Upper Egypt & Lower Egypt – 1968

 Jan Garbarek

 

An early clip of the notable Norwegian tenor-saxophonist

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Jan Garbarek is best-known in the United States for his work with Keith Jarrett’s European quartet in the 1970s, but he has been a top saxophonist for decades.

Inspired by John Coltrane and other major saxophonists in addition to Scandinavian folk melodies, but always having a lyrical style and a distinctive sound of his own, Garbarek explored avant-garde jazz briefly and recorded with George Russell before his cool tone and thoughtful style became a major part of the ECM sound on quite a few recordings.

Garbarek was 21 at the time of his appearance at the Molde Jazz Festival in 1968, leading a quartet also featuring pianist Terje Bjorklund, bassist Arild Andersen, and drummer Jon Christensen; the latter two would join Keith Jarrett along with Garbarek a few years later.

Jan Garbarek plays Pharoah Sanders’ two-part “Upper Egypt & Lower Egypt” with passion, already sounding quite original at this early stage.

– Scott Yanow

 

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