BLUE NOTE ANNOUNCES THE RELEASE OF
WAYNE SHORTER CELEBRATION, VOLUME 1
THE FIRST OF A SERIES OF ARCHIVE PUBLICATIONS THAT
LEGENDARY SAXOPHONIST, CURATED EXHIBITION BEFORE HIS DEATH IN 2023
Exciting recording from 2014 shows Shorter’s quartet with
DANILO PEREZ, JOHN PATITUCCI AND BRIAN BLADE LIVE IN STOCKHOLM
Blue Note Records has scheduled the release of Celebration, Volume 1the first in a series of archive releases by the legendary saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter curated before his passing in 2023. This exhilarating 2014 live recording found Shorter’s acclaimed quartet with pianist Danilo Perez, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Brian Blade at the Stockholm Jazz Festival in Sweden. The intrepid set includes some of the band’s most beloved exploratory vehicles, including “Zero Gravity,” “Smilin’ Through,” “Orbits,” “Lotus” and “She Moves Through The Fair.” The album kicks off today with the single “Edge of the World (End Title),” a theme by composer Arthur B. Rubinstein from the 1983 film WarGames, accompanied by a live performance video.
“In the fall of 2022, Rob Griffin started sending Wayne a bunch of unreleased music to sort through,” Carolina Shorter writes in the album’s liner notes. “He started listening around the clock. I’d be in the house, on the phone, working, and he’d be yelling, ‘Carolina! You’ve got to come and listen to this shit! Look at what these guys are doing!’ Wayne took detailed notes – some of which are printed on this album sleeve.”
“When he heard the concert in Stockholm, he said, ‘This is the album!'” she continues. “Then he started listening to more stuff, and over time he realized it had to be more than one record. Originally he wanted to call the collection Unidentified Flying Objects – he thought the notes everyone was playing were UFOs! In January 2023, when he was hospitalized for the last time, he continued choosing the tracks and layout of the albums. His ‘Never Give Up’ spirit, which underscores his entire mission, was stronger than ever, and he was excited to release more music. It wasn’t until the last 10 days of his life that he realized he wouldn’t be around to see the realization. He started feeling the urgency to celebrate life, and decided to change the name of the collection to Celebration. I said, ‘Yes, Wayne! Let’s celebrate!!! That’s what it should be called. A celebration!'”
Blue Note will also honor Shorter’s legacy with several reissues of his classic albums, including a Tone Poet Vinyl Edition of Odyssey of Iska (1970) due July 5, a Classic Vinyl Edition of JuJu (1964) due August 16, and an exclusive reissue of Speak No Evil (1964) on blue vinyl at authorized Blue Note retailers, available August 9 at participating independent record stores. Celebration, Volume 1 is now available for pre-order as a limited, exclusive color vinyl and black vinyl edition from the Blue Note Store, as a CD and as a digital download. The credits are as follows:
Page A
1. Weightlessness in the 15th dimension
Written by Wayne Shorter, Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade
2. Smile through
Written by Arthur A. Penn
Page B
1. Weightlessness in the 11th dimension
Written by Wayne Shorter, Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade
2. Weightlessness in the 12th dimension
Written by Wayne Shorter, Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade
3. Weightlessness – Unbound
Written by Wayne Shorter, Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade
4. Orbits
Written by Wayne Shorter
5. On the Edge of the World (End credits)
Written by Arthur B Rubinstein
Page C
1. Weightlessness in the 90th dimension
Written by Wayne Shorter, Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade
2. Lotus
Written by Wayne Shorter
Page D
1. She moves through the fair
Written by Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter: tenor and soprano saxophone
Danilo Perez: piano
John Patitucci: Bass
Brian Blade: drums
Produced by Wayne Shorter and Don Was
Recorded live on October 18, 2014 by Rob Griffin and Nicolas Poitrenaud at the Stockholm Concert Hall, Stockholm Jazz Festival, Stockholm, Sweden
Assisted by Olivier Chambin
Re-recorded and mixed by Rob Griffin at AcousTech, Casco Viejo, Panama.
Mastered by Harold LaRue at Harold LaRue Mastering, Houston, Texas
Vinyl mastering by Chris Muth at Taloowa Corporation, Yonkers, NY
Vinyl manufactured by Record Technology Incorporated (RTI)
PHOTO CREDIT: TOMO MUSCIONICO
Blue Note Records
