One of the most formidable yet under-documented ensembles in avant-garde jazz history is finally receiving its due with Fragments: The Complete 1969 Salle Pleyel Concerts, a revelatory three-LP set capturing previously unreleased performances by Cecil Taylor and his Unit. Issued by Elemental Music on April 18 as an exclusive Record Store Day release, the collection presents the legendary pianist at a moment of extraordinary creative intensity, surrounded by a lineup that existed for just one year yet left an outsized imprint on the music.
The release is the result of an ongoing partnership between INA (Institut National de l’Audiovisuel), France’s official radio and television archive, and producer Zev Feldman, whose work with INA has already unearthed essential recordings by Albert Ayler, Pharoah Sanders, Cannonball Adderley, Larry Young, Yusef Lateef, and others. Sonically restored and mixed by Marc Doutrepont at EQuuS and mastered for vinyl by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab, Fragments is also slated for CD release on April 24, ensuring wider access to this long-hidden chapter of jazz history.
The Cecil Taylor Unit heard on Fragments was both fleeting and formidable. In January 1969, tenor saxophonist and flutist Sam Rivers joined Taylor’s long-standing trio with alto saxophonist Jimmy Lyons and drummer Andrew Cyrille. By June, the quartet traveled to France, where they spent nearly two months in residence at the Fondation Maeght on the French Riviera. Immersed in an interdisciplinary environment alongside painters, sculptors, dancers, and composers, the group rehearsed daily and sharpened a musical language that fused structure and freedom. Two marathon concerts capped the residency; one was documented on the triple LP Nuits De La Fondation Maeght (released in the U.S. as The Great Concert of Cecil Taylor), though that landmark recording has never been reissued on CD.
Later that year, the quartet was invited by legendary promoter George Wein to join the Duke Ellington Orchestra and Miles Davis’s then-current band on the Newport Jazz Festival in Europe tour. Spanning 15 dates across major European cities—including Milan, Rome, Vienna, London, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Berlin, and Rotterdam—the tour culminated in two performances at Paris’s Salle Pleyel: an afternoon set and an evening concert. Those two shows, recorded but never officially released, form the core of Fragments and are presented here in their entirety for the first time.
Each performance consisted of a single extended work, created anew each time the band took the stage yet rooted in composed material. Titled “Fragments of a Dedication to Duke Ellington,” the music balanced spontaneous creation with formal intent, with both Rivers and Lyons working from written parts. The afternoon concert stretches beyond 90 minutes and occupies the second and third LPs of the set, while the evening performance, a comparatively concise 50 minutes, offers a different perspective on the same creative framework. Both concerts were also filmed by ORTF, the French national broadcaster, though the footage has never been released officially.
Beyond the music itself, Fragments is framed as a full-spectrum historical document. The package includes an expansive essay by Philip Freeman—author of In the Brewing Luminous: The Life & Music of Cecil Taylor—exploring the intertwined musical and personal relationships among Taylor, Duke Ellington, and Miles Davis. Additional reflections come from Andrew Cyrille, the last surviving member of the 1969 Unit; Karen Borca, widow of Jimmy Lyons; Monique Rivers, daughter of Sam Rivers; drummer Jack DeJohnette, who was a member of Miles Davis’s band on the 1969 tour; and pianist Matthew Shipp. Rare and never-before-seen photographs from the actual concerts further deepen the sense of immersion.
For Feldman, the significance of the release cannot be overstated. He describes the music as being of “biblical importance” for fans of Cecil Taylor and the avant-garde movement, noting that it captures the pianist at a thrilling juncture, joined by musicians who were absolute titans in their own right. Freeman echoes that sentiment, emphasizing the vivid contrast between Rivers and Lyons, the astonishing interplay between Taylor and Cyrille, and the remarkable fidelity of the tapes themselves.
In the liner notes, Andrew Cyrille reflects on the deep familiarity within the group by the time of the Salle Pleyel concerts, recalling how years of shared experience allowed the music to unfold with ease and purpose. Jack DeJohnette, who passed away in October 2025, offers a visceral memory of the band’s impact, remembering how Taylor would open the shows and leave the stage “still on fire” by the time the next act stepped up.
Fragments: The Complete 1969 Salle Pleyel Concerts stands as a breathtaking testament to Cecil Taylor and his Unit operating at full strength—unfettered, fearless, and yet guided by a shared creative vision. It is not only a vital archival release, but a living document of music that continues to challenge, inspire, and astonish.
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