Wayne Shorter - Footprints Live!
2002/ 1:01:23 Minutes / 8 Tracks/ Live
Release Date: May 21 2002 - Verve
Produced by: Richard Seidel
Website: www.vervemusicgroup.com

Reviewed by John Grace on June 3, 2002

The fine print just above the barcode on Wayne Shorter's new release "Footprints Live!" advises retailers to "file under: Jazz." That store personnel would need such instruction is an unfortunate reality. Jazz, after all, represents about 3% of recorded music. Market share aside, I'd suggest that the disc should be filed under "Continued Cool."

To jazz fans, the Shorter legacy is the stuff of legend. From the his start with the Jazz Messengers, to working with Miles Davis in the 1960's, to founding the seminal group Weather Report, he has demonstrated a lasting gift for composition and performance. In his hands, the saxophone becomes a voice of artistic challenge.

The "Footprints" disc, Shorter's first live recording, is a mixture of heart and intellect. How many pop stars, after all, would create a tune called "Aung San Suu Kyi," a reference to the Burmese activist and Nobel Prize winner?

The disc opens with a version of "Sanctuary," a number that also appeared on the Davis album "Bitches Brew." As performed by the quartet of Shorter, Danilo Perez on piano, John Patitucci on bass, and Brian Blade on drums, it becomes the late night vision of ringing jazz often depicted in books and films. Listening to the track, you can almost see the spotlights and cigarette smoke associated with jazz clubs. Other tracks are equal parts vision and passion. "Valse Triste," the only tune not penned by Shorter, features a wonderful dialog between Shorter and Perez, the players exchanging rich lines and passages.

Like many others in the jazz realm, Shorter wears a number of hats. He is, at any given time, performer, composer, arranger, and producer. The fact that he excels in each role is a tribute to his ability.

"Footprints-Live!" is a dynamic collection of frequent magic and inspired performance. The whole of the project is even greater than the sum of several superior parts. Wayne Shorter continues to inspire and lead fans, jazz and otherwise, to higher ground. The next time you're wandering the aisles of your local record store, raise a copy of "Footprints" from the bin. It will, most likely, be easy to find, that is, filed under "Jazz."

Search Tour Database by: Artist City Venue