George Russell

Shame that "perceived consensus" apparently excludes AMG!

Well, in the absence of an actual review, the five star rating is suspect at best. I've yet to find a discussion of George Russell's discography-- including this one-- that doesn't downgrade the 1980 version.

(That said, I'd still give it a listen if I ever actually stumbled over it.)

Get this: www.amazon.com/Black-Saint-Soul-George-Russell/dp/B003QM1ANU/

The Complete Black Saint & Soul Note recordings (9 CDs!) can be had for less than $40. It has all three versions of *Electronic Sonata for Souls Loved By Nature*, and actually, I think all three are excellent.

1) 1967 studio version (on *The Essence of George Russell*) - recorded by a huge group (21 players), heavy on the brass.

2) 1969 live version (on *Electronic Sonata For Souls Loved By Nature - 1968*...why "1968" is in the title when it was recorded in 1969, I don't know.) - sextet.

3) 1980 studio version (on *Electronic Sonata For Souls Loved By Nature - 1980*) with a sextet configuration. This version starts off significantly slower than the previous versions. It doesn't feature Rypdal and Garbarek, but there are some interesting things going on; it definitely is going for a different vibe at the beginning. Don't dismiss it until you hear it.

The boxed set also features an abridged FOURTH version - it's entitled "Souls" and it uses the main theme in an 8-minute live take, recorded in 1970 with a sextet (incl. Rypdal, Garbarek, and Christensen). This is on *Trip to Prillarguri*.

'Intellectual' white jazzer from the mid-50s on

I don't think GR was 'white'?

This page: http://www.scaruffi.com/jazz/russell.html
says Russell was "...the son of a white father and a black mother"