Music Monday: Flute

I do struggle a bit with the idea that the flute is a respectable jazz instrument. I know that I shouldn’t (especially as a former and rather terrible flautist) especially considering that some of my favorite recent tracks feature flute and some of my favorite musicians, especially Eric Dolphy and Rahsaan Roland Kirk, played flute on their recordings.

So to celebrate my struggle to accommodate my view of the flute with my own tastes in music, I thought I’d share three of my favorite jazz flute tracks. 

I rediscovered the first one during my recent re-excavation of some key CTI albums from the 1970s (and a h/t to my friend Sharon Carson for reminding me to listen to some Hubert Laws). James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain” is the opening track to Laws’s 1970 album Afro-Classic. The fuzzed out vibes, the flute, and Ron Carter’s amazing bass make this track (and the entire album) feel like the embodiment of early ‘70s soul jazz where the flute fits in perfectly.   

The next track might also owe its inclusion on this list to Professor Carson’s recommendation. Yusef Lateef’s The Complete Yusef Lateef opens with the track “Rosalie” which is is spare and gorgeous (with just enough late-1960s accompaniment and overdubbing to make it feel “period appropriate”). I’m a sucker for close mic-ed flute. (And it is always kind of surprising to hear Lateef’s breaths).

Finally, I am sure that I’ve posted about this track before and it might be my all time favorite jazz flute track. It’s Rahsaan Roland Kirk playing “Ain’t No Sunshine” from his 1972 album Blacknuss. His singing through his breathy notes really does it for me. 

So there you go, some jazz flute to get your week started right.