by Richard S. Ginell
The 1992 CD reissue of the Keith Jarrett &American& Quartet's last recording session combines most of the contents of the LPs Byablue and Bop-Be, omitting &Yahllah& and &Konya& from the former and &Pyramids Moving& from the latter. (Tellingly, in keeping with conservative '90s tastes -- never mind the time-limit excuse -- the deleted tracks are the ones which have an experimental Middle Eastern flavor.) Still, this partial sampling of the session indicates that the quartet went out on a high note, still exciting and inventive, the old interplay very much in action, unrepentantly acoustic in an electric era. Like the LP of the same name, &Byablue& brackets the CD with a group version at the beginning and a solo piano benediction at the close, which under these conditions becomes an emotional elegy for the soon-to-be defunct quartet by its leader.