The John Betsch Society - 1974 - Earth Blossom

The John Betsch Society

1974

Earth Blossom

01. Ode To Ethiopia

02. Earth Blossom

03. Open Pastures

04. Song For An Untitled Lady

05. Ra

06. Darling Doria

07. Get Up And Go

Billy Puell - tenor & alto saxes, bass clarinet, flute, alto flute

Bob Holmes - piano, elextric piaon, percussion

Ed "Lump" Williams - bass, electric bass, percussion

Jim Bridges - guitar, percussion

Phil Royster - congas, percussion

John Btesch - drums, percussion

Recorded: January 11, 1974 Nashville, Tenn.

A prolific, solid drummer who's played with several major free musicians in the '70s,'80s and '90s, John Betsch hasn't landed the major label recording pact or high profile gig that would get him more recognition. Instead, he's contented himself with aggressive, outstanding drumming on many first-rate sessions. Betsch has played with Billy Bang, Thomas Chapin, Marty Cook, Marilyn Crispell, Abdullah Ibrahim and Steve Lacy among others. He currently has no sessions available on CD as a leader, but can be heard on the dates of Bang, Lacy, Crispell, and many others.

John Betsch is one of the finer jazz drummers that almost no one ever talks about. Since the 1970s, he has served as the imaginative anchor for numerous bands, notably those of Abdullah Ibrahim and Steve Lacy. His only album as leader finds him fronting a sextet which he wryly dubs the John Betsch Society. While none of the musicians are household names, they succeed in producing an enjoyable, tuneful recording. In fact, several of the tunes, including "Ode to Ethiopia," "Open Pastures," and "Darling Doria," are downright hummable with a loose, loping, country-like groove and might even appeal to fans of early Grateful Dead or Canned Heat. Billy Puett contributes some strong Coltrane-inspired tenor playing on his own composition, "Ra," and is also very effective elsewhere on flute. Overall, Earth Blossom is a solid, straight-ahead effort which includes a few songs that, were they better known, might well become standards.