accessible than his usual flights on tenor.
Gayle switches to piano for much of "Sanctify," sounding thunderous like
Cecil Taylor but also hinting at stride piano. On the final of four selections (although six are listed on the back cover, the last three seem to be a medley), he starts out playing both piano and alto (unless there is some overdubbing) before creating a lengthy improvisation on alto. Since there are only 40 minutes of music on this live set, which features stimulating and alert playing from
Greene and
Rosen, the date falls short of being essential for
Charles Gayle collectors, but it certainly contains its share of fire.
–
Scott Yanow, Rovi