Fort Yawuh | ||||
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Live album by Keith Jarrett | ||||
Released | 1973 | |||
Recorded | February 24, 1973 | |||
Venue | Village Vanguard in New York | |||
Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 41:40; 2 CD-reissue 129:26 | |||
Label | Impulse! | |||
Producer | Ed Michel | |||
Keith Jarrett chronology | ||||
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Fort Yawuh is an acoustic jazz album by American pianist and composer Keith Jarrett. Originally released in 1973 by Impulse! Records, it features a live performance recorded at the Village Vanguard on February 24, 1973, by Jarrett, Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, and Danny Johnson. The title is an anagram of the phrase "Fourth Way."
In a contemporary review for Creem, Robert Christgau gave Fort Yawuh an "A–" and said although side one sounded like cluttered free jazz at first, it was highlighted by the Ornette Coleman-like playing of saxophonist Dewey Redman. He found side two more accessible because of drummer Paul Motian's performance during "De Drums" and the attractive composition of "Still Life Still Life". In a retrospective review, Allmusic's Qa'id Jacobs gave the record four out of five stars and wrote, "Fans of Jarrett's avant-garde liberalism will find 'De Drums' to be the track most unlike the other four selections on this album. 'Still Life, Still Life' is more like a ballad in that it's very slow, but it still maintains the structural freedom featured in the 'Fort Yawuh,' '(If the) Misfits (Wear It),' and 'Roads Traveled, Roads Veiled.'"The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide (1985) also gave it four stars.
All compositions are written by Keith Jarrett.
Side One
Side Two
The CD box set The Impulse Years: 1973-1974 expands Fort Yawuh to two CDs, including unedited versions of the takes chosen for the LP as well as additional tracks.
Disc One
Disc Two
At that time percussionist Danny Johnson has previously not been a professional musician. In an interview led by Ethan Iverson bassist Charlie Haden recalled that Johnson "is a great, great painter, and a great friend, and someone who was at EVERY gig, and one day he suddenly asked to sit in with us at the Village Vanguard. Keith asked, “What do you play?” “Triangle!” said Danny Johnson. Keith said yes and Danny came down with a big oriental rug and sat like a sitar player with his triangle. And that was the night we recorded Fort Yawuh." One year later Johnson joined the group again on percussion (along Guilherme Franco) - this time for the studio recording of Treasure Island.