Lost On The Shelves – Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note: The Complete Recordings ECM

I recently saw this CD box advertised on Instagram, which prompted me to head over to the CD shelf and listen to my copy. It has been a long time since I have listened to this collection – for a moment when I saw the advertisement, I forgot I even had it.

Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note is a six-CD box set by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett’s “Standards Trio,” which features a rhythm section of Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette. This live recording compiles the six sets the trio performed at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City over three nights in June 1994 and was released by ECM in October of the following year.

Jarrett has an impressive jazz pedigree: He was a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Charles Lloyd Quartet and a featured member of Miles Davis’ electric fusion groups, playing electric piano and organ. He is most famous for his solo piano performances on ECM, especially the Köln Concert, the best-selling piano recording in history.

One of my favorite versions of Jarrett is the Standards Trio, which performed together for decades. In 1983, at the suggestion of ECM head Manfred Eicher, Jarrett asked bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette, with whom he had previously worked on Peacock’s 1977 album Tales of Another, to record an album of jazz standards titled Standards, Volume 1 (there were an additional eight Standards albums before Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note came out). This box set is the fruition of over a decade of the trio playing together. Rather than the typical single disk cherry-picking from a three-night stand, this is everything performed at those gigs. As Jarrett states in the liner notes, “Every note we played for three nights is included. There are no edits or choices of one track vs. another.”

The recording quality is outstanding for a live recording—you feel like you are in the club. Jarrett is panned slightly left, DeJohnette is slightly right, and Peacock is in the center. I even love how the audience is recorded—their clapping makes you feel like you are in front of the bandstand. The recording also includes Jarrett’s trademark grunts and groans. This mix provides a fantastic immersive experience and would be an excellent reference recording to show your stereo’s ability with acoustic recordings.

These jazz standards showcase Jarrett’s sense of melody. His performance is energetic yet sensitive. You can tell he is fond of and familiar with the material. DeJohnette and Peacock are the perfect rhythm section. The quality never lets down throughout six CDs (over seven hours of material). This set (you don’t have to listen to all seven hours to enjoy) and the Köln Concert are an excellent introduction to the genius that is Keith Jarrett.

In 1996, the box set was awarded “Album of the Year” in the DownBeat Critic’s Poll. AllMusic awarded it a five-star review (their best) said:

“Never mind that this same group has already had ten separate releases since 1983; this box is still well worth getting…. Throughout the three nights at the Blue Note, the interplay among the musicians is consistently outstanding. Those listeners concerned about Jarrett’s tendency to ‘sing along’ with his piano have little to fear for, other than occasional shouts and sighs, he wisely lets his piano do the talking.”

Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note is available on streaming services. The high-resolution service uses CD quality (16-bit/44.1KHz), but even with CD quality, this is a magnificent-sounding collection.

https://open.spotify.com/album/6sJLTN1J3PhPQ0OybVsqVz?si=mMWt0K8LTIaPFTq-XBMiNQ