4 Compositions for Sextet
4 Compositions for Sextet is an album by English free-jazz drummer Tony Oxley, which was recorded in 1970 and released on CBS. The album, the second of a trilogy that Oxley recorded for major labels, features the same band with whom he recorded the previous, The Baptised Traveller, expanded to a sextet with the addition of trombonist Paul Rutherford.
4 Compositions for Sextet | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1970 | |||
Recorded | 7 February 1970 | |||
Genre | Avant-garde jazz, Free jazz | |||
Length | 38:14 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Tony Oxley chronology | ||||
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Reception
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Tom Hull – on the Web | B+[3] |
In his review for AllMusic, Thom Jurek states "The four tunes are all outer-limits numbers; all methadrine takes on what were happening improvisations. It's true that there are loose structures imposed on all four tracks, but they quickly dissolve under the barrage of sonic whackery."[1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz notes that "Four Compositions was a title guaranteed to offend players and fans who wanted to set aside any implications of predetermined structures."[2]
In his book Honesty Is Explosive!: Selected Music Journalism, music writer Ben Watson claims about the album "It is a stone-cold, drop-dead, ice pick-in-the-forehead masterpiece. It was too much for the marketing department at Columbia, and Oxley was dropped."[4]
Track listing
- All compositions by Tony Oxley
- "Saturnalia" – 10:09
- "Scintilla" – 8:56
- "Amass" – 13:00
- "Megaera" – 6:09
Personnel
References
- Jurek, Thom. Tony Oxley – 4 Compositions for Sextet: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2002). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (6th ed.). London: Penguin. p. 1160. ISBN 0140515216.
- Hull, Tom. "Music Week". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
- Watson, Ben (2010). Honesty Is Explosive!: Selected Music Journalism. United States: Borgo Press. pp. 111–112. ISBN 978-1434457837.