Phil Ranelin The Time Is Now

180g High Quality Pressing!
Re-mastering by Ray Staff at Air Mastering!
Phil Ranelin's first record as a leader is worlds away from his later 1976 offering, "Vibes From the Tribe". "The Time Is Now" is a vanguard jazz record, full of the spirit, determination, and innovation inspired by John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Cecil Taylor, Pharoah Sanders, and Archie Shepp. Recorded in 1973 and 1974 and released at the end of 1974, the set shows Ranelin to be an imposing composer and frightfully good trombonist. The original album contained six compositions that are a deep musical brew of avant-garde improvisation, hard bop jazz esthetics, and soulful melodic ideas that were superimposed as a jump off point for both harmonic and rhythmic (read: Latin) invention. The stamp of Detroit is all over this thing. Tracks like the title and "Black Destiny" reflect the anger and vision of the era, while moving it all in a positive musical direction. Soloists on the set include the rest of the Tribe collective -- Marcus Belgrave and Wendell Harrison -- as well as local players who deserved far more than they received in terms of national recognitions: bassist Reggie 'Shoo-Be Doo' Fields, trumpeter Charles Moore, pianist Keith Vreeland, drummer Bill Turner, and others including Ranelin himself. The arrangements on "The Time Is Now" were ahead of their time, clustering a rhythm section as part of the horn's front line ("13th and Senate" and the title track) and a stylistic angularity that reflected both musical history and futurism in jazz and R&B ("Time Is Running Out" and "Times Gone By"). "The Time Is Now" is a must for any vanguard jazz aficionado or anyone interested in the strange, rhythm-oriented evolution of Detroit music.
Phil Ranelin's first recording as a leader is worlds away from his later, the 1976 release "Vibes From The Tribe". "The Time Is Now" is an avant-garde jazz record, full of spirit, determination and innovation, inspired by John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Cecil Taylor, Pharoah Sanders and Archie Shepp. Recorded in 1973 and 1974 and released at the end of 1974, the set shows that Ranelin is an imposing composer and frighteningly good trombonist. The album contains six compositions that are a profound musical brew of avant-garde improvisation, hard bop jazz aesthetics and soulful melodic ideas that have been overlaid as a starting point by harmonic and rhythmic (read: Latin American) influences.
The stamp of the Detroit jazz scene is the hallmark of these sessions. The title track and "Black Destiny" reflect the anger and vision of the time and still steer the musical events in a positive musical direction. Soloists on set include the rest of the Tribe collective — Marcus Belgrave and Wendell Harrison — as well as other local musicians who have earned far more than they've received in terms of recognition in the jazz scene: bassist Reggie 'Shoo-Be Doo' Fields, trumpeter Charles Moore, pianist Keith Vreeland, drummer Bill Turner, and others, including Ranelin himself. The arrangements on "The Time Is Now" were ahead of their time and bundled the rhythm section as part of the front line of the solo wind ("13th and Senate" and the title track) and a stylistic edginess that reflected both music history and futurism in jazz and R&B ("Time Is Running Out" and "Times Gone By"). "The Time Is Now" is a must for any avant-garde jazz fan or anyone interested in the idiosyncratic, rhythm-oriented development of Detroit's jazz scene.

Features:

• 180g Vinyl
• Re-mastering by Ray Staff at Air Mastering, Lyndhurst Hall, London
• Made in the U.K.

Musicians:

• Phil Ranelin, trombone, percussion
• Wendell Harrison, tenor saxophone, percussion (A1-B3)
• Marcus Belgrave, flugelhorn, percussion (A1 - B3)
• Bili Turner, drums, percussion (left channel)
• George Davidson, drums, percussion (right channel) (A1, B1-B4)
• Keith Vreeland, piano, percussion
• John Dana, bass (A1, B2-B4)
• Reggie Fields, bass (A2)
• Charles Moore, trumpet, percussion (A2)
• Haroun El Nil, alto sax, percussion (A2)

Selections:

Side A
1. The Time Is Now For Change
2. Time Is Running Out
Side B
1. Of Times Gone By
2. Black Destiny
3. 13th And Senate
4. He The One We All Knew, Pt. 1