JAZZ PROG
Sid Smith rounds up the best releases from prog’s jazzier reaches.
The latest reissue via ECM’s remarkable Luminescence series is Bennie Maupin’s The Jewel In The Lotus (ECM Records). Hailing from 1974, the sax player from Herbie Hancock’s Mwandishi and Head Hunters line-ups eschews the standard show of force that might be expected for his first solo outing as bandleader. Instead, Maupin’s tender flutes and silver-toned soprano are like trails of light arcing over the soulful undulations of deep, ruminative bass and the bustle of whispering percussion. While Hancock contributes spellbinding piano, it’s the glacial poise and lyrical elegance of Maupin’s compositions and his contemplative presence throughout that steal the show on this meditative and stirring classic recording.