A Fickle Sonance
A Fickle Sonance is an album by American saxophonist Jackie McLean recorded in 1961 and released on the Blue Note label.[2] The opening track Five Will Get You Ten's lead sheet was allegedly discovered by Sonny Clark in Thelonious Monk's house. It was originally titled Two Timer, and was later recorded by Monk's son, T. S. Monk on his album 1997 Monk on Monk.[3]
| A Fickle Sonance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | End of November 1962[1] | |||
| Recorded | October 26, 1961 | |||
| Studio | Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, US | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 35:18 | |||
| Label | Blue Note BST 84089 | |||
| Producer | Alfred Lion | |||
| Jackie McLean chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Sonance" is an obsolete word for a sound or a tune.[4]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
The AllMusic review by Al Campbell awarded the album 3 stars and stated:
Even though A Fickle Sonance preceded McLean's intense 1962 album Let Freedom Ring, the playing remained in a swinging blues-oriented style, showing no hint of the direction his music was about to take.[5]
In a 2016 review flophouse.com said:
If Jackie McLean’s career would’ve ended right after recording A Fickle Sonance, people would certainly have pointed out the alto saxophonist’s development from one of Charlie Parker’s most proficient disciples to an alto saxophonist that made his mark with a series of excellent Blue Note recordings from 1959 to 1961, employing his highly emotional, piercing sound: already a great legacy. However, McLean raised the bars considerably the following years, breaking and entering hard bop’s living quarters with a series of vanguard recordings in cooperation with avantgardists like Ornette Coleman.[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Five Will Get You Ten" | Thelonious Monk, Sonny Clark | 7:06 |
| 2. | "Subdued" | Jackie McLean | 5:54 |
| 3. | "Sundu" | Clark | 4:54 |
| 4. | "A Fickle Sonance" | McLean | 6:49 |
| 5. | "Enitnerrut" | Tommy Turrentine | 5:48 |
| 6. | "Lost" | Butch Warren | 4:47 |
Personnel
- Jackie McLean – alto saxophone
- Tommy Turrentine – trumpet
- Sonny Clark – piano
- Butch Warren – bass
- Billy Higgins – drums
References
- Inc, Nielsen Business Media (1 December 1962). "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 25 August 2018 – via Google Books.
- "Jackie McLean discography". Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
- "The Thelonious Monk Compositions". theloniousrecords.com. Archived from the original on December 6, 2016. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
- "the definition of sonance". www.dictionary.com. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
- Campbell, A. "A Fickle Sonance Review". Allmusic.com. Retrieved April 13, 2011.