Peep Bill Dixon. I know I namedropped him before numerous times but this feels like a new context. Dixon (R.I.P) was born as early as 1925 and pretty much had his moody, heavily arranged concept of "free-jazz" defined as early as the 50's-60's even if I don't thyink it comes through in his earliest sessions with Archie Shepp which is more Ornette-worship(free-bop and dope if you dig that stuff (and who doesn't?) but it's the later stuff that REALLY nails home his individuality ande distinctiveness that comes through even when he doesn't play trumpet but instead play piano (an instrument he doesn't even try to improvise on; he use it in its most conventional, chordal sense).

Anyway:

Intents and Purposes-his only "pure" solo album in the 60's and it's one of the best "free"-records I've ever heard; amazing band, killer ideas in terms of composition/arrangement (in Dixon's case, those terms are impossible to separate, just as it should be in free-jazz).Also, two brief early examples of the "studio as instrument" in jazz with Dixon overdubbing himself in two brief meditative/ambient pieces.

In Italy olume 1 and 2. Astonishingly good albums from the early 80's; EERYTHING that's good about Dixon can be found here. Note that about a half or so of these tracks are duets between Dixon (trumpet) and Silva (bass) which might seem boring but if you actually listen (and I mean *listen*, like you follow every note they play as oppose to play it as background music), it's incredibly dope...

Eye of sysyphus: VERY dark and moody stuff by a fairly big band; agaqin, Dixon delivers some "free-jazz" that sounds like nothing else in the genre; actually, just get the boxset with Dixon on Soul Note like I did and your'e set...

Of course, there's also the infamous, allegedly totally "free" improvisations on the celebrated "ade mecum"-records but even in *that* context (think Tony Oxley, Barry Guy, William Parker-*heavyweight* line-up if you know the ''contemporary'' imrpov scene), Dixon just sounds different from everything else associated with the genre...

The reason I mention Dixon is simply because his perspective on free-jazz may make people change their idea of it because it's NOT overtly dense, abrasive, "noisy" music but instead downbeat, quirky and dark... His perspective was totally his own and I love to recommend him to people new to the genre because he offered something different fromc the "general" idea of free-jazz...

EDIT:SON of sysyphus; I thought I managed to make one long post without having to edit but nope... If there will be an AC/DC albums thread, I *think* I'll make it... or I'll be so drunk that I need to edit spelling/grammar; after all, who can play AC/DC sober???