LOUIS HAYES
Breath Of Life (32 Jazz)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson

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32 Jazz comes out of the Muse Records vault with another gem. Drummer Louis Hayes recorded this album in 1974 with Tex Allen (trumpet, flugelhorn), Charles Davis (baritone, soprano saxophone), Ronnie Matthews (piano), David Williams (bass), Toot Monk (percussion), and brother Charles Hayes (alto saxophone). According to the original liner notes, included here, Hayes seemed to be a tad disturbed by the trend toward electronic jazz (one would assume fusion was the culprit he was thinking of), and so the main intention was to play music in the spirit of the day but with all the traditional instruments of "the past." All of that means nothing now, really. All you need to know is that Hayes' sextet is terrific throughout the half dozen tunes on Breath Of Life. By this time, the 37 year old Hayes had built up a dizzying resume with artists from all across the style spectrum, from Horace Silver to Cannonball Adderley to Oscar Petersen, and he'd developed into one of the best in the business in all facets of drumming. His cymbal work is what sets him apart from the rest, along with an uncanny ability to vary the strengths of various stick-strikes within the tightest patterns. A subtle snare roll might have one single strike that just explodes. When he strings together a run down two or three different drums like that it's very exciting. Track five, "Bongolo," is all Hayes, and at three and a half minutes in length it never gets boring in the least. Breath Of Life is highly recommended, and I'd like to also recommend that you pick up the other 32 Jazz Louis Hayes release, The Real Thing. Makes a great back-to-back high energy listen.

© 2000 - DJ Johnson