Charlie Haden: The Uncommon Denominator

In June and July of 1989, bassist Charlie Haden was accorded an unusual honor at the 10th Montreal Jazz Festival. A series of eight concerts, titled “The Charlie Haden Sessions” and presented over a period of nine consecutive days, featured him in a wide array of musical encounters with outstanding contemporary jazz artists. In the period from June 30 through July 8, Haden appeared with Joe Henderson, Geri Allen, Don Cherry, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Pat Metheny, Egberto Gismonti, Paul Bley and--in a climactic event--with his own Liberation Music Orchestra (which included such all-stars as Tom Harrell, Joe Lovano and Ernie Watts).

The tribute was well-deserved, an affirmation of the central role Haden has played in much of the adventurous jazz that has unfolded since he arrived on the national scene in the late ‘50s with the Ornette Coleman quartet.

The Cherry and Bley concerts already have been released, respectively, as “Montreal Tapes I” and “Montreal Tapes II.” The Allen and Rubalcaba concerts, performed two nights apart, are now available in two compelling recordings.

What makes them particularly interesting (and, in fact, what makes the entire set of tapes--the majority of which will eventually be released-- fascinating) is Haden’s transformative ability to play effectively in so many different contexts. Working with Allen and Rubalcaba, immensely talented players whose superficial similarities do not disguise their vast musical differences, Haden manages to be the right partner for each (superbly aided in each case by the subtle drumming of Paul Motian).

He is able to do so because of his great stolidity, his unruffled capacity to remain firmly centered at the root of the music. Not a particularly flashy player, almost never resorting to technical virtuosity for its own sake, Haden plays with a focused simplicity that is nonetheless rich with layers of essential creative truths.

The Allen performance is electric, a revelatory example of her explosive musical imagination. There are moments--her soloing on Motian’s “Fiasco,” for example--in which she eagerly bursts into an avant-garde world richly reminiscent of Cecil Taylor. And, even in her quieter moments, every note she plays is filled with an edgy, demanding urgency. But Haden, recalling his work with Coleman, provides the firm rhythmic rudder that keeps the music on course, safely steering Allen’s gripping excursions through their stormy courses.

Haden first met Rubalcaba in Cuba in 1986, but the Montreal program was their first, eagerly awaited opportunity to perform outside the island nation.

Rubalcaba’s startling technique was on full display at this time, but his playing--impressive as it was--was effusive and a bit uneven, rapidly circuiting from articulate, fast-finger displays to driving swing and soaring lyricism, often moving in too many directions too quickly. Here, even more than with Allen, Haden was called upon to maintain musical order while giving Rubalcaba the solid, driving support he needed in a set of tunes embracing music as disparate as Coleman’s “The Blessing” and Miles Davis’ “Solar.”

Beyond the magisterial qualities of his work as accompanist and soloist, Haden’s less apparent but equally impressive ability to compose memorable musical lines is also present. Two particularly attractive examples--the Baroque-sounding “First Song” on the Allen album, and the gentle Latin waltz “La Pasionaria” on the Rubalcaba performance--underscore his great gift for finding the values in musical simplicity. It’s no wonder that the Montreal Festival chose to praise Haden’s talents by showcasing his ability to find the common linkages in so many different musical settings.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four (excellent).