Some labels make it inordinately difficult to actually find anything much about what they do at all, by happily consigning us geographically challenged replicants to wander lost in the more Fargo-like districts of the Internet in a maze where we can never see over the hedges. It is enough to make you want to listen to fado for a year and a day and dig out your extensive Leonard Cohen collection for extra despondency if required.

I don’t blame them. The world is a hostile uncaring, know nothing place often and I can understand why labels like Clean Feed shut themselves away a bit and let the refuseniks find them because kindred spirits always do even if like finishing War and Peace it could take years. 

Avant labels have a decent sized following in spite of what people might think when they extract the proverbial Michael and prefer the darts if pushed against the lure of a bull’s eye listen. Think of them as your favourite restaurant the name of which you do not want to share too much in case next time you go there the maitre d’ turns you away however regrettably because there are no tables left.

You will rarely read reviews in established big media especially in non specialist print titles of their work and where you do elsewhere they will often be on blogs so on-side or densely written that it is very difficult to figure out the value of the records. They might have none, some, or a lot but to the faithful they all need bowing down to most days and an action plan hatched to silence foolish naysayers.

The new still unintentionally secret squirrel of a Marty Ehrlich record is a case in point. 

Ehrlich, quick recap, grew up in the 1960s in St. Louis and as a teen studied clarinet with members of the St. Louis symphony orchestra. He also met the musicians, artists and writers who were part of the Black Artists Group who included Julius Hemphill, also an influence on Tim Berne. Hear Marty E following this thread Hillside to the gorgeous “Savannah Suite.”

A slice of what the label has to say:

“Ehrlich has called on bassist John Hébert and drummer Nasheet Waits. All three were members together in the Andrew Hill Point of Departure Sextet, a group which brought Andrew Hill’s music strongly before the public in the last decade of Hill’s life.

This recording features eight new compositions by Marty Ehrlich, one of the most accomplished and celebrated composers and performers in the New Jazz. The one exception is the seminal composition of Andrew Hill entitled ‘Dusk’, which is also the title of the first Andrew Hill Sextet recording.”

This recording also includes a beautiful hymn in memory of Ornette Coleman, and a tribute to Pedro Costa of Clean Feed entitled “Senhor P.C.” 

Trio Exaltation is out now.