A Heads Up to Fans of Avant Jazz

“Every tune that I’ve written so far has a meaning and a story within it that I want the whole group to capture,” Moncur explained. “A lot of guys, when they play, are not thinking about what they’re actually playing; they’re just thinking about maybe the chords, or how the rhythm changes, or something like that, but I really try to tell a story and I want the group that plays my tunes to try to see what I saw when I wrote them.” There can be little doubt that Moncur has chosen the right performers for the interpretation of his music. Drummer Tony Williams, ...Herbie Hancock, another member of the Davis band, ... Tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter was another important choice. “I really wanted Wayne,” said Moncur, “because I know he would know about everything I was doing.” " - Don Heckman, original liner notes
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GRACHAN MONCUR III AND THE POINT OF DISCOVERY
It’s a moment in time. And it’s a reason for being. The point of discovery for Grachan Moncur III was the moment this music happened, an era when he and his contemporary Rodwell Rudd were the names in free jazz on trombone. And the point of discovery is Moncur’s reason for playing trombone the way he does and writing music in his inimitable style.

Hearing these tracks again is to put yourself in a time when jazz was an uncontainable force. There were innovations everywhere. Some were regional. Some stylistic. Some petered out. Others haunt us still. But again, the job of the discoverer is not to sort all that out. It’s to go on discovering. And Grachan Moncur III -- a man in his 20s during the 1960s – was virile, alert, determined, respectful of tradition, trained in composition and on his instrument, but eager for something new, to find “what else.”

The album titles from the time tell it all: There were Jackie McLean’s “One Step Beyond” and “Destination Out.” There were Moncur’s own “Evolution” and “Some Other Stuff.” These were young men on a quest to find a place in art where there was no place, because that place was always moving away.

Musician and Composer of Merit

The McLean LPs more or less introduced Moncur to the world as a musician and composer, and his importance in both fields was immediately felt. His music had a peculiar characteristic of seeming at the same time familiar and strange, like Monk’s. Yes, you find yourself saying, “Frankenstein” is a jazz waltz, but it’s like no jazz waltz I’ve heard. Yes, “Air Raid” is propelled against a very present sense of time, and it’s a composition with a clear structure, but I’m not sure exactly where “one” comes again. And “Evolution?” Pure art. That kind of thing. His music toys with your expectations at the same time that it fulfills them.

And his sound was all his own. While the trombone is by nature intensely masculine, Moncur could always find its ethereal qualities. Sleek, unadorned, his blowing clear and direct, Moncur’s music could move right smack into you.

This newly remastered Mosaic Select package captures Moncur in the act, with the aforementioned Jackie McLean (replaced by Wayne Shorter on the “Some Other Stuff” sessions) and with that exceptional young dynamo, Tony Williams on drums. In addition to the records already mentioned, this set also includes McLean’s “Hipnosis” and most of “’Bout Soul”. Sidemen include Bobby Hutcherson, Eddie Kahn, Larry Ridley, Roy Haynes, Lee Morgan, Bob Cranshaw, Herbie Hancock, Cecil McBee, Woody Shaw, Lamont Johnson, Scotty Holt, Billy Higgins and Rashied Ali. The four sessions led by Jackie McLean include a number of Moncur compositions, and help bookend the material on the now out-of-print Mosaic package, “The Complete Blue Note 1964-1966 Jackie McLean Sessions.” This set is limited, too, and is certain to sell out. Please reserve yours.

Mosaic Select.
Grachan Moncur is our 1st Mosaic Select release. Mosaic Select is a new series from Mosaic Records that will present numbered, limited-edition reissues of neglected jazz recordings that typically will include two or three CDs. We're issuing them in standard CD packaging; 2 or 3 jewel cases in a slip case with a separate CD-size, 24 to 36 page booklet. The booklet will include the original album liner notes, original album cover art and session photographs from the archives. These will be distributed at retail approximately one year after its exclusive release through Mosaic Records. These sets are pre-numbered and we will distribute the first pressing.

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I am excited! The Moncur dates are only available as imports, and some of the McClean material has never been on CD. JOY!