Air Above Mountains < Buildings Within > cover

Air Above Mountains < Buildings Within >

Released

This live LP, recorded at Moosham Castle in Langau, Austria in 1976, may be Taylor’s most stunning solo performance. He was at a creative peak as an improvising pianist in the early 1970s, beginning with the albums Indent and Silent Tongues and leading to this marathon (76 minutes on CD, up from roughly 45 on the LP). Taylor lays down a few relatively simple figures at the beginning of the concert, then spins out lyrical extrapolations of those, broken up by dense clusters of notes that are more percussive and textural than melodic. By the end, it’s like he’s pulled a single spool of thread from his pocket and woven a tapestry before your eyes.

Phil Freeman

Recommended by

Suggestions
Ka cover

Ka

Excepter
Ireti cover

Ireti

NikNak
Blood Moon cover

Blood Moon

Ingrid Laubrock, Kris Davis
Guitar cover

Guitar

Sonny Sharrock
Circuit City cover

Circuit City

Moor Mother
Contemporary Chaos Practices - Two Works for Orchestra With Soloists cover

Contemporary Chaos Practices - Two Works for Orchestra With Soloists

Ingrid Laubrock, Mary Halvorson, Kris Davis, Nate Wooley
Starship Africa cover

Starship Africa

Creation Rebel
Thumbscrew cover

Thumbscrew

Thumbscrew