Our Meanings And Our Feelings

Description

June 27, 1969. Michel Portal pushes open the door of the Pathé Marconi studios. He is accompanied by two drummers, Jacques Thollot and Aldo Romano, bassist Jean-François Jenny-Clark, and pianist Joachim Kühn. They have absolutely nothing rehearsed. As if entering the studio to record an album without knowing what they are going to do was the most normal thing in the world. And these five musicians must have really been used to playing together, as the five pieces that make up Our Meanings And Our Feelings seem far from improvised. The use of the Zokra, an oriental clarinet, brings a very unique touch to this album. This uniqueness is transcended by Joachim Kühn's ability to effortlessly switch from piano to alto saxophone to accompany Michel Portal, before moving on to bells and then tambourine, thus multiplying the sounds. While Our Meanings And Our Feelings is not the first French free jazz record, as it was preceded by the excellent Free Jazz by François Tusques, released in 1965 and featuring Michel Portal, it remains one of the most important. Its incredible outpouring of completely free sounds and melodies never descends into cacophony. 44 years after its release, the urgency to listen to Our Meanings And Our Feelings and what these five talented musicians had to say is still as great as ever.