Where Is Brooklyn? Explained

Where is Brooklyn?
Type:studio
Artist:Don Cherry
Cover:Where is Brooklyn.jpg
Released:1969
Recorded:November 11, 1966
Studio:Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Genre:Jazz
Length:40:52
Label:Blue Note
Producer:Alfred Lion
Chronology:Don Cherry
Prev Title:Symphony for Improvisers
Prev Year:1966
Next Title:Eternal Rhythm
Next Year:1968

Where Is Brooklyn? is an album by Don Cherry featuring Henry Grimes, Ed Blackwell, and Pharoah Sanders recorded in 1966 and released on the Blue Note label.

In 2022, the Ezz-thetics label reissued the album along with Eternal Rhythm on the compilation Where Is Brooklyn? & Eternal Rhythm, Revisited.[1]

Reception

The AllMusic review by Steve Huey states: "Where Is Brooklyn? is much more about energy and thoughtful group interaction than memorable themes, and so there's just a little something missing in comparison to Cherry's prior albums, even though they did also emphasize the qualities on display here. Nonetheless, it's still a fine record for what it does concentrate on; Sanders is in typically passionate form, and the rest of the ensemble members have already honed their interplay to a pretty sharp edge. It's worth hearing, even if it isn't as essential as Complete Communion or Symphony for Improvisers".

The authors of The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings called the album "a great piece of work," and commented: "Though it seems to go back to the less adventurous format of Complete Communion and to focus on discrete compositions rather than flowing improvisation, it has enough detail and enough thoughtful energy stashed away in each track... to create the same feel."

Writing for All About Jazz, Ollie Bivens remarked: "Where Is Brooklyn? can be challenging music. There are no melodies or toe-tapping beats. The playing is in-your-face, take-no-prisoners stuff. While certainly not an easy listen, it is still rewarding due to the heartfelt playing... For jazz fans curious about the avant-garde, the challenging music on Where Is Brooklyn? is as fine a place to start."[2]

Legacy

Free jazz trio The Thing took their name from a track on the album.[3]

Track listing

All compositions by Don Cherry

  1. "Awake Nu" – 6:55
  2. "Taste Maker" – 6:48
  3. "The Thing" – 5:50
  4. "There Is the Bomb" – 4:51
  5. "Unite" – 17:48

Personnel

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Don Cherry: Where Is Brooklyn? & Eternal Rhythm, Revisited . Bandcamp . August 16, 2022.
  2. Web site: Don Cherry: Where Is Brooklyn? . Ollie . Bivens . May 13, 2006 . All About Jazz . August 16, 2022.
  3. Web site: Neneh Cherry: 'Jazz Can Be the Way You Make Love'. Jude. Rogers. Jude Rogers . The Guardian. May 22, 2012.