DON ELLIS: THE NEW DON ELLIS BAND GOES UNDERGROUND / DON ELLIS AT FILLMORE

Pivotal electric work from Don Ellis – a pair of albums back to back! The New Don Ellis Band Goes Underground is a monumental jazz rock crossover album from Ellis – soaring along on a fuzzed-out big band groove! The set's got most of the elements of Ellis' other electric sets for Columbia – but also features a tighter, shorter approach to the tunes – plus some vocals by Patti Allen, which adds a nice soul component to the set. There's a lot of nice production touches on the set, making the instrumentation take on whole new sounds in an electro-acoustic way – and the best tracks get nice and funky! 

Titles include "Higher", "Bulgarian Bulge", "Eli's Comin", "Acoustical Lass", "House In The Country", "Gooood Feelin", "Send My Baby Back", and "Black Baby". Don Ellis At Fillmore features funky madness at the legendary Fillmore Auditorium – and a searing set of tracks that rivals the best studio work from trumpeter Don Ellis! The feel here is really open, spontaneous, and inventive – and tunes are a lot more extended than on most of Don's studio sides from the time – with not only more room for solos, but also a seemingly greater focus on rhythms, which are often upbeat, firey, and very grooving on most numbers. There's a really great mix of trumpet and electronics on the record – including ring modulator and Fender Rhodes – and possibly inspired by the Fillmore setting, Don really opens up on all burners, spacing out with a really hip little groove. Titles include "Pussy Wiggle Stomp", "Salvatore Sam", "Rock Odyssey", "Final Analysis", "Excursion II", and "Antea".  ~ Dusty Groove