Tony Williams: Civilisation (Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series) 1LP

Blue Note, 1986

Drummer Tony Williams had a long, fruitful relationship with Blue Note Records beginning in the 1960s when as a teenager he appeared on numerous post-bop classics—Herbie Hancock Maiden Voyage, Eric Dolphy Out to Lunch, Andrew Hill Point of Departure—and made his adventurous first albums as a leader: Life Time (1964) and Spring (1965). After exploring fusion with the Tony Williams Lifetime band in the 1970s, Williams returned to Blue Note in 1985 eager to form a new acoustic band as a vehicle to perform his compositions. Foreign Intrigue was the first in a remarkable run of 6 brilliant late-career albums, and Williams quickly returned to the studio in 1986 to record the masterful Civilization. By that time all the pieces of his great ‘80s quintet had fallen into place with the drummer joined by trumpeter Wallace Roney, saxophonist Billy Pierce, pianist Mulgrew Miller, and bassist Charnett Moffett. The album presented a set of 8 Williams originals including “Geo Rose” and “Warrior.”